Switching the clocks around is lunacy. High school students catching the bus at 6:30 AM is beyond ludicrous. No high school student is awake and alert at 6:30 AM. Stop messing with the clocks and let our teenagers go to school at a decent hour. It is unbelievable that as a society we actually support this clock changing and high school classes starting at 7AM. Then again, half of America voted for Trump.
59
I suppose an article or two like this every year is a ritual like buying a Christmas tree and decorating it.
However, I fail to see the point in the eternal asking of "why?"
The fact is we spring ahead or fall back one hour literally like clockwork, pun intended. It's only one hour either way yet one would think the world were coming to an end.
I have nothing against iconoclast reflections or undoing harmful shibboleths. The quaint custom of daylight savings time is not bothering or harming anyone. Surely all this navel gazing about a shift of one hour can be put to better use.
However, I fail to see the point in the eternal asking of "why?"
The fact is we spring ahead or fall back one hour literally like clockwork, pun intended. It's only one hour either way yet one would think the world were coming to an end.
I have nothing against iconoclast reflections or undoing harmful shibboleths. The quaint custom of daylight savings time is not bothering or harming anyone. Surely all this navel gazing about a shift of one hour can be put to better use.
7
My father, who was a WWII veteran, despised DST. He was a jeweler; more specifically, a diamond salesman. He worked closely with many watchmakers, who REALLY disliked it due to them having to reset many watches; some are not as simple as turning the watch (or clock) forward or back one hour. Please understand, I am referring to the early 1930's; in the midst of The Great Depression and followed by WWII. This was in that wonderful era of hand wound watches and clocks. (he once sold a watch to George Kelly - better known as Machine Gun Kelly. My father said he didn't fool around, looking at many different models and brands; he knew exactly what he wanted and bought it. I wish I had the receipt from the sale, although knowing all the parties involved, most likely no receipt existed. This was a year before he became known as "Machine Gun" and put on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted List. It is a great story, however, one of many I fondly remember my father telling me.
13
Who learned in school that daylight saving time was for farmers? We always heard that farmers hated it because it was dark in the morning when they had to begin work (and send their kids out early for the longer distance to school). I lived in farm country, though not on a farm.
6
We like Daylight Savings Time. We like the longer days. We like getting home and it's still light outside. We like driving later into the day in daylight and the reduction of darkness-related accidents. We like the energy savings.
In fact, we should dump EST time permanently in favor of DST. The farmers will adjust.
In fact, we should dump EST time permanently in favor of DST. The farmers will adjust.
18
Benjamin Franklin's essay (read it) was a complete tongue-in-cheek spoof making fun of the Parisians who stayed up late and slept until almost noon. It is amusing and he does calculate the value of candle wax but it was all meant to be a joke.
23
China maintains a single time zone despite the huge size of the territory it covers. The result of this policy -- adopted to foster national unity -- is a disaster for people at the eastern edge of the country. For them, the sun comes up during sleeping hours and sets so early that even summer dinners may occur in darkness.
I live in Boston now but grew up on the Western edge of a time zone, and I miss the later daylight hours every day. In the Boston winters, when we confront cold darkness at 4:30 PM, I long for more sunlight.
So: if we eliminate daylight savings time, fine. But we should let Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire join the Atlantic time zone like Eastern Canada so that we are not consigned to "daytime" darkness for so much of the year.
I live in Boston now but grew up on the Western edge of a time zone, and I miss the later daylight hours every day. In the Boston winters, when we confront cold darkness at 4:30 PM, I long for more sunlight.
So: if we eliminate daylight savings time, fine. But we should let Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire join the Atlantic time zone like Eastern Canada so that we are not consigned to "daytime" darkness for so much of the year.
20
Bringing DST forward in 06 from April to March was stupid and unwarranted. I haven't seen any explanation for why Congress did this. The US is now the first country in the northern hemisphere to move the clocks forward in the spring. Personally, I dread it because with a high school kid who has to get up at 6:20, we're plunged back into darkness for two more weeks.
36
My high school kid has to catch his bus at 6:30. It is INSANE!!!!!
18
hence the migration for millions from the northeast and rust belt to locations further south and west where the effects of DST are more beneficial and less stressful on normal circadian rhythms. it wasnt -just- the cost of living, crime and living piled on top of each other......
