Floor lamps are necessary in many apartments due to insufficient overhead lighting.
The flickering of fluorescent lighting interacts with the refresh rate of computer monitors, producing a flickering image in the monitor. This causes eye strain and headaches, especially when viewed for long stretches at a time, as is often the case for graduate students. Fluorescent lighting is also highly undesirable from an aesthetic standpoint. In a less competitive market, the undesirable lighting might deter potential renters. It would presumably make these spaces less acc eptable to post-docs and staff people who could be used to fill potential future vacancies.