The 74 Million – David Cantor
“Score one to circadian rhythm. A new study published in the Journal of Human Resources (paywall) by researchers from Northwestern University found that exposure to more sunlight before school raised math and reading scores by 0.08 and 0.06 respectively. The authors focused on the Eastern/Central time zone boundary on the Florida panhandle. They found that students who lived in the Eastern time zone got less sunlight before school and more later in the day, which pushed their sleep cycles later. Students in the Central time zone were exposed to more sunlight before school and less after. When students in the Central time zone moved into the Eastern zone, the researchers found that having less sunlight was associated with poorer performance, especially in math.”(more)