At a recent panel the Bedrosian Center hosted, city managers talked about how technology was changing the nature of public meetings and increasing participation.
Bedrosian and her colleagues say that, among humans, exposure to artificial lighting at night has surged over the past 50 years, a trend that happens to coincide with large increases in depression prevalence.
"The good news is that people who stay up late in front of the television and computer may be able to undo some of the harmful effects just by going back to a regular light-dark cycle and minimizing their exposure to artificial light at night, " Bedrosian says.