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Regarding sleep quality, why did humans evolve to require full darkness? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 5 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

64 comments fedilink hide all child comments

I know evolution is governed by chance and it is random but does it make sense to "ruin" sleep if there's light? I mean normally, outside, you never have pure darkness, there are the moon and stars even at night. In certain zones of the Earth we also have long periods of no sunshine and long periods of only sunshine.

I don't know if my question is clear enough but I hope so.

Bonus question: are animals subject to the same contribution of light or lack of it to the quality of sleep?

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (20 children)

We didn't...

"Full darkness" isn't even a real thing in nature. It's hard to tell with light pollution, but even in the absolute middle of nowhere with no artificial lights, you're going to be able to see fairly well. Even with no moon, starlight isn't just an expression. And on a full moon it can be surprisingly "bright" if you're just out there for a while.

It's not like climbing into a cupboard, shutting the door, and sealing all the cracks with duct tape.

You may be used to needi g full darkness to sleep, but that's a learned habit. I guarantee if there was nothing you could do, it wouldn't take you long to adapt your "requirement" of total darkness.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 5 months ago (6 children)

but even in the absolute middle of nowhere with no artificial lights, you’re going to be able to see fairly well.

I'm not sure I'd say fairly well. Maybe always well enough to not walk directly into a tree in otherwise open terrain. A full moon will be comfortable to walk around in, but new moons happen just as often, and sometimes the moon is below the horizon.