05-24-2016, 09:08 PM
I can see how, at one time, this was a philosophy question since giving sight to a blind person was just theoretical but now it isn't. The few occasions where it has happened the result was what I consider to be the obvious answer to the theory. No, they can't distinguish shapes by sight alone at first. Over time they can learn. I couldn't find an online accounting of the first story I heard of a man getting sight for the first time (at least not in less than 3 minutes) but I do recall that even after several years of having vision he still couldn't ascertain if a person was male or female by sight alone.
But I did find one account of a person getting sight and it clearly states it took months to learn shapes http://scienceblogs.com/cognitivedaily/2008/11/11/can-a-blind-person-whose-visio/
So the only 2 examples I know of say, no. Maybe someone can find a real world example that says otherwise but I would be truly shocked. Even people who once had sight, lost it (possibly as a child), then regained it after several years (as an adult) have had issues using sight to identify certain things, especially facial recognition.
But I did find one account of a person getting sight and it clearly states it took months to learn shapes http://scienceblogs.com/cognitivedaily/2008/11/11/can-a-blind-person-whose-visio/
So the only 2 examples I know of say, no. Maybe someone can find a real world example that says otherwise but I would be truly shocked. Even people who once had sight, lost it (possibly as a child), then regained it after several years (as an adult) have had issues using sight to identify certain things, especially facial recognition.
