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Naomi Miller
Lighting designer, lighting scientist
Naomi Miller
Lighting designer, lighting scientist
Biography
Daylight and electric lighting affect our work performance, moods, health, safety, and even our sleep quality. Delivering light that helps one appreciate art in a museum is different from the light needed to operate a table saw safely, but both can be done efficiently and effectively with light emitting diodes (LEDs). Optimal solutions are achieved when designers and engineers combine an understanding of vision, color, task details, human physiology, and technology.
It is the job of PNNL’s Advanced Lighting Group, located in Portland, Oregon, to conduct or collaborate on research into these issues and communicate the results to both design professionals and lighting manufacturers. As a lighting scientist, Naomi Miller uses her talents to design and conduct lighting experiments. Her research focuses on visual quality and comfort for the user, but she never forgets the energy and climate impact of lighting systems.
Miller has “too many” years (about 40, actually) of lighting expertise, both as a designer and scientist. Some people call her the “Flicker Queen” since she can see flicker—the sometimes imperceptible, occasionally nauseating changes in bulb brightness—through walls, according to one colleague. Because she can detect flicker without being negatively affected by it, she has made it her mission to mitigate flicker from LED systems for those who suffer ill effects such as headache, migraine, or nausea.
Miller is a nationally recognized lighting expert and frequent speaker on a wide range of topics, from the serious to the light-hearted. She’s received more than 30 architectural lighting design awards for locations ranging from churches to university science buildings, boutique hotels, supermarkets, and even dark-sky-friendly parking lots.
During her 10 years at PNNL, she has authored more than 20 scientific papers. As a fellow of both the Illuminating Engineering Society and the International Association of Lighting Designers, Miller continues to write design guidelines, present at conferences and webinars, and generally cheer on all the dedicated folks who are passionate about people, sustainability, and our natural environment.
More Information
Watch this interview with Naomi Miller, in which she describes different types of LED color-tunable lighting produces and their associated characteristics, advantages, and issues.