Professor William Ayliffe is a Consultant Ophthalmologist in the NHS and at the Lister Hospital in London. As well as being a practising clinician and teacher, he also continues to carry out clinical research into the prevention of blindness. Professor Aylife is the Gresham Professor of Physic.Professor Ayliffe took up his Professorship in 2009, the 200th anniversary of Louis Braille's birth. His lectures offer A Cultural and Scientific Survey of the Eye and Vision, centring on the biological and cultural aspects of the human eye and vision, covering the overlapping medical, philosophical and humanitarian concerns of this area.