the.com/cataract
a cloudy curtain drawn slowly across the window of sight.
means A cataract is a clouding of the eye's lens that blurs vision, or — in its older sense — a large, steep waterfall or downpour.
from From Latin cataracta, 'waterfall' or 'portcullis,' borrowed from Greek kataraktēs — something that rushes or swoops down, from kata- 'down' and a root meaning 'to dash' or 'swoop.' The eye sense grew from the waterfall image: the idea of a falling barrier or veil descending over sight, much like a portcullis crashing down to seal a gate.
- name origin
- Latin for waterfall, like vision blurred by falling water
- leading cause
- world's number one cause of blindness
- reversible
- a five-minute surgery restores clear sight
- lens swap
- surgeons replace the cloudy lens with plastic
- sun risk
- UV light speeds the clouding along
niagara falls — massive waterfall on the border of ontario and new york, dropping 188 feet
victoria falls — waterfall on the zambezi river between zambia and zimbabwe, 355 feet high
inga falls — series of cataracts on the congo river in democratic republic of congo with a 315-foot drop