Humans have a physiological response to ambient light levels, which affects how sleepy or awake we feel. Exposing yourself to instense light at the start of the day can help you awaken*, for example. Your body knows what time of the day it is, even if you don't.

Airports could provide – in the area where people wait for boarding – lighting appropriate to the time of day of the destination, so that you can adjust to some degree before you get on the plane.

Perhaps some chirping crickets or twittering birds, too.

--
Someone please correct me if I'm wrong – I always mix it up. :)
-- Detly, May 26 2004

Damn! http://www.sciencem...7/5581/571.citation
[mouseposture, Jul 02 2011]

Oh, that’s lighting, not lightning. There is nothing like a big lightning bolt and immediate thunder clap to alleviate lag. It would keep one alert all day waiting for it to go off at some random time.
-- Fussass, May 27 2004


//chirping crickets or twittering birds//
No, you got it right.
-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, May 27 2004


This would play havoc with the already totally-screwed-from-travel circadian rhythms of the in transit travellers. Keep it floodlit and keep 'em guessing. That's what I say!.
-- gnomethang, May 27 2004


I don't know how well this would work. It takes space shuttle astronauts something like 2 weeks to adjust their body clocks to a new schedule, and they have to stay in blacked out environments; even a second of daylight at the wrong time on the way to the launch pad will make their body clock to revert to the previous routine.
-- oxen crossing, May 28 2004


Detly would only woik if the terminals where region specific, after all you would need areas for flying east and west as well as north and south.
-- engineer1, May 28 2004


The idea is that these areas are in the parts of the terminal that the passengers sit in before they board a specific flight (the boarding lounge? I can't remember).
-- Detly, May 28 2004


Keep it simple - just provide a 'day' room and a 'night' room, and let travellers choose the one appropriate for their destination. A long wait may mean you have to change rooms at (destination) dawn or dusk.

There could be a dawn room and a dusk room between the day and night rooms, running a dawn/dusk simulation every 20 minutes, or simply a permanent twilight room, to give a more gentle and interesting transition, but it wouldn't strictly be needed.

Wear very dark glasses (welding goggles might do) as necessary to avoid the problem [oxen crossing] mentioned.
-- spidermother, Jul 02 2011


//welding goggles// A good idea in principle, but it may raise problems for airport security:

1) Anything unfamiliar is dangerous.

2) Anything home-made or jury-rigged is unfamiliar.

However

3) The taint of novelty can be removed by replacing with a mass-produced, branded, packaged equivalent, especially if sold inside the security perimeter (at inflated prices, natch).

So, an opportunity to profit. Go for it, [spidermother]!
-- mouseposture, Jul 02 2011



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