Human Factors in Lighting, Second Edition

Book excerpt: The availability of electric lighting has changed the lives of people the world over and lighting is a major consumer of energy, yet little has been written about the forms of lighting that can alter human visual capabilities and enhance productivity, ensure comfort and create appropriate lighting conditions. It is important to understand the forms of lighting available, and their appropriateness to specific activities, in order to apply the technology most effectively. This book is a comprehensive review of the interaction of people and lighting and supercedes the author's classic Human Factors in Lighting. The technology has changed markedly in recent years with the introduction of new light sources and new methods of light distribution. The significance of specialist lighting applications, such as photobiology, are now becoming better understood. The nature of work itself has changed, and hence so have lighting requirements. Equally, the development of the technology has created new opportunities for improving peoples' work and leisure environments.