The invention of the lens goes far beyond the glasses that sit on your nose. Galileo used lenses to create the telescope and bring faraway things closer to mankind. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the lens exposed the microscopic world, leading to medical advancements including vaccination, anesthetics, and antibiotics.

Originally released by New Dimension Media, 2013. Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on April 16, 2021.