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> By default, the human pupil changes size depending on the amount of light in the environment

This is the key: Do you work on a very illuminated place? Use light mode. Do you work in somewhat darkness? Please use dark mode.

At least that's what I try to follow, otherwise at the end of the day my eyes gets very tired.

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One should always adjust screen brightness to the ambient lighting. If ambient lighting is so low that an accordingly “bright” background provides too little contrast for black text, then yes, dark mode becomes preferable. This is probably a similar point as when printed material becomes too difficult to read. But the other option is to just not work in such a dim environment.

It's usually always possible to just illuminate the room unless you are out programming at a bus stop at night I guess.

Or you have to use a highly reflective monitor. Or you have a blessed matte monitor but you have whiteboards, stainless steel appliances, glass, bright colored walls, and other stuff at various angles in the environment behind you. In which case the first thing you and everyone else trying to see past the reflections is going to do is dim the lights and lower the shades.

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