I've noticed too as several writers have that the further west you live within a time zone, the later dawn comes. sometimes even as much as an hour way out west. so best mix would be if you can pull it off; no further north than about 35°N and no further east than 95°W produces a very agreeable solar period and not too much seasonal extremes. just avoid the humidity like basically everything south and east of St Louis.
I've noticed too as several writers have that the further west you live within a time zone, the later dawn comes. sometimes even as much as an hour way out west. so best mix would be if you can pull it off; no further north than about 35°N and no further east than 95°W produces a very agreeable solar period and not too much seasonal extremes. just avoid the humidity like basically everything south and east of St Louis.
3
Why not just move it 1/2 hour
and then never change the time again ?
and then never change the time again ?
49
Clearly, there are pluses and minuses around DST (I like it personally). However, there are no reasons to be adamant about it one way or the other. This small seasonal change has become yet another reason for some Americans to rail against others and against the government. Get a grip.
26
I don't understand why people get so bent out of shape over the time change. The idea that we're going to "lose" an hour of sleep tonight is ridiculous. Unless you have to go to work tomorrow morning, there's nothing to stop you from sleeping the same amount of time you always do, only it'll be an hour later on the clock when you get up. Your day will be an hour shorter, but so what? You can go to bed at your "normal time" tomorrow, get a full night's sleep again, and get right back into the swing of things on Monday morning. So you'll have the equivalent of some minor jet lag. In a couple of days, your body will adjust, and you'll forget about the whole thing and enjoy the "extra daylight" until the fall.
47
I have a couple of people who used to not change the time, whether it was in their house or the watch they wore. My father was one, as he had the very old New Orleans Train Station's wall clock for as long as I can remember. It had to be wound with a special key daily. Nowadays, with so many digitally updated devices like cellular phones, DVR's, computers, pads and what not, this would be much harder to do. That is unless you live "off the grid", which sounds so very appealing to me.
5
I detest DST and always have; it is a stupid and pointless custom. Moving clocks ahead makes our homes hotter in the evening because the sun does not go down as early, (which affects poor city dwellers the most) increases traffic, and crime, and is generally speaking a colossal pain. It also causes many more car accidents on the Monday following the change because people have a hard time getting up and then are late for work and drive faster-so get up early, take your time and be careful! When the changes happened in April it was bad enough but now with it in March, it is all the more painful. Reverting back to Standard time is also delayed to November, now, thanks to Congress. Please let's do away with this idiotic messing around with nature and our circadian rhythms.
48
Daylight saving time disrupts people's sleep schedule, which is unhealthy and sometimes even dangerous for the 1 in 10 people who have depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. This 10% of the population are very sensitive to the sleep disruption that can aggravate their illness. Unfortunately, the health of this group of people is not valued as much as more shopping hours for everyone else.
31
It figure, it's about money, not safety, not be more productive, not living a healthier lifestyle.
14
Will no one speak up for DST? It is depressing when it gets dark early, doubly so in the summer. Is the recent fondness for early morning sunshine another consequence of Boomers entering into their senior years? Get out to the beach on a warm day and watch the sunset at 8:30 or later... It will improve your disposition!
28
Every year I suffer from what feels like extreme jet lag when the time changes, especially in the spring. Recent reports suggest an increase in heart attacks and strokes in the first few days after moving to Daylight Savings Time. Shouldn't this be a public health issue?
56
The whole concept of daylight savings time is illusory. Comments below not withstanding, there is no "extra" hour of daylight magically produced by changing clocks. It's merely a schedule change, and a fairly disruptive one at that. Arbitrarily changing the circadian rhythms of an entire population in a single day degrades their effectiveness and efficiency for days afterwards. It might be germane to see a study of productivity in different sectors, measuring the weeks before the annual spring time switch compared to that in the week immediately following the switch.
It's high time we abandoned this artificial disruption to our biorhythms. People who want to to avail themselves of the summer's longer daylight should just get up earlier -- adjust their personal schedules without disrupting the entire economy.
It's high time we abandoned this artificial disruption to our biorhythms. People who want to to avail themselves of the summer's longer daylight should just get up earlier -- adjust their personal schedules without disrupting the entire economy.
