We’re all familiar with the way that plants lean towards the light – and we tend to think of that leaning to the light as a metaphor. But turns out that this response is more than a figure of speech.
The plant hormone auxin and the receptor TIR1 triggers ‘stretch’ or lengthening of cells on the side of the plant that is away from the light to create that ‘bend’ . It’s fascinating to learn that a similar enzyme / protein bond in humans may well be involved in cancer and other conditions such as Parkinson’s - and new treatments are being developed to harness that light-response mechanism.
The ability to orient ourselves in space, to identify mates and seek out predators (and hide from them!) is so vital to life on earth that the ability to ‘see’ evolved over 550 million years ago. The evolution of this remarkable organ that we call an eye started off as a with single light-sensitive spot, gradually becoming a dip or depression with a smaller aperture like a pinhole camera – able to focus light – then transparent layer to cover the front / keep it clean, rinsed by salty water through a sponge of trabecular meshwork and tear ducts. There are creatures with every stage of evolution living today.
Nuts and bolts of sight…
A quick recap of the process itself. Our experience of seeing is a lively conversation between the world outside and the world 'in here' - the eye and brain. Out in the world, a stream of photons falls on and then is absorbed by or bounces off a surface in space.
The eyes, nerves, synaptic connections gather those signals and pass them on to be interpreted through a series of parallel pathways in the brain. We process some kinds of information within as little as 13 milliseconds. That’s the pathway that triggers the ‘duck’ reflex when a tennis ball is flying towards you. It takes a lot longer for that information to be processed into awareness of a ‘thing’ or a ‘place. So you could say that we are ‘seeing’ things that have already happened.
In terms of how light directs behaviour, we'll focus on two linked but parallel pathways.
The first is the image-forming pathway – specialist structures called rods and cones that line the back of the eye. These are sensitive to different wavelengths of light and respond rapidly to changes in the pattern of distribution entering the hole in the front of the eye. This is the system that gives us information about things and spaces in the world - safe of not, sexy or not, edible or not…
The second, discovered relatively recently by Prof Russell Foster, is a parallel system of specialist ganglion cells. These detect slow changes in the brightness and warmth (or ‘colour temperature’) that signal different times of day. This sets off a train of physiological reactions that get us ready to do the things we need to do at that time of day – be alert for hunting and hiding, slow down to rest and recover…
These systems are constantly evolving in response to expectation, adaptation, training and ageing - hardware changes with age, software changes with expectation- garbage in, sense out.
Living in a box...
Richard Gregory describes this as the ‘black box’ theory of perception. Our brains are, quite literally, in the dark. We build hypotheses about what is out there in the world and use signals from the eye to test them. In his view, only around 30% of what we ‘see’ is fresh information.
Light shows us where to go...
When we’re looking at designing a space, there are two broad dimensions to consider: The position of the light source and the quality of that light source. People tend to turn right when entering a space and will even climb over barriers in their efforts to 'swim upstream'. But placing a bright light in the left hand corridor creates a significant shift in that pattern.
The position of the light source is also a vital cue to where that object is located in space and our relationship with it. This work by Amaury Descours illustrates the point well. Light on a face from below gives a strange ‘otherworldly’ feeling – because we expect light to be coming from above. Equally, light coming from the side casts deep shadows and suggests mystery. Light from above confers a sense of superiority, light from directly in front tends to give an impression of confidence - or confrontation.
The position and the optics or ‘focus’ of the light also shapes our experience of a space and our position in it. For example, glare or dazzle from a focused light source in the line of vision creates a sense of vulnerability and tension, a uniform spread of light from a diffuse source creates a sense of being in a public space and discourages intimate conversations. Non-uniform lighting creates intimacy. Complex lighting is perceived as pleasant, while a combination of overhead & edge lighting creates an experience of spaciousness,
It makes sense really, if you relate those different states to lighting conditions out in the wild. Essentially, we behave ‘better’ when we are in bright daylight. We exhibit more pro-social behaviour, make healthier choices about what to eat and how much, and stop when we are on a losing streak –
Whether to take a gamble..
Casinos know this very well. Compulsive gamblers don’t stop after a loss. They don’t even slow down. It turns out that red lights inhibit that ‘quit while you're ahead’ reflex. Add gambling sounds and that reflex is even weaker. We don’t stand a chance!
What you buy…
Retail designers know this too. As a general rule, customers associate ambient with low cost and accent with upmarket. Some stores – TKMaxx, Boots, Lidl – are ambient only, while some – Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister, SuperDry – are accent only, to great effect.
Customers pick up twice as many items from shelving with integrated lighting, than those with none - and once it's in your hands, you are far more likely to take it to the till. And when you are there, if the cash register is bathed in a warm golden light, you are likely to be more generous and patient.
Savvy retail lighting designers adjust the colour temperature to appeal to different age groups: A cool colour temperature (4000K to 6000K) conveys spaciousness and appeals to a young demographic while warm colour temperatures (2700K to 3000K) convey familiarity and appeal to older, upmarket customers.
