Afternoon

Possible explanations include shifting times for prayers and midday meals, along which one concept of noon was defined—and so afternoon would have referred to a narrower timeframe.

[6] The Irish language contains four different words to mark time intervals from late afternoon to nightfall; this period is considered mystical.

As a result, this time of day is considered optimal for researchers studying stress and hormone levels.

[12] Plants generally have their highest photosynthetic levels of the day at noon and in the early afternoon, owing to the sun's high angle in the sky.

The large proliferation of maize crops across Earth has caused tiny, harmless fluctuations in the normal pattern of atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, since these crops photosynthesize large amounts of carbon dioxide during these times and this process sharply drops down during the late afternoon and evening.

[14] However, human athletes being tested for physical vigor on exercise machines showed no statistically significant difference after lunch.

[14] Owners of factory farms are advised to use buildings with an east–west (as opposed to north–south) orientation to house their livestock, because an east–west orientation generally means thicker walls on the east and west to accommodate the sun's acute angle and intense glare during late afternoon.

Notably, motor vehicle accidents occur more frequently in the early afternoon, when drivers presumably have recently finished lunch.

Power plants have shown significant reductions in productivity in the afternoon compared to the morning, the largest differences occurring on Saturdays and the smallest on Mondays.

[21] Another, larger study found that afternoon declines in productivity were greater during longer work shifts.