Dragon fly eye, lens very precise?

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the genetic encoding of the lens shape in dragonfly ommatidia, specifically the radii of curvature for the front and back surfaces, referred to as r_f and f_b. It is established that while genetic variations may lead to diverse combinations of these values, nature has optimized the design of the dragonfly lens. The conversation also highlights that each ommatidium functions as a point detector rather than an image-forming system, emphasizing the importance of light collection efficiency and the role of hexagonal packing in spatial arrangement.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of genetic encoding and its implications in biological structures
  • Basic knowledge of optics, particularly lens curvature and light collection
  • Familiarity with the structure and function of compound eyes in insects
  • Concepts of spatial arrangement and packing efficiency in biological systems
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  • Research the genetic mechanisms behind lens shape in dragonflies and other insects
  • Explore the principles of optics related to lens curvature and light efficiency
  • Investigate the role of ommatidia in insect vision and their comparison to camera systems
  • Study hexagonal packing in nature and its applications in various biological and engineering contexts
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Biologists, entomologists, optical engineers, and anyone interested in the mechanics of insect vision and genetic influences on anatomical structures.

Spinnor
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Is the exact shape of the lens of a dragon fly ommatidium genetically encoded?

I guess that the radius of curvature for both the front and back surfaces of the lens is somehow genetically encoded, call them r_f and f_b? I guess nature has come up with an optimal design for the dragonfly lens, in principle could genetic variations give rise to an infinite combination of values for r_f and f_b?

How nature forms those seemingly perfect lenses seems quite some trick, see,

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/517/justeyevj5.jpg/sr=1

Thanks for any help!
 
Biology news on Phys.org
http://cronodon.com/BioTech/Insect_Vision.html

AFAIK, each omnatidium can be considered a point detector, not an image-forming system- what matters more is the efficiency of light collection, and isolated non-functional cells do not materially degrade the overall image-forming ability of the compound eye. The spatial arrangement of omnatidiums (?) can be explained by basic physics- hexagonal packing is the most efficient (AFAIK).
 

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