'Peek' is a new way to test your eye health — all through a phone.
The day finally arrived for Dr. Hillary Rono to test a technology that could help blind people see again.
He was so pumped, and rightfully so.
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He only needed his phone to do it.
And let's be real, we all know he was going to bring that with him anyway.
Rono and his team were finally going to put Peek — the Portable Eye Examination Kit — to the test. It's a genius idea that Rono, Dr. Andrew Bastawrous, and many others worked hard to develop.
Peek was developed by Bastawrous, Rono, and many others. It's a smartphone technology that makes eye exams easier, more affordable, and more accessible from anywhere in the world. There are no fancy machines or expensive gear involved. Instead, it's all done through your phone.
Rono had every right to be excited. Especially because the technology worked during the test.
“I thought we'd probably find 4 or 5 people with eye problems," he said. "But to my surprise, we've seen 50 to 100, and all have eye problems."
That was just in one trip to the village. And in every village, Rono used the Peek adapter over the built-in camera on his phone to see high quality images of the eye. Then he was able to determine the overall health of the eye and what steps needed to be taken next for treatment.
The app can help detect cataracts, glaucoma, diabetes, and even signs of malaria.
And it's catching on. In Kenya, where there are only two eye doctors for every one million people, Rono can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that he can reach more people than ever before.
"When I began in the hospital, I was alone with one nurse. We were seeing 15 people in outpatients every day, and that year we operated on only 98," he said in a feature by Duck Rabbit.
"At the moment, we are seeing now 20,000 people treated for avoidable blindness and operating on 2,000 [people] a year."
20,000?!! That's progress. People who live in remote areas, who normally go without health care, are now able to access these services a lot more easily because they're so portable.
And considering that 80% of blindness in the world is preventable and curable, technology like Peek has the potential to change eyesight as we know it.
It's not meant to replace other eye equipment, but rather allow eye care to happen in areas that never used to have it. And it doesn't take a highly skilled person to use the technology, either. You simpy snap the photos and send them through your phone to a trained professional.
You'll probably be hearing about Peek more because it's planned to be released more widely in early 2016. Until then, see more about the incredible impact it's made so far in testing:
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An actual beaver dam on the now-thriving Price River
Not just coworkers—family, friends, strangers, kids…
Imagine having to go so badly but being out of euros. 
Anything hobbit-esque can't be wrong. 
But what if you need pain meds AND mascara?!
Imagine how this would affect childcare.
Honestly…where's the lie?
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Urgent dash to the bathroom! 🚪🏃♂️
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."