Hi dude,
Note the article says 'upon awakening' -it does not tell us that the animals awakened in the morning (and if they are naturally nocturnal that makes a big difference).

Put together with what we know about memory defragging during sleep this makes a good case for 'upon awakening' as a good time to review recently learned material. There's also evidence that our natural focus and attention peaks during the evening (remembering that 'the evening' also means “evening according to our individual body clock regardless of the actual time of day")*

...Maybe taking on new stuff two-thirds of the way through our waking time and reviewing already-viewed stuff shortly after we awaken is the best method? That makes sense as it 'consolidates' where we are (the known) before moving on to the new thing (the unknown).

Has anyone here tried this sort of thing out, learning new stuff at different times of their day? I find it takes me a while to boot up after awakening, and I've taken to reviewing recent stuff shortly before starting new stuff. Maybe I will try this method instead...
Best,
AR