Andrew Karp, Group Editor, Lenses & Technology
Andrew has reported on many facets of the optical industry for
Vision Monday and
20/20 Magazine since 1987. He specializes in covering the latest developments in ophthalmic dispensing, spectacle lenses and treatments, lens processing technology, optical laboratories and wearable technology. Andrew contributes daily briefings to
VMAIL LaunchPad, that spotlights new products, software and online applications for labs and dispensers. He also helps plan and produce
Vision Monday’s annual Global Leadership Summit. Contact Andrew at
akarp@jobson.com.
By Andrew Karp
Friday, April 9, 2021 12:30 AM
VM releases third Summit Micro Chat, J&J Vision launches global myopia collaboration, national sales decline, Jobson tracker says, Eyemart Express expands to Tennessee, and Jobson issues Wave 21 of ECP Survey all topped this week’s VMAIL news feed. Click on the headlines below to catch up on anything you might have missed.
By Andrew Karp
Friday, April 9, 2021 12:27 AM
NEW YORK—With millions of Americans facing job losses and other economic hardships resulting from the pandemic, providing access to healthcare for those in need has taken on new urgency. The crisis is prompting healthcare policy makers and researchers to sharpen their focus on the underlying causes that prevent many people from getting the healthcare services they need. In a new video, “Access to Care: The Social Determinants of Health,”
VM editorial director Marge Axelrad and lens and technology editor Andrew Karp discuss this timely topic and how it impacts vision care. The video, the third in a series of “Micro Chats on Macro Topics,” can be viewed
here.
By Andrew Karp
Friday, April 2, 2021 8:30 AM
As a journalist who covers vision technology, I’ve become fascinated with eye tracking and its many uses, which range from health care to virtual and augmented reality, sports training, gaming, retail, marketing, education and military applications. Eye tracking uses motion-detecting sensors embedded in special eyeglasses or behind a computer screen to detect and measure eye movement. As many
VMAIL readers know, it’s used for diagnosing and treating vision problems related to the eye-brain connection. “We use eye tracking on virtually every single one of our patients who are coming in with a visual processing issue,” said Charles Shidlofsky, OD, FCOVD, a vision development and vision rehabilitation specialist whose practice,
Neuro-Vision Associates of North Texas, is in Plano, Texas.
By Andrew Karp
Friday, March 5, 2021 2:00 PM
Retinal cells derived from a cadaver human eye survived when transplanted into the eyes of primate models, an important advance in the development of cell therapy to treat blindness, according to a study published on January 14 in
Stem Cell Reports. The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a layer of pigmented cells in the retina, functions as a barrier and regulator in the eye to maintain normal vision. RPE dysfunction can lead to eye disorders including macular degeneration and can cause blindness, which affects about 200 million people worldwide.
By Andrew Karp
Friday, February 5, 2021 8:00 AM
It’s hard to say how many miles of aisles I’ve walked over the 10 years that I’ve attended CES, the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Let’s just say I have worn out several pairs of shoes while treading the floors of the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Sands Convention Center and other CES venues. This year I spared my soles and let my fingers do the walking, as they used to say in those old Yellow Pages ads. (Remember them?) That’s because CES, like countless conventions and meetings around the world, was a virtual event.
By Andrew Karp
Friday, January 8, 2021 8:30 AM
It’s a plotline straight out of the movies. Three former optical wholesale lab owners leave behind the daily grind of making prescription eyewear to become producers of independent films featuring Alec Baldwin, Marisa Tomei and other big name stars. Like the legal disclaimer seen at the start of many movies, this story is based on actual events. In fact, the main characters—Michael J. Rothstein, formerly Hirsch Optical in New York, Mike Palkovicz, formerly of I-See Optical Lab in New Jersey and Greg Ruden, formerly of Expert Optics in Illinois—are real people who are well-known to many in optical. How they landed their dream job is the true story of three middle-aged guys who each sold their successful family business, invested in an indie production company, took a leap into the unknown and landed on their feet.
By Andrew Karp
Tuesday, December 22, 2020 6:30 PM
Optical laboratories have always been an important part of Vision Monday’s editorial coverage. Over the years, we celebrated and elevated labs because they are the backbone of the optical industry, providing support for eyecare professionals and optical retailers while serving as an essential link in the optical supply chain. Our original research and in-depth reports spotlight the accomplishments of the companies and individuals who contribute to the growth of this vital sector of our industry
By Andrew Karp
Tuesday, December 22, 2020 6:28 PM
McLeod Optical discovered that the shape of a frame tracing did not stay the same when the demo lens was removed from the tracer. “The frames would lose their shape when demos were removed,” said Scott MacLeod, president of the Warwick, Rhode Island-based lab. “The b measurement would become smaller and the a measurement would increase. This would affect the first time fit at edging and the cosmetics of the job would be off, causing customer complaints.”
By Andrew Karp
Friday, December 11, 2020 11:16 AM
This week, wearable technology company
Mojo Vision announced that it is collaborating with contact lens maker
Menicon to develop smart contact lens products. The move marks an important step forward for the California-based company, which for the past three years has been developing the Mojo Lens, a sensor-enabled contact lens that can give the wearer augmented reality viewing capability. To date, the only smart, sensor-enabled contact lenses on the market is the Sensimed Triggerfish, which provides an automated recording of continuous ocular dimensional change over 24 hours and was approved by the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2016.
Read More
By Andrew Karp
Friday, December 11, 2020 11:13 AM
This week, wearable technology company
Mojo Vision announced that it is collaborating with contact lens maker
Menicon to develop smart contact lens products. The move marks an important step forward for the California-based company, which for the past three years has been developing the Mojo Lens, a sensor-enabled contact lens that can give the wearer augmented reality viewing capability. To date, the only smart, sensor-enabled contact lenses on the market is the Sensimed Triggerfish, which provides an automated recording of continuous ocular dimensional change over 24 hours and was approved by the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2016.
By Andrew Karp
Friday, November 13, 2020 1:19 PM
Writing parody songs is a tricky business. Lots of folks try their hand at it, but it’s harder than it seems. Unless you’re
Weird Al Yankovic, who has made a career of taking hit songs and transforming them into something totally different, with often hilarious results, you’d better be darn clever and have a deft way with a rhyme if you’re going to mess with someone’s perfectly good song in the hopes of making them laugh. Otherwise, the result can be laughable for all the wrong reasons. Writing an optical parody song is even trickier. The subject matter is much more limited, and so is the audience that can appreciate such esoterica.