Lighting does way more than help you see at night or set the mood. It actually help learning in a classroom setting. New studies support that lighting can be optimized for a wide variety of different needs in the classroom such as test-taking, gym class, and reading.
It can even be adjusted to help our well-being such as our physical and mental conditions. Overall “the lighting facilities in educational environments were much poorer than we’d anticipated.”- Dr. Hyeon-Jeong Suk, associate professor at the institute.
The study in question involved 54 fourth-grade students in two classrooms. One of the classrooms was equipped with LED lights that “could be tuned to CCTs of 3500 K (which is a “warm” yellowish white), 5000 K (neutral), and 6500 K (a “cool,” bluish white that mimics natural daylight). The other classroom had standard fluorescent lighting and served as a control group.”
The students in the 6500 K lighting room scored much higher on their tests. 3500 K warm lighting is best for a relaxing recess setting while 5000 K is best for reading activities while 6500 k dynamic lighting supports intense, academic activities such as tests.
Lighting is changing and for the better! It’s getting cheaper and more efficient while also giving us way more options as far as ambiance goes. The lighting in your home shouldn’t be the same from room to room. Lighting can set the mood more than you may think. Don’t believe us? Just ask Rome!
So, it’s important to keep yourself in the loop with all the changes to technology. Below we’ve outlined some of the biggest trends you need to know about!
Internet of Things
What is the internet of things? We are all used to having our phones and computers connected to the internet but what about our lights, coffee makers, washing machines, lamps or any other household appliances? That’s essentially what the internet of things aims to do. Your indoor lighting will be a big part of this.
No Wires
Everything is so wireless that it’s becoming weird to see things without them. Pretty soon, everyone will be controlling lighting with their smart phones and there will be lots of homes without a light switch.
Healthier
Lighting can affect productivity, mood, how quickly we recover from illness and also how quickly we learn things. More and more businesses are adjusting lighting to mimic natural light for more restful sleep as well.
In other words, when you hear about LED lighting, it is a form of Solid-state lighting.
While incandescent bulbs use thermal radiation, Solid-state lighting creates light with less energy used and a reduction in heat generation. If you’d like to learn more about Solid-State Lighting, use the resources below.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s CaLiPER program just released a report on industrial luminaries.
Compared to traditional light sources, LED luminaires can deliver longer life, enhanced energy efficiency, greater eco-friendliness, lowered maintenance demands and equal or better quality of light.
They have some very cool data visualizations to go along with the findings. Some of the highlights are as follows but I highly suggest you download the report of which there is a link of below:
Color and power quality for industrial luminaires are similar to that of incumbent fixtures. The products have a variety of CCTs, with the majority (51%) at or above a nominal CCT of 5000 K; and 65% of the luminaires have a CIE Ra (CRI) in the 80s.
Early-generation LED high-bay luminaires lacked the lumen output to compete in the market, but by 2013, LED Lighting Facts® listed 379 industrial products, with more than half exceeding 15,000 lumens. LED Lighting Facts currently lists more than 8,000 industrial products, 41% of which emit between 5,000 and 15,000 lumens and 55% of which emit more than 15,000 lumens.
Listed industrial fixtures have higher efficacy performance than do listed linear, troffer, area/roadway, and parking garage fixtures.
The efficacy of LED industrial luminaires is notably higher than what is typical of incumbent fixtures. About 23% of the listed with LED Lighting Facts products have a luminous efficacy greater.
• As of the CALiPER Snapshot report published in September 2016, lamps comprised approximately 20% of the products listed with LED Lighting Facts. This number had been steadily diminishing since the program’s inception of in 2009.
The benefits of LED lighting are well-documented but that doesn’t mean everyone is on board. Because people are now just starting to make the switch in masses to LED lighting to save money, we won’t truly know it’s impact for many years.
One of the benefits of LED lighting is the different colors and hues that can help you sleep better while also changing the entire atmosphere of a room. Statistics and savings are great but we need to see it to believe it.
That’s why the infographic above is so helpful in visualizing the actual benefits of LED Efficiency.
Everyone seems to be on board with swapping to LED lighting and for good reason. LED lights last longer and use less energy than standard incandescent bulbs.
There is a time and a place for LED lighting and different colors and hues can affect your mood. Unfortunately, Virginia Raggi did not get the memo as there have been a 100,000 LED lamps installed on the streets of Rome. While they are estimated to save Rome millions on their electricity bills, the residents are less than impressed.
Despite the potential environmental and savings benefits, there are people leading the charge to reverse the decision. One resident, Nathalie Naim, is leading the charge.
“Illumination is atmosphere,” she said emphatically. “They are assassins of the beauty of Rome, of its history.”
It’s time to switch out your old bulbs for new, energy-efficient LEDs or CFLs. And take advantage of the savings, while they last. Right now, Xcel Energy is partnering with participating retailers to offer special discounts. Save up to $5 on select models of LEDs, or buy CFLs for as little as $1 per bulb.
