Tapestry artwork at the John Radcliffe Oxford university hospital depicting a woman’s sleep-activity behaviour (pictures above) and the level of light (picture below) over one year from January to December. Collaboration allowed scientists and artists to bring the perception of time to the public, patients and staff in the hospital. Scientist K.Wulff & artist S. Morris looking at a specific day. Activity and light levels are colour-coded: from low levels in black/blue to high levels in red. The seasonal pattern of light exposure is clearly visible. Recorded mainly in London, UK with one week in New York. Funded by The Wellcome Trust.
Actively engaging in a dialogue with the public, their lived experiences and diverse perspectives help scientists to push boundaries in the right direction. In search for how to connect, we found that organisations with experiences and access to the public – artists, museums, clubs, retailers, tourism, magazines – play a key role.
NAVIGATING CIRCADIAN LIGHTING
New discoveries of the connection between light flowing into the eyes and deep brain circuits that powerfully steer physiological functions beyond vision prompted a re-thinking of architectural and lighting designs with human health in mind. My colleague Joachim Stormly Hansen and I have jointly written about how to use this knowledge to be aware of the light exposure that surrounds us. The articles are published in Danish and Swedish magazines: Ljus 3-2019 and Ljuskultur 6-2019 (https://ljuskultur.se/artiklar/cirkadiskt-ljus-vad-ar-det-och-vad-behover-vi-veta-for-att-gora-kompetenta-val/.)
A simplistic model of light exposure relative to internal body time for ‘Circadian Lighting’. The zones’ position relates to the adaptive body response (outer circle) that can be different from subjective behaviour (inner circle), all being interconnected. Dashed lines represent subjective behaviour with reference to clock time. Note, this picture partitions the day into 24 hours.
