UK Research and Innovation

This research exposed a flaw in how we light our world – and then helped fix it

How is this research improving lighting?

Its findings were used in a set of guidelines called the WELL Building Standard. They define how different types of room should be lit to make them friendlier to our body clocks.

For example, work areas should have a higher melanopic lux to help us feel alert and focussed. But sleeping areas need multiple lighting options for different times of day, including low melanopic lux lighting for evening.

We still don’t know everything about how light affects our body clocks, but as we discover more, these guidelines can become even better.

Think you know your age? Your heart might disagree👀🫀

Ageing is a major risk factor for heart disease, but it affects everyone differently.

Professor Declan O’Regan, head of the computational cardiac imaging group .lms, and his team, have developed an AI tool that can calculate a person’s heart age from MRI scans.

They’re using this tool to pinpoint genes that could make the heart age faster, to help us predict future risks of developing heart disease and develop new therapies to prevent it.

Parkinson’s doesn’t start with a tremor. It starts in the brain, long before any symptoms appear. 🧠

Dr Dayne Beccano-Kelly at the UK Dementia Research Institute is uncovering why brain cells stop talking to each other, and when it starts to happen.

This research could mean earlier diagnoses, improved treatments to support people living with Parkinson’s, and one day prevention.

Follow for more research that’s changing lives and livelihoods.

We can confirm - they really are that big😳

At the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, they have a HUGE collection of deep-sea creatures like this from oceans around the world. Some dating back to 1925!

Collections like this are crucial for helping us better understand ocean biodiversity and how it’s changed over time.