Light O'Clock

Translational Sensory & Circadian Neuroscience Unit (MPS/TUM/TUMCREATE)
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We break down the science behind circadian rhythms so you can be enlightened. In each podcast episode, we chat with experts in the field about a variety of topics, spanning from the effects of light on our biology and how it can be used for the treatment of psychiatric disorders and beyond. Contact us: lightoclock@tuebingen.mpg.de Website: https://tscnlab.org/podcast

  1. Interacting with Daylight Mini-Series – Episode 2: Culture & behaviour

    7 ABR

    Interacting with Daylight Mini-Series – Episode 2: Culture & behaviour

    In the second episode of our Interacting with Daylight mini-series, Caro is joined by Anna and Priji again to explore how cultural traditions and individual behaviours shape our interactions with daylight. Building on the previous discussion of location, this episode shifts the focus to how social norms, gender roles, and cultural traditions shape people’s experiences and interactions with daylight. Links and resources: Anna and Priji’s publication describing their framework: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44271-024-00159-5 Visualisation of the framework’s “bubbles”: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44271-024-00159-5/figures/3 More about the Daylight Academy (DLA) Project: https://daylight.academy/projects/daylight-interactions/ Timestamps: (00:00) Intro (01:23) What do we mean by culture and behaviours (03:53) Snippets: solar eclipse and Norwegian winter (08:40) Yellow dishes & the sun (12:10) Snippets: Daylight in Spain vs Norway (19:30) Snippets: Sun exposure, skin care, and lunch habits in Rochester (20:20) Snippets: Clothing & sun umbrellas (25:00) Gender roles and exposure to daylight (32:57) Focus group snippets: Cultural differences around daylight (43:57) Snippets: Playing as kids — outdoor and indoor behaviours (47:50) Snippets: Schools and daylight habits in schools in different countries (51:54) Reflections on outdoor/indoor habits in schools (55:40) Outro: how different languages refer to (day)light

  2. Interacting with Daylight Mini-Series – Episode 1: Geolocation

    17 MAR

    Interacting with Daylight Mini-Series – Episode 1: Geolocation

    In this first episode of our new Interacting with Daylight mini-series, your host Caro is joined by Anna and Priji to discuss the Daylight Interaction Project, funded by the Daylight Academy. The project explores how people interact with daylight in everyday life and how this is shaped by factors such as location, built environments, culture and behaviours. The episode focuses on the first part of their framework: Location. Through interview snippets recorded during the Daylight Academy Summer School in beautiful Chexbres, Switzerland, the hosts reflect on how geography, climate, temperature and landscape can influence experiences of daylight. Interviewees come from diverse locations and latitudes: Singapore, Norway, Rochester (USA), and Costa Rica — offering perspectives on topics such as seasonal daylight changes, tropical versus northern light environments, and associations with sunlight and darkness. Links and resources: Anna and Priji’s publication describing their framework: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44271-024-00159-5 Visualisation of the framework’s “bubbles”: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44271-024-00159-5/figures/3 More about the Daylight Academy (DLA) Project: https://daylight.academy/projects/daylight-interactions/ Timestamps: (00:00) Intro: the Daylight Interaction Project (10:20) Project summary and interviewees (13:51) Geolocation: latitudes, climatic zones, seasons, geographical context (19:51) Snippets: associations with daylight and darkness (30:50) Daylight as a placemaking tool (34:21) Daylight vs sunlight (37:55) Snippets: Seasonal changes and colours (53:05) Reflections on seasonality (59:33) Episode summary (01:02:00) Outro: darkness associations

  3. Light O'Clock (Live episode) – Night owl or early riser? A live podcast episode

    10 FEB ·  CONTENIDO EXTRA

    Light O'Clock (Live episode) – Night owl or early riser? A live podcast episode

    In this special episode of Light O’Clock, we share snippets from our very first live recording, captured on stage at Buch Wien in Vienna in November 2025. Host Caro Guidolin and her colleague Marie-Luise Schreiter answer audience questions on chronotype, light exposure, sleep, shift work, and why people feel more tired in winter.

