Pupil Dilation
 

So I'm just a little curious. Has anyone heard of or actually experienced the ability to control the dialation of your puples consciously?

I doubt that this can be done consciously.

I mean, have you ever had your pupils dilated at the optometrist? Try walking outside on a bright sunny day without sunglasses right after. It sucks. Majorly.



Actually.. don't your pupils dilate naturally at night? To let in more light?

If they're controlled by muscles, I could imagine that in theory one might be able to, but it's not something I want to go toying with. I mean, the dangers of conscious pupil manipulation are scary. Only robots should have that power, and we all know what robots are like....

Yes, your pupils dilate based on how much light they are getting.

It depends some things aren't controlled by your brain, they are reflexes that can not be changed, I don't remember enough biology to know if dilation is a reflex. Even if it isn't it is probably controlled by the part of the brain that doesn't involve decision making or "thinking", so in short my guess would be that you probably couldn't do it. Even if one were able to, I don't really see how it would be helpful, or even why anyone would want to do it? Why do you want to know?

If you can learn to controll your heartbeat and blood pressure consciously, I suspect that a reflex action could be controlled consciously. I'd imagine it would be unpleasant to do it too much, and you would risk eye damage by dilating them too much in bright conditions.

It's just a simple matter of mastering biofeedback (the ability to control the body's unconcious processes, like heartbeat, etc). Hah, simple. It is possible, but difficult. I do know people who can do it, though, and I've seen it done.

Err, why would anyone want to control this?

Hurray, I can make everything appear really bright or really dark at will!

It's basically an aperature on a camera, for you photography folks.

EDIT: W-w-wait! before reading all the crap i typed- W-w-what? there actually ARE people you know who can control the pupil size at will? Wow... I'd really like to see that. (oh, and i remember the heart is made up of, strangely, rough muscles- the only exception about smooth and rough muscles-read on and you'll get what i say- so controlling the heart does not sound that impossible. then again you can just think about scary things or make yourself nervous to make your heart beat faster, and vice versa...)

aye. dilation is a brain reflex. that's why in boxing matches the medics flashlight the knocked-out boxer when the situation looks bad- just to see if he's brain-dead or just, unconscious.

and also, muscles are roughly divided into two types as far as i remember from my Bio classes (I'm studying theatre in uni now...so don't blame me for mistakes :p ): smooth and rough muscles, or something like that. rough muscles are those you can control(tense) by will, so to speak, for example your bicepts, on the other hand smooth muscles like, hmm, most part of your intestines are not really moving at your will. and the circular muscles if the iris are smooth muscles as i remember, so, i guess... njah, no pupil dilation at will...

it would be really fun though. i'd like to have fun with the images i see- just to adjust the brightness of what i see and, well, to have different effects, simply for fun :)

interesting idea though. :thumbsup:

I think you could, your pupil size changes the way you look at an object. For example, if I was looking at an object that is placed up close in front of me and then I look at it in a way it is further away and yet, its distance hasn't changed.

One of my ex-gf noticed that my pupil size kept changing when I was looking at her and I told her that I was just looking at her in different ways. I dunno, its my theory.

I was going to reply to this thread with a resounding "NO!", but on further reflection, I am continuously amazed at people's ability to control their own bodies. Therefore, I reply with a resounding "Highly doubtful!" and further the question as to why you would want to.

Pupil dialation is considered a sign of romantic interest, which is why candlelight dinners are so popular. That might be related to a reason to have manual control.

/ Does anyone remember the first episode of 3rd Rock from the Sun?
"Help, I can't see!" "Idiot, your eyes are closed." "Oh, I didn't realize they were manual."

From what I understand your mood and emotions can sometimes affect pupil dilation. I have heard that your pupils will constrict when you are angry or in a fight or flight mode. It's one reason why someones eyes can look more 'piercing' when someone is angry. If it can be affected by mood or emotions than I believe you can control it. There is so much about the mind that we don't understand that I believe that any bodily function can be controled to some point consiously. I also believe that few of us will ever be capable of said control since so many of us barely control what we eat or feel, all that well.

When you say control, do you mean completely (as in, have the ability to stops one's heart)? Because I know it can be controlled indirectly (slowed or speeded up slightly, but not full control), but I've never heard of complete control over one's heart.

My son demonstrated the ability to control the dilation of his pupils while he was under “whatever-drug-it-is-before-they-really-knock-you-out” anesthesia. At the time, he did not know he was controlling his pupils, he believed he had developed the ability to dim or intensify the room lights by thinking about it. He demonstrated this both for me and the nurse I called. She said she had never seen anything like it before, but did not seem concerned. The ability lasted for less than ten minutes, and he has never been able to duplicate it.

It's mostly people who can adjust rate, but there was one guy in the early 1900s who could stop his heart at will. He did it for half an hour once and died the next day. I can drop my blood pressure by almost 20/10 points in a minute or two just by relaxing and focusing on it. I suspect that I'd be able to do heart rate or even pupil dilation if I put enough effort into it. I can also wiggle my ears, although that's not too uncommon.

Ah that makes a lot more sense to me (can't believe I wrote "speeded". sigh). The ability to slow heart rate (or even increase it) as well as just alter blood pressure is a lot more tangible to me.

Redlemon has part of the motivation right.

My eyes are extremely sensitive to light, so I have to squint when I'm walking around outside. I can read in very dark conditions. I'd like to be able to adjust it for when I'm getting ready to walk outside.

Furthermore, it would be an awesome trick.