74
People are not very bright and many of them actually think we are creating an extra hour of daylight. Why don't we just create two hours?
18
"We go to the parks, and we go to the mall. But we don't walk there. Daylight saving time increases gas consumption."
Baffling. Why wouldn't more walk or ride a bike to these places if it's light out rather than dark?
I'm convinced that if it weren't for the internal-combustion engine many people would never leave their home!
Baffling. Why wouldn't more walk or ride a bike to these places if it's light out rather than dark?
I'm convinced that if it weren't for the internal-combustion engine many people would never leave their home!
3
Perhaps because the park is 8 miles from the neighborhood, and the mall is 15 miles away.
23
If parents were asked to send their young children to school one hour earlier, they might rightfully object. But just move the hands on the clock, and everyone sheepishly complies. Idiotic.
25
High School. I teach in a system where first bell rings at 7:15. I struggle with getting up in the dark. Less standard time means I'm driving to work in the dark in October, March, and April as well as the winter months.
My students are worse. The ones who drive to school are so sleepy their driving' worse than if they were drunk. Stats on teen driving accidents support that this isn't merely unpleasant--It's dangerous.
I've had close calls myself--almost hit a bike rider dressed in black drafting behind a bus through an intersection I was sleepily preparing to cross.
It makes me mad that no one checked with the American people before making a change that affects every single person in the U.S.
My students are worse. The ones who drive to school are so sleepy their driving' worse than if they were drunk. Stats on teen driving accidents support that this isn't merely unpleasant--It's dangerous.
I've had close calls myself--almost hit a bike rider dressed in black drafting behind a bus through an intersection I was sleepily preparing to cross.
It makes me mad that no one checked with the American people before making a change that affects every single person in the U.S.
41
I have the same problem in reverse, nearly hitting pedestrians in the fall and winter driving in the dark at 5:00 p.m.
13
If this ridiculous practice had never been done and someone suggested doing it today they would be thought a complete fool.
39
It is hard to make kids adjust and here on the time line, our summer light goes until well past 9pm. That is too late. It this era of tech, it is unnecessary. I have plenty of light to play with the kids when I get home from work.
11
During World War II, the U.S. was on double Daylight Time; I think this assisted shift scheduling at factories that were working around the clock, but for us city kids, it meant more time outdoors in the summer evenings, which was great.
France is on permanent double Daylight Time. Although it shares its time zone with the U.K., it’s always an hour later in Paris than London. And in June, sunset is around 10 pm. That has to be good for business, especially at Bertillon’s.
France is on permanent double Daylight Time. Although it shares its time zone with the U.K., it’s always an hour later in Paris than London. And in June, sunset is around 10 pm. That has to be good for business, especially at Bertillon’s.
11
Interesting that Franklin was really so daft that he wanted Paris awakened with sunrise cannons. Meanwhile, here and there, energy demand is no longer dependent upon daylight (but, rather, consumer need to work 60 hour weeks in air conditioned offices) just as our shopping desires no longer require storefronts. This outdated, ridiculous concept of moving clocks twice a year "just because its been this way for 100 years," will not change. But there is a chance, I think --- if our true, collective patriotism ever brings us all into agreement that time is determined only by earth. Next would be returning the Pledge of Allegiance to its original form (pre-1954) before that, too, becomes "its just always been that way."
12
Actually, time is no longer determined by the earth, the earth is actually a poor clock, as its rotation is slowing and is susceptible to other forces acting on it. The atomic clocks what governs time now ...
1
If we can't explain why a policy exists, perhaps it's time for the policy to be put to bed.
77
Arizona is a holdout not for any of the reason quoted here. You may have noticed that it's hot here in the summer. By staying with Mountain Standard Time, the sun sets around 7 and we can enjoy cooler evenings. We like to think of it is common sense rather than govrnment intervention. Of course, those points have much in common.
9
Daylight Saving Time is just another way for our government to flex its muscles and display its total dominion over every aspect of our lives. It is a completely arbitrary change that profits a few at the expense of the health of many.
Want an "extra" hour of daylight? Fine. Let's "spring forward" one last time and NOT "fall back". Put an end to this madness once and for all.
Want an "extra" hour of daylight? Fine. Let's "spring forward" one last time and NOT "fall back". Put an end to this madness once and for all.
