# Why is optometry stupid? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 23, 2009, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-optometry-stupid/504018 "2009-07-23T17:24:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 1
**Author:** ![JonathanTheRed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8491ac/32.png) [@JonathanTheRed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JonathanTheRed)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-optometry-stupid/504018/1 "2009-07-23T17:24:00Z")
Suppose I’m given a pair of binoculars. I look through them at something, and it’s fuzzy. So I rotate the little knob on top of the binoculars. I turn it one way, the image gets fuzzier, so I turn it the other way. It gets sharper. By making minute analog adjustments, correcting for small errors, I can get the image as sharply focused as I’d like. And after I’m done, somebody could probably use the position of the focus wheel to determine how far away the object I was looking at is. Then I go to an optometrist and sit in his chair. There’s an image in front of me; it’s fuzzy. He sticks some lenses in front of my eyes. Does he give me a little focus wheel, so I can turn it and bring the image into sharp focus? Noooooooooooo. Instead, it’s a whole series of “Which looks clearer, this? Or (flip) this? This? Or (flip) this? This? Or (flip) this?” Over and over and over again, without any opportunity to see both images simultaneously, without any opportunity to make minute adjustments. Oftentimes, the two images look very similar, and since they can’t be seen at the same time, it’s guesswork. It seems a horribly inefficient and inexact way of figuring out what sort of optics are needed to bring an image into focus. I know optometrists aren’t stupid. There must be some _reason_ for this apparently-stupid method, but what is it? --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-optometry-stupid/504018)._