    24 min
  4. Spotlight – Winter blues: SAD and how to winter well

    27 ENE ·  CONTENIDO EXTRA

    Spotlight – Winter blues: SAD and how to winter well

    Many people notice changes in mood, energy, and motivation during the dark winter months. In this episode, we explore Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and the broader experience of feeling low in winter and, importantly, what science-backed strategies can help. We speak to Delainey Wescott about changes in sleep and circadian rhythms in SAD, and chat with Hester Parr and Hayden Lorimer about the Wintering Well project — an initiative that highlights the power of community, shared experiences, and collective coping during the darker months. Throughout the episode, we discuss practical approaches to winter wellbeing, including light exposure, daily routines, cognitive reframing of winter, and small habits that can make a meaningful difference. Links and resources: Sleep in seasonal affective disorder: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.08.023 Retinal light sensitivity in summer and winter: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2021.04.084 Wintering Well resources (Living with SAD project): https://www.gla.ac.uk/research/az/livingwithsad/winteringwell/resources/. Includes: the guidebook Light is a Right: A Guide to Wintering Well, an online course developed by CBT experts, the Wintering Together Toolkit, and the SAD Stories Exhibition. Timestamps: (02:24) What is SAD and how is that different from the winter blues? (05:16) Geography matters: who is affected by SAD? (06:50) Circadian rhythms and sleep in SAD (09:38) Light sensitivity in SAD (11:50) Evidence-based strategies to alleviate SAD symptoms (17:30) Summary (18:35) The Living with SAD project (22:30) Wintering Well Workshops (25:45) My patch of winter sky, writing a letter to winter, and my kind of winter neighbourhood (34:00) Winter Well resources created by the workshops (36:28) The present and future of the Living with SAD project (39:45) Wrap up and outro

  5. Light O'Clock goes live: Send us your questions!

    21/10/2025 ·  CONTENIDO EXTRA

    Light O'Clock goes live: Send us your questions!

    Light O’Clock is going live from Vienna at Buch Wien 2025 on Saturday, 15 November – and this time, you set the agenda for the episode! Together with Marie Luise Schreiter, we’ll be diving into your questions about how light shapes our brains, bodies, health, and daily rhythms – live on stage. What have you always wanted to know about light, sleep, or circadian rhythms? Send us your question through this link: https://form.jotform.com/252533837926365

    1 min
  6. Season 3 – Episode 5: Drowning in light – The hidden costs of light pollution

    26/08/2025

    Season 3 – Episode 5: Drowning in light – The hidden costs of light pollution

    For our Season 3 finale of Light O’Clock, we dive into a timely and often overlooked issue: light pollution. Artificial light at night has become a constant in modern life — but what are the hidden consequences? Our guests, Barbara Harding, Travis Longcore and Karolina M. Zielińska-Dąbkowska, bring scientific insight into how nighttime light exposure may affect human health, including possible links to cancer, and how it disrupts wildlife, ecosystems, and natural rhythms. We also explore practical solutions: since we can’t simply switch off the lights, how can we use artificial light more responsibly to protect both ourselves and the environment? We explain the five principles for responsible outdoor lighting created by International DarkSky Association (now DarkSky International) and the Illuminating Engineering Society. Links and resources DarkSky International website: https://darksky.org/ Ecological light pollution: https://doi.org/10.1890/1540-9295(2004)002[0191:ELP]2.0.CO;2 Five principles for responsible outdoor lighting: https://darksky.org/resources/guides-and-how-tos/lighting-principles/ Outdoor artificial light and cardiometabolic risk: https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwae269 Artificial light at night and cancer risk: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.177059 Timestamps (00:00) What is light pollution? (02:17) Light at night and circadian rhythms (05:18) Light at night and cancer risk (09:35) How light pollution is measured (16:11) What's the link between light at night exposure and disease risk? (19:00) Ecological light pollution (20:50) Effects of light pollution in animals: birds and turtles (26:00) Artificial light and animals' circadian rhythms (28:55) Light pollution changing predators-preys dynamics (32:30) Awareness towards light pollution in different countries (35:20) Why did we start to use artificial light in the first place? (40:30) What are the current lighting standards? (43:00) Different stakeholders involved in outdoor lighting (47:00) Five principles for responsible outdoor lighting (55:20) Wrap up and outro

