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Sorry if this might appear funny. When I close my eyes for a longer time, and suddenly open it, I see some twinkling white small circles, and when i concentrate on anyone of them it disappears, as if the image is falling on the blind spot.

This also happens when I am struck on my head sometimes accidentally. I would see thousands of tiny objects floating. What are these and why they appear shiny ?

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    $\begingroup$ i think they are randomly triggered neural impulses in the retina or optical nerve. $\endgroup$
    – shigeta
    Commented Nov 5, 2012 at 22:31

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"Seeing stars", or as it formally is called, "phosphene", is caused by stimulation of the visual cortex or retina by causes other than light hitting the retina. http://www.oubliette.org.uk/Three.html

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    $\begingroup$ Wikipedia on it's own is a poor reference, try following their sources back to find something less fluid :) $\endgroup$
    – Rory M
    Commented Nov 12, 2012 at 21:25
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    $\begingroup$ @RoryM Ok, I don't know what you mean with "something less fluid" but I've added the source that seems most complete on the subject, although that source is also based on other sources, IDK if that's ok? P.S: I tought that puting a wiki article would count as a good reference cause they are required to have "reliable" sources backing up their text... $\endgroup$
    – Jo Rijo
    Commented Nov 13, 2012 at 10:16
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    $\begingroup$ Hi Jo, Wikipedia can change every day, there's no guarantee that a reference to wikipedia will remain accurate if the source article is changed. Of course, you can say that about virtually any online source but Wikipedia in particular is prone to this. Ideally, you should look at peer-reviewed sources, however the source you now link seems a comprehensive review, therefore I will reverse my downvote. $\endgroup$
    – Rory M
    Commented Nov 20, 2012 at 0:54
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    $\begingroup$ @RoryM, I do not mean to imply that Wikipedia carries more weight as reference than proper sources, but I'd like to point out that it is possible to link to a specific revision of an article. Under Toolbox, you can find the article's Permanent link, which will always redirect to the revision you were viewing. $\endgroup$
    – Matheus Moreira
    Commented Nov 22, 2012 at 15:20

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