What authoritative talk? I am not talking about LightBoost. I never said it was around for long.
But you surely know old TV's flicker (strobe) a lot. Lots of existing talk about vision issues, some 50 years old about eye strain and issues after watching television. Many search phrases exists, such as "television hurts my eyes". Some say it's not a big issue, other say otherwise, but the debate has existed for a long time. Research have leaned towards conclusions on both sides of the fence for a long time.
Strobe displays have been around for almost a century, back to the day that Baird broadcast television almost 100 years ago from Crystal Palace to Nipikow disc television receivers with an image that strobed at a mere 16 Hertz. Long before CRT's replaced them. Even today, CRT are strobe displays too. Many flicker madly, especially older 50 Hz or 60 Hz ones.
CRT's were invented in the early 20th century, and have been around for a long time. As televisions gradually became popular in the 1960's and 1970's, it was noticed that there can be eyestrain in darker rooms and at closer viewing distances. Leading to the tales about TV's killing eyes in a dark room (maybe an exaggeration, although it indeed stresses the eyes more). In the UK, the 50 Hz flicker is famously annoying and that is why there are 100 Hz and 200 Hz televisions. Vision problems / eyestrain / etc from long-term watching of CRT, also depends a host of factors, the human, the picture brightness, the room lighting, how close you're watching, etc. Sitting right up close to a CRT computer monitor in a darkened room, can also amplify the problem. Also, some people are used to CRT for so long, but then stop using CRT's (and use LCD's which are sample-and-hold displays), and are not used to CRT.
Some people have well-documented (chiefly temporary) vision-related issues (strain/issues/etc) after watching TV at close distances for long periods, especially on older 50 Hz CRT's in the UK. Not everyone, but some. That in itself, is well-known. The same knowledge would easily apply to new strobe backlight technologies. Flicker (strobing) can be a double-eged sword; it massively reduces motion blur but it can also annoy people.
Some people cannot tolerate the flicker of older fluorescent lights, and prefer newer flicker-free fluorescent lights. That in itself, is also well-known.
Also, it is well known some people can't tolerate 3D shutter glasses either (which has worse eyes effects than just using LightBoost, for example, since the flicker is now 60Hz per eye, instead of 120Hz per eye). After all, LightBoost was originally designed for 3D -- but you'll only get 60 strobes per eye, instead of 120 strobes to both eyes. That in itself, is also known, although a new area of research, but boils down to the flicker issue. nVidia even includes a warning in their 3D Vision manual for prolonged 3D exposure to rest your eyes. The same warnings applies.
Lots of scientific research over decades made the following recommendations for TV watching, back in those days when televisions used to flicker a lot:
-- Adequate distance from CRT
-- Appropriate CRT brightness
-- Environment not too dark
(modern recommendations about computer monitors often suggest putting some rear lighting, such as a small lamp behind the monitor)
I will eventually clarify my FAQ's to include some of this well-known information. That said, there are now many kids today who has never used a CRT, and may not be aware of this formerly widespread information.
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