Number 197 (Story #2), October 5, 1994 by Phillip F. Schewe and Ben Stein THE SHARPEST PICTURES YET OF THE LIVING HUMAN RETINA have been produced by University of Rochester researchers, allowing scientists to see the individual cells called cones for the first time in human patients. Presenting their images at this week's meeting of the Optical Society of America in Dallas, the Rochester team (contact David Williams, 716-275-8672) took their pictures by flashing low-power yellow laser light into the dilated pupils of patients fitted with special lenses, and captured the images using a special electronic camera with higher sensitivity and resolution than ordinary film. The retina, the screen-like membrane that lines the inside of the eyeball, captures light signals and sends them to the brain. Only 3 microns wide, cone cells detect color and facilitate daytime vision. With current instruments, ophthalmologists can only see structures 10 microns or larger. The ability to resolve cones in patients could aid in the treatment of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of blindness in the elderly. (University of Rochester news release.)