8
No, Mark, the problem is NOT "government dominion."
More accurately, it is "corporate dominion over government."
When government shrinks, business interests immediately move into the vacant space. We need to fix the government, but not weaken it.
More accurately, it is "corporate dominion over government."
When government shrinks, business interests immediately move into the vacant space. We need to fix the government, but not weaken it.
28
Mark, let's not stop at DST ... let's go back to when each individual city determined when solar noon was, corrected for the equation of time, and set it's clocks accordingly. Then, for example, Washington D.C.'s time was about 15-20 minutes behind New York's, and New York was about 15-20 minutes behind Boston. Tough to run trains with inconsistent times as these, but hey, local gov't knows best ...
Then, our government flexed its muscles and displayed its total dominion over us by establishing time zones across the country. What madness ... so trains crashed because there was no consistent time of day in cities with different longitudes, the gov't really needs to stay out of our lives.
Then, our government flexed its muscles and displayed its total dominion over us by establishing time zones across the country. What madness ... so trains crashed because there was no consistent time of day in cities with different longitudes, the gov't really needs to stay out of our lives.
8
Of Daylight Saving Time what drives me nuts is the biannual back and forth. Why don't we just set the clocks ahead 1/2 hour and leave them that way all year around? That way it won't be quite so dark in the morning, nor quite so late in Summer, but we'll be spared the circadian disruptions.
23
Up here in New England, I wish we'd get rid of it -- we're far enough north to have more of a winter/summer difference in daylight than most states, and the time change exaggerates them.
Winter sunsets here are as early as 4:15pm, and in winter, sidewalks are often blocked by snow and ice, so you have to step into the road. Walking a couple hundred yards home from my bus stop in heavy traffic can be harrowing.
By contrast, the summer days last till eight, which is kind of nice but also kind of strange, when you're ready to settle down at that hour. I'd rather have my sunsets between 5:15 and 7:00 pm year round. There's a guy who's proposed an Atlantic Time Zone for us, but that's a way bigger hoop to jump through.
Winter sunsets here are as early as 4:15pm, and in winter, sidewalks are often blocked by snow and ice, so you have to step into the road. Walking a couple hundred yards home from my bus stop in heavy traffic can be harrowing.
By contrast, the summer days last till eight, which is kind of nice but also kind of strange, when you're ready to settle down at that hour. I'd rather have my sunsets between 5:15 and 7:00 pm year round. There's a guy who's proposed an Atlantic Time Zone for us, but that's a way bigger hoop to jump through.
12
Life in Boston would be so very hard without DST. I long for it to come back every year. I grew up on the western edge of a time zone, and so having more light later in the day is something that feels normal. Here on the eastern edge, the early darkness is depressing. If they eliminate DST, the Northeast will have to join the Atlantic time zone, like the eastern part of Canada, or risk being a place nobody wants to live.
14
I like the idea of "Atlantic Time."
3
The easternmost part of Canada -- Labrador and Newfoundland -- operate on a Newfoundland Standard Time (NST), which is 3:30 BEHIND Coordinated Universal Time, because that best suits their locality. At one time, Liberia used to keep Liberian Time, which was 18 minutes behind Greenwich Mean Time, as the meridian for that differential ran through Monrovia, their capital.
Venezuela, Iran, Afghanistan, India and parts of Australia also keep a local time that has a fractional hour offset from CUT.
Venezuela, Iran, Afghanistan, India and parts of Australia also keep a local time that has a fractional hour offset from CUT.
1
Let's lose that hour at 2pm on a Tuesday rather than 2am on a Sunday. Then maybe we don't mind springing ahead so much.
11
The poor fellow had one blanket, and it wasn't long enough. When his feet were covered, his shoulders were cold. So he cut a foot off the bottom of the blanket and stitched it to the top.
That's Daylight Saving Time.
We can't 'save' daylight, we can't put it in a box and get it out when we want to. We can't change the sun.
Parents of small children have a difficult time getting their to go to bed an hour earlier at night, and a tough time getting them up in the morning. They worry about them standing at a bus stop or walking to school in the dark. And yes, there are more accidents where children are hurt because of DST.
We were told in the 1970's that DST would save energy. Statistics show that's not true.
Who likes DST? People who don't perform physical work and want to run/play tennis/play golf in the afternoons. People who make money by the increased use of gasoline.
We put children at risk so people can play golf or tennis and increase profits. It's time for the millions of us who must watch our children suffer lack of sleep, and the millions of us who must be at work at 5 a.m. (when our bodies know it's 4 a.m.), and those who empathize or sympathize with us to call/write/email our Congresspeople and tell them enough already. Like the song says, "Can't change the sun".
That's Daylight Saving Time.
We can't 'save' daylight, we can't put it in a box and get it out when we want to. We can't change the sun.
Parents of small children have a difficult time getting their to go to bed an hour earlier at night, and a tough time getting them up in the morning. They worry about them standing at a bus stop or walking to school in the dark. And yes, there are more accidents where children are hurt because of DST.
We were told in the 1970's that DST would save energy. Statistics show that's not true.
Who likes DST? People who don't perform physical work and want to run/play tennis/play golf in the afternoons. People who make money by the increased use of gasoline.
We put children at risk so people can play golf or tennis and increase profits. It's time for the millions of us who must watch our children suffer lack of sleep, and the millions of us who must be at work at 5 a.m. (when our bodies know it's 4 a.m.), and those who empathize or sympathize with us to call/write/email our Congresspeople and tell them enough already. Like the song says, "Can't change the sun".
15
This is a great example of the over-the-top hyperbole of internet user comments. People who don't do physical labor are responsible for injuries to children?
People (including children) would prefer more daylight during the hours when they are awake. DST accomplishes that for the majority of people. Ease up with the anger.
People (including children) would prefer more daylight during the hours when they are awake. DST accomplishes that for the majority of people. Ease up with the anger.
9
Anger? I beg your pardon. I didn't realize that a differing opinion equaled anger. I was brought up to respect differences of opinion, and to try to use facts and logic to influence opinions when possible.
If I upset you, please know it was not intentional.
If I upset you, please know it was not intentional.
6
Isn't it also an example of subjectivity?
Yikes, why so much negativity about this? I think the clock changes are a bit of fun and indicate the momentum of the seasons. Sleep an extra hour when it's starting to get cold out, gain an hour of sunlight to take advantage of the warming weather. Both are great to me.
7
Every time we change the clocks, this silly debate over Daylight Saving Time pops up, and often the points of view offered are grounded in ignorance. Year-round Daylight Saving Time means 9 AM sunrises in December and January, which means schools starting in the black of night. Year-round Standard Time means 4 AM sunrises in June and July; most people have no use for such early morning daylight (in fact it can be an impediment to a full night's rest) and would rather enjoy having that daylight available in the evening.
Of course, the actual scenario for you will depend on your position east or west within your time zone, and on your latitude. Lower latitudes feature less variation in day length over the course of the year.
I suggest this: construct a line graph of sunrise and sunset times for your city (data readily available). Sit back, admire the symmetries of the curves, and gain a clear understanding of the "what if?" if we were to get rid of twice-yearly time shifting.
Of course, the actual scenario for you will depend on your position east or west within your time zone, and on your latitude. Lower latitudes feature less variation in day length over the course of the year.
I suggest this: construct a line graph of sunrise and sunset times for your city (data readily available). Sit back, admire the symmetries of the curves, and gain a clear understanding of the "what if?" if we were to get rid of twice-yearly time shifting.
4
How about schools that start and end later? They would be better synchronized with most parents' work hours and with children's circadian rhythm.
7
I would be much happier to have one time all the time and scrap this twice-yearly change. It's too much of a mess on my body. As the days get longer and the length of the light day increases there is a natural rhythm that evolves. And then, wham!, we change our clocks for a system that we as humankind made up and there goes that rhythm and it takes quite a few bars to find our rhythm again. At least that's my experience. We made up time so we can change how it works too.
14
Having worked in the office that implements the Uniform Time Act of 1966 (yes, that's what the Federal statute involved is called), I was able to collect interesting stories about DST and the related matter of changes in time zone boundaries. It's true that farmers generally oppose DST, both because it's disruptive (farmer has to do things when the sun comes up, kids go to school at a set time) and because "you shouldn't be messing with God's time" or "it will upset the cows."
Then there was the guy who said that if the time changed and he got home an hour later every day, his wife wouldn't cook dinner for him.
Arizona does not observe DST, the Navajo Nation does, but the Hopi Nation does not. Driving a circular route back to Phoenix from the Grand Canyon one year, I could have changed my watch five times if I had bothered, without ever leaving the state.
Forget MLB; the real beneficiary of DST is spring school and recreational baseball and softball, which often do not have lighted fields to use. Perhaps that's why the Amateur Softball Association is a longtime supporter of extended DST.
The energy and other measurable effects of changing or not changing clocks are not only debatable but close to trivial.
Like lots of folks, my attitude toward DST is shaped by personal convenience. As a city dweller, I enjoy more light time in the evening than in the early morning, when I would rather be in bed anyhow.
Then there was the guy who said that if the time changed and he got home an hour later every day, his wife wouldn't cook dinner for him.
Arizona does not observe DST, the Navajo Nation does, but the Hopi Nation does not. Driving a circular route back to Phoenix from the Grand Canyon one year, I could have changed my watch five times if I had bothered, without ever leaving the state.
Forget MLB; the real beneficiary of DST is spring school and recreational baseball and softball, which often do not have lighted fields to use. Perhaps that's why the Amateur Softball Association is a longtime supporter of extended DST.
The energy and other measurable effects of changing or not changing clocks are not only debatable but close to trivial.
Like lots of folks, my attitude toward DST is shaped by personal convenience. As a city dweller, I enjoy more light time in the evening than in the early morning, when I would rather be in bed anyhow.
8
Now that we are in the age of computers and intelligent devices of all sorts, often with built-in GPS capabilities, I actually wonder why we need artificial time at all. Why not return to sun time? That is, time of day based on an exact longitude: noon would be at local solar noon, midnight 12 hours later. For purposes of synchronization, use a specific location such as Greenwich (for global purposes) or a corporate home office, a stock exchange location, or a national or state capital. Let the computers sort it all out.
2
I'm not a big fan of DST, but at least start it later and end it earlier as it was pre-Carter administration. In October, kids are trick-or-treating before dark (how lame) and in March people and kids are going to work and school in the dark. Let's go back to 6 months of Standard and six months of Savings times.
11
One key thing this article fails to address, and which I never hear discussed, is the matter of where one lives in the time zone. For example, in Maine, which is the easternmost part of the eastern zone in the US, the time is the same as it is in Michigan, which is the westernmost part of the zone, but there's basically an hour difference between when the sun rises and sets in those two states. Relative to Maine, Michigan already has "daylight time" before the shift, and will have its daylight skewed even further towards the evening (and away from the morning) after the shift. My guess is that people in Michigan, who are just finally beginning to get decent light in the early morning, are probably less in favor of shifting to Daylight Time right now, despite the fact that it will stay light out that much later. While there's obviously no perfect solution to this, people should understand how the time settings affect all of us differently. The bottom line is, no matter how you slice it, there's only so much light in a given day.
6
There is natural ebb and flow to the daylight hours. We now know that these man made, sudden changes in either direction increase risk of stroke by disrupting sleep patterns. We don't seem able to leave well enough alone. Americans- always falling into the more is better trap. Even when it can literally kill us.
16
You understand what is happening here. I fear that some people actually think we are creating more daylight.
1
Yet Seasonal Affective Disorder is another potentially harmful condition when people become very depressed from lack of daylight.
The simple answer is there is no simple answer. The country is too big for all of us to be living in ideal time zones, which are arbitrary anyway. This is the curse of the invention of clocks.
The simple answer is there is no simple answer. The country is too big for all of us to be living in ideal time zones, which are arbitrary anyway. This is the curse of the invention of clocks.
1
The idea of solar local time zones is geocentric and almost as absurd as a flat earth. We should all operate on universal time and adjust our business schedules instead of adjusting our local time. When the sun comes up, get up and go!
3
This is the best solution offered here! Clock time is an invented convention and we have come to let little machines become more important than simple, rational solutions. Universal Time, or Zulu Time if you like military jargon works for everyone--everyone in the world. One clock that still allow billions of schedules.
That would be too difficult of an adjustment. And having local time zones is geocentric? Is that supposed to be an insult? We are a rather geocentric species.
