3 Facts About Daylight Saving Time
Turning your clock an hour ahead each spring and an hour back each fall is part of a biannual Daylight Saving Day ritual we've all grown accustomed to. Since 2007, Daylight Saving Time, or DST, has commenced the second Sunday of March and ends on the first Sunday of November. Although we've adopted the clock changing habit for years, few know a lot about the sunlight saving custom.
Here are a few things you might not know about DST:
1) Saving, not savings
Most people say and write “Daylight Savings Time.” Which is actually incorrect because it’s not plural. The correct term is "Daylight Saving Time." We’re only saving one daylight.
2) DST was invented to conserve energy
Benjamin Franklin came up with the very simple idea that if you had more light around you’d use less light bulbs. Several other scientists suggested “creating” another hour of daylight to save energy. However, it wasn’t until World War I that the plan was actually put into effect. President Woodrow Wilson signed it into law in 1918 and during World War II the USA had year round DST to conserve fuel for the war effort. It was known as “War Time.”
3) Not everyone observes DST
Originally, DST wasn’t always official, and this caused major problems with transportation. In 1966 the US Government made it official, but no state was actually required to observe it. Today, Daylight Saving Time is observed by more than 70 countries and virtually every state in the US observes DST except for Arizona, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Guam.
Here are some intresting links to learn more about springing forward and falling back each year!
- How to Change Your Clocks
- Daylight saving time: Why moving the clock forward increases risk of heart attacks
- Daylight-saving not good for cows
- Pros and Cons of Daylight Saving Time
- Simple tips to help you "spring forward" smoothly to daylight saving time
This is a revised version of an previous article.