The colour of the light also affects the way produce looks – a supermarket chain in Germany changed their lighting to a circadian system with dramatic impact on the value and volume of sales, customer loyalty and staff retention.
Lighting shapes our perception of value of a whole range of things- including houses – ‘curb appeal’ external lighting can increase the perceived value of a house by 20%...
What you eat...
Once you get the food home, the lighting conditions determine what you eat and how much. One study, published in The Journal of Marketing Research looked at the orders of 160 diners at four chain restaurants. Half the diners were seated in dimly-lit rooms, and half were seated in well-lit areas. The diners who were sitting in low light ordered 39% more calories. Meanwhile the people in brighter surroundings were 16% to 24% more likely to choose healthy menu items (think grilled fish or white meat and veggies). In follow-up experiments, the researchers got the same results from hundreds of college-aged students.
Author Dr Dipyan Biswas explained why - we feel more alert in brighter rooms and therefore tend to make more healthful, forward-thinking decisions," In fact, the researchers found that when diners in dimly-lit rooms were given a coffee placebo (or simply asked to be more alert) they were just as likely as their peers in the well-lit rooms to make healthy food choices.
It seems making healthy choices has more to do with the brightness of your mental state than the brightness of the room. So don't swear off candle-lit dinners yet. The best way to avoid overindulging is to make yourself feel more alert, said co-author Brian Wansink, PhD, the director of the Cornell Food and Brand Lab.
That could mean going for a brisk walk before dinner, or splashing some water on your face for an instant energy boost. Pick-me-ups like these might actually be preferable, because as Wansink pointed out, mood lighting isn't all bad. In prior research, his lab has found that people who eat in darkened rooms enjoy their food more, eat slower, and consume less overall.
How much you get done...
Lighting makes a shockingly big difference to our productivity - even more important as many of us work from home. Given how sensitive our bodies and brains are to subtle shifts in the orientation and optics, brightness and composition of light, it’s not surprising that this has a massive impact on our ability to think straight and stay focused.
Using a good-quality light source is a great place to start - look at the comparison between sunlight and artificial lights.
Colour temperature
One study found that, blue-enriched white light (17000K) improved the subjective measures of alertness, positive mood, fatigue, performance, irritability, concentration and eye discomfort in office workers. They also found that daytime sleepiness was reduced, and the quality of subjective nocturnal sleep was improved.
Age makes a big difference too. Younger women were affected (both positively and negatively). for longer than the males. Older adults showed a negative mood in cool bluish lighting, whilst younger adults showed a more negative mood in warm, reddish light (Knez & Kers, 2000). Children approaching their teens (8-12 years old) were more positively inclined towards a reddish light that made them feel calmer. This study also showed an increase in pro-social behaviour, better reading comprehension by the participating students, as well as greater reading speed and fewer errors.
Light for life
This is a complex area because we not only need to consider the wellbeing of the patients, but also of the people who take care of them day in, day out.
Functional qualities of lighting are obviously important - changes in light levels can reduce dispensing errors by 1/3rd and it's obvious that a surgical team need to see what they're doing.
But the vital role of the day-night cycle in regulating a whole host of physiological functions also need to be considered. Women who have worked shift patterns for 9 years or more are 11% more likely to die of all causes, and after 25 years, death from lung cancer is 25% higher than the general population.
One study found that the average stay for patients suffering from bipolar disorder was 3.67 days shorter for bipolar patients with East-facing windows. Patients staying on the bright side of the hospital unit were exposed to 46% higher-intensity sunlight on average. This study found that patients exposed to an increased intensity of sunlight experienced less perceived stress, marginally less pain, took 22% less analgesic medication per hour, and had 21% less pain medication costs (Walch et al., 2005).
In another study, 41 preterm infants in structurally identical critical-care units were provided either cycled or noncycled lighting (constant light levels during the day and night) during a lengthy hospital stay. Compared to infants in the noncycled lighting condition, infants assigned to the cycled lighting condition had a greater rate of weight gain, were able to be fed orally sooner, spent fewer days on the ventilator and on phototherapy, and displayed enhanced motor coordination (Miller et al., 1995).
Back to nature…
And back to those plants and animals. They are all affected by light as we are – and light pollution can be as damaging as plastics and toxic fumes.
Light spilling from our 24 hour cities disorients and disrupts the migration, nesting and feeding patterns of sea creatures like turtles and the everyday birds and insects that are as vital to food production as to our wellbeing.
The bottom line...
A growing body of research is proving what we already know - light has the power to harm or to heal in every aspect of our lives. Not only for humans, butfor every single life form under the sun. A revolution in lighting technologies, optics and controls are making it possible to harness this force for good. More important than ever in a 24/7 lock-down world.
It really is up to every single one of us to see the light.
Dr Shelley James
Lecturer at Royal College of Art