WC> and I'm allergic to atropine.
 
 CJ>    Another legitimate use is for opthamologists to drop into the
 CJ> eyes to dilate the pupil.   The herb belladonna has a bit of
 CJ> atropine in it, so despite the dangers of dosage it was used 
 CJ> cosmetically to dilate the pupils, hence the name for the herb--
 CJ> "beautiful lady."

 RJT> I didn't know that was what they used to do those checks (my
 RJT> optometrist uses something of the sort,  and yes I know the difference
 RJT> between that and an opthamologist :-).  We had an appointment a while
 RJT> back where my other half got an exam and ended up with a new pair of
 RJT> glasses that she's happy with,  and that dilation was a part of it. 
 RJT> Went out for dinner later that night,  and in listening to her
 RJT> descriptions of some of the visual effects,  I connected that with
 RJT> descriptions I'd heard of some of the effects of hallucinogens. 
 RJT> Extreme pupil dilation being one of the "symptoms" of
the use of those
 RJT> drugs,  I'd never connected the visual stuff with an actual effect
 RJT> caused by the dilation until then... 

	The reason, of course, that an opthamalogist uses the drops
is that such artificial dilation lets him/her shine a light in and
take a good look at the retina.  Not necessary for the usual eyeglass
testing, but a good idea to catch some nasty stuff early.  I don't
remember anything particularly hallucinogenic in connection with the
the drops I had earlier, except it making everything bright (hence
the caution with light exposure), but maybe that was just me and the
dose.
	Drugs that do heavy numbers on the central nervous system
will generally show that by dilation of pupils (if they're a depressant)
or by "pinprick" contraction (if a stimulant).  A low-tech method (to
keep on topic) favored by emergency medical techs to see if there's been
a concussion or whatever is to prop open the eyelid and shine a flashlight
in and see if the pupil contracts.  Besides light, something else that
affects dilation and contraction of pupils is whether one sees something
desirable or not.  If one sees something desirable the pupil will dilate;
this used to be an old trick of jade dealers, and it's been used in
high-tech methods of various kinds.  Of course, if a woman signals that
she's interested by dilated pupils, a guy will likely also become more
interested, hence why "belladonna" got the name.




--- Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR]