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WALK INTO THE CAMBRIDGE, ONT., OFFICE of health-care equipment company PrescientX and you probably wouldn't suspect you're entering one of the most sanitary places in North America. • In this otherwise-ordinary Toronto-area office suite, you can disinfect your keys, phone, and other portables at the reception area's ultraviolet-sterilization stand. In cooler months, the air you breathe is cleansed of mold and bacteria in UV-sterilized heating units as well as blasted by UV fixtures in the office air ducts to eliminate viruses. In-room UV fixtures pointing at the ceiling disinfect the air, while other UV lights that turn on only when no one's in the room zap pathogens on desks, keyboards, and high-touch surfaces in bathrooms and work spaces. • The office, says PrescientX founder and CEO Barry Hunt, represents a possible future in which pandemics like COVID-19 are more commonplace — but in which germicidal ultraviolet light is one of the most potent weapons we have to face them down. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whether for religious or secular celebrations, twinkling lights mark many of December's festivities. In recent years, the variety and functionality of electric lights have exploded, abetted by cheap and colorful LEDs and compact electronics. Homeowners can illuminate the eaves with iridescent icicles, shroud their shrubs with twinkling mesh nets, or mount massive menorahs on their minivans. But decorative lights aren't new. Edward Johnson, vice president of the Edison Electric Light Co., is credited with introducing the first electric Christmas lights on 22 December 1882. At the time, few households had electricity, and so holiday lights remained the playthings of the wealthy elite until electrification and more affordable fixtures (like this creepy 1925 doll's head bulb) spread to the masses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]