    58 min
  7. Season 3 – Episode 4: Too early to think? Why school start times matter for sleep and learning

    29/07/2025

    Season 3 – Episode 4: Too early to think? Why school start times matter for sleep and learning

    Why do early mornings feel so brutal for teens? In this episode, we explore the science behind teenage sleep and circadian rhythms and why early school start times may be setting students up for failure. We talk to students from Italy and Germany, and sleep researcher Dr. Anna Magdalena Biller, to understand how biology, not laziness, is behind teen sleep struggles — and what schools, parents, and teachers could do about it. Big thanks to Margha, Lea, Giulia, Alice and Viola for sharing their perspectives on school start times! Links and resources related to the episode’s content: Review: Adolescent sleep & school timing Meta-analysis: School start times and academic achievement Flexible school start study (Germany) Expert report for Belgium (only in German) Timestamps (00:00) Intro & questions to teenagers (04:15) Circadian rhythms and sleep in adolescence (10:15) Consequences of sleep deprivation for teens (12:28) Initiatives aimed at delaying school start times (14:48) Studies on changing school start times (16:55) How do these studies measure sleep? (19:48) Is changing school start times beneficial for teens? (26:40) Challenges with implementation in schools (30:35) What other solutions can we use? (39:50) Outro

    41 min
  8. Season 3 – Episode 3: Blurred vision – The myopia epidemic and indoor lifestyles

    29/05/2025

    Season 3 – Episode 3: Blurred vision – The myopia epidemic and indoor lifestyles

    Today, more and more children around the world are developing myopia, or nearsightedness — especially in East Asia, where prevalence among school-aged children can reach up to 70%. Can simply spending more time outside in daylight help protect children from developing myopia? In this episode, our guest Asst. Prof. Raymond P. Najjar (National University of Singapore) breaks down: What we know about the link between light exposure and myopia in children Why kids aren’t spending enough time outdoors (and no — it’s not just because of tablets!) How we might be able to rethink indoor lighting in schools to better support healthy visual development Links and resources related to the episode’s content The influence of lifestyle and the environment on myopia: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40101-024-00354-7 Outdoor activity reduces the prevalence on myopia in children: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2007.12.019 Prompting parents to make their kids spend more time outdoor: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2796425 More info on the LightSPAN project: https://eyenbrain.com/project-lightspan/ Timestamps (00:00) Intro and questions to kids (02:37) Guest introduction (03:30) Understanding myopia: causes and prevalence (06:58) The role of light and the environment (11:45) Challenges in increasing outdoor time in kids (16:27) Improving indoor lighting for myopia control: the LightSPAN project (23:09) Behavioural interventions with parents (27:14) Light exposure and myopia control in adults (29:30) Conclusions (31:07) Outro with more kids snippets

    33 min
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We break down the science behind circadian rhythms so you can be enlightened. In each podcast episode, we chat with experts in the field about a variety of topics, spanning from the effects of light on our biology and how it can be used for the treatment of psychiatric disorders and beyond. Contact us: lightoclock@tuebingen.mpg.de Website: https://tscnlab.org/podcast

Información

  • Creador
    Translational Sensory & Circadian Neuroscience Unit (MPS/TUM/TUMCREATE)
  • Años de actividad
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodios
    26
  • Clasificación
    Apto
  • Copyright
    © Translational Sensory & Circadian Neuroscience Unit (MPS/TUM/TUMCREATE)
  • Mostrar sitio web
    Light O'Clock

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