Next time you’re working late on a project and missing a few hours of sleep, there’s something you might want to consider adding to your environment. It can’t hurt, and it might mean fewer cups of coffee will have to get you through the night.

Live Science reports that a recent study of 16 volunteers found that exposure to blue light instantly makes people alert.

Researcher Steven Lockley, an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School, said, “(it sustained) a high level of alertness during the night…and may be a powerful countermeasure for the negative effects of fatigue.”

The results were published in the journal Sleep (I’ll refrain from the obvious attempts at humor).

Significantly, “The effects lasted as long as the blue light was on, which was 6.5 hours,” according to Lockley. Left unanswered was the question of whether the blue light offset drowsiness as much as caffeine, but it is an obvious topic for further research. Likewise, possible synergies between the two stimulants need to be explored.

Meanwhile, you can make use of this finding by purchasing off-the-shelf “mood bulbs” that screw into a conventional lighting fixture. They’re available in various colors, including blue. Blue LEDs are another option.

Note: If you do this, be sure you use commercially available light sources. Certain frequencies and intensities of blue light can be dangerous to the eye.

The work adds to other evidence that the human eye sees things we’re not consciously aware of. Other research has shown that the eye’s hidden perceptive abilities help control our 24-hour internal clock, so we know when to sleep and when to wake.

It is interesting to contemplate that such a fundamental discovery, one that could have been made at any time in the last century, is happening now.

It underscores my belief that the technological tidal wave, in its rush of progress, occasionally leaves undiscovered eddy pools where opportunities for technological breakthroughs can lie dormant for long periods of time.

I’ll keep my eyes open for these, because they represent some of the lowest risk/highest reward opportunities available.
 
Red light districts will probably always be with us, at least until prostitution is widely legal or virtual reality renders it unnecessary. Soon, however, we may also be seeing “blue light districts” in coffee shops, temporary offices at airports, and other places where people work late. Blue light technology may also become standard equipment in vehicles for nighttime driving.

To your profitable future,

Jonathan Kolber
December 27, 2008

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