Origin daylight saving time

by funnywebpark | 10:11 AM in clocks, daylight, daylight saving, daylight saving time, DST, Information, Interesting, last Sunday, one hour, Origin daylight saving time, standard time, time zones |

Origin daylight saving time

Did you remember to set your clocks ahead one hour before going to bed last night? Spring's daylight saving time began at 2 a.m. today.

We get an extra hour of daylight when we "spring forward" each March and then lose it when we "fall back" in November. But have you ever wondered how DST began? Here are some tidbits about its origins and pros and cons of these time-changing events.

A series of events led to our modern-day DST:

- Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers, suggested something akin to daylight saving time in a 1784 essay.

- A postal clerk from New Zealand was the first to propose modern DST.

- Congress first put America's clocks ahead one hour during World War I and (later for WWII). Why?

- Congress enacted the Uniform Time Act of 1966 to eliminate confusion about DST across the country.

- Thanks to this act, DST in the United States now begins on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November.

Places without DST

Some parts of the world ignore DST:

- Until 2006, the this state ignored it altogether.
- Many countries around the world do not push their clocks ahead once a year.
But are these areas missing out on the benefits of DST?

Daylight saving time benefits

Studies have shown that areas that observe DST experience:
- Reduced energy consumption
- Less crime
- Fewer fatal traffic accidents
Sure, these are great benefits, but what are some problems with DST?

Daylight saving time problems

Here are a couple of concerns with DST:
- Some studies show there are more traffic accidents when we turn the clocks back in November. Why?
- Some say DST doesn't save enough energy to make a huge difference.