Scientists at UC Berkeley have created a revolutionary technology called Oz, which stimulates individual cone cells in the human eye using microdoses of laser light to produce a brand-new, ultra-saturated blue-green color—named olo. This color doesn’t exist in nature and disappears instantly if the precise stimulation is disrupted.
Key Facts:
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New Color Discovery: Olo is a highly saturated blue-green color created by stimulating M cones.
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Advanced Precision: Oz uses lasers to control up to 1,000 photoreceptors at once.
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Research Potential: It could be used to study eye diseases, simulate vision loss, or even enhance color perception.
How It Works:
Human color vision relies on three types of cone cells:
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S cones (short wavelengths, blue)
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M cones (medium wavelengths, green)
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L cones (long wavelengths, red)
Because M and L cones overlap in sensitivity, it’s normally impossible to isolate M cones using natural light. However, with Oz, researchers can do exactly that—stimulating only M cones to create a never-before-seen color.
Technology Behind Oz:
Oz uses laser light (like a green laser pointer) to activate selected cone cells. With an individual’s unique cone cell map, the system can direct laser pulses with extreme accuracy to trigger specific visual responses.
Despite using a single-color laser, the Oz system can produce full-color imagery or isolate specific sensations like olo. The display covers an area about the size of a fingernail at arm’s length.
The Experience of Olo:
Participants in the study described olo as an incredibly vivid blue-green, more intense than any color in nature. When the laser was misaligned, the color immediately reverted to ordinary green—highlighting how finely tuned the stimulation must be.
Applications and Future Research:
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Studying diseases that involve cone loss
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Simulating color blindness or other vision conditions
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Possibly enabling people to perceive new dimensions of color, like tetrachromacy
The technology represents a new way to explore how the brain interprets sensory inputs and how our perception could be expanded with artificial stimulation.
Conclusion:
Oz offers a new frontier in visual science by showing that human vision can be extended beyond its natural limits. By directly controlling how individual photoreceptors respond, we can create experiences like olo—a glimpse into colors our eyes were never meant to see.
