Jerome Jay Wolken (March 28, 1917 – May 10, 1999) was an American biophysicist who used his research in vision in deep sea creatures to develop a kind of eyeglasses that used specially designed lenses to gather more light, which provided vision to some people who were legally blind.
[3] As head of the Biophysical research laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh, Wolken received a project from NASA to develop a rocket-borne detector that could be used to search for signs of extraterrestrial life using microspectrophotometry with a series of focusing lenses that Wolken had developed.
In 1965, Wolken was awarded a $50,000 grant from the Rachel Mellon Walton Foundation to create new and improved laboratory space for his work at the Carnegie Institute of Technology.
[5] In studies he conducted at Marine Biological Laboratory, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and other facilities around the world, Wolken did extensive research on deep sea animals, investigating the way that their lenses were constructed to allow them to see in the near-complete darkness in waters up to 1,500 feet (460 m) deep.
In addition to their use in astronomy and medicine and photography, the lenses could be worn by individuals with cataracts to provide them with improved vision.