5
If we spend 8 months on "daylight saving time" and only 4 on "standard time," then isn't daylight saving time the REAL standard time? We currently switch back to "standard time" so that we have as much daylight during winter months as possible, so I don't get it.
12
We cannot change the "amount" of daylight. It changes naturally, no matter what we do to the clocks. In the northeast we lose about 6 hours of "daylight" in early summer compared with winter. Fiddling with the clocks does not change that.
5
Marc, that is a false straw man. NO ONE claims we can change the amount of daylight. What we can do is position the clocks to take best advantage of the daylight we are given.
If we stayed on std time, the sun would rise at or before 4.30am for 6 weeks around the summer solstice, and would never set after 8pm. What sense would that make? We need to wake up 4+ hours before we need to get to work because people have an issue with the gov't, or with common sense?
Charles, understand your point, but it is not standard time in the sense of the time we are on the most. It is a comparison to GMT (now UTC), since we do not live on our own planet, we are integrated with the time of the rest of the Earth.
If we stayed on std time, the sun would rise at or before 4.30am for 6 weeks around the summer solstice, and would never set after 8pm. What sense would that make? We need to wake up 4+ hours before we need to get to work because people have an issue with the gov't, or with common sense?
Charles, understand your point, but it is not standard time in the sense of the time we are on the most. It is a comparison to GMT (now UTC), since we do not live on our own planet, we are integrated with the time of the rest of the Earth.
7
I don't really care whether we have morning light or evening light -- I just wish it wouldn't change every Fall and Spring! Let's pick one or the other by tossing a coin and stick to it.
23
A rational response in my opinion.
5
I love DST because I have a life after work. I hate getting home at "night" from work. It makes me feel tired and unmotivated.
11
You'd have daylight after work in the summer even without DST. Just not as much.
2
Spring forward, fall back....why not split the difference and stay at that time all year round? In this day and age we spend money regardless of whether the sun is out or not. Maintaining a healthy sleeping pattern and eating routine should be the goal. Will this happen? I doubt it...too much desire to maximize profits is supporting the swap between DST and Standard time.
13
I vote no to DSavT. I like having more light in the morning. Besides, I had always heard that the reason why we switch back to Standard Time is so that the children are not going to school in the dark. Hmmm! DSavT seems so unnatural, totally, and shows complete disrespect for our bodies. I am sure, though, that Congress would be unable to decide on it.
9
I live at 45 degrees north from the equator. On December 21 on standard time, sunrise is at 7:45 a.m. and sunset at 4:30 p.m. Eight hours and 45 minutes of daylight. Go to work in the dark and come home in the dark. On June 21st, if we were still on standard time, sunrise would be at 4:24 a.m. and sunset at 8:00 p.m. At civil twilight (3:47 a.m. on standard time) when the sun first begins to cast light in the sky, the birds begin to sing. I don't need that to happen any earlier. I prefer my extra hour of daylight to be in the evening.
12
DST is a fine thing, but how about we make it "standard time" and then shift forward another hour in the summer? Those who complain, on principle, about such a tiny shift are rigid nut cases who should not be overly indulged. In summer, the sun comes up at 530 a.m in NYC, which is of no use to 90% of us. But if the sun stayed up till 930, instead of 830, that would be a plus for many. As for the winter, shifting forward one hour would mean first light would still come before 8 ... early enough. As it is, when standard time comes, there is a rash of people run down on the dark streets at 5 p.m.
6
Bear in mind that the eastern time zone extends all the way to the near mid-west (Michigan, Indiana, etc.). If they had DST all year round, it wouldn't get light until about 9 am in the dead of winter. I doubt that would be acceptable to most people there, nor to you if you lived there.
1
One more way we kid ourselves. Get rid of it. Get rid of the paper one dollar bill and use the coin. Get rid of the penny.
6
It all comes down to consumerism-the #1 priority of our citizens.
8
I'm for Bloosom Dearie's idea: "There oughta be moonlight savings time, so I could spend more time with you."
10
When I first heard about Daylight Savings Time in school as a kid, I was told (correctly) that farmers hated it because it disrupted the work schedules that were built around the animals' biological clocks. That was in the 1960s. Where and when did the myth come from that farmers were in favor? Urban legend from people who never deal with farmers?
3
Aren't we living in a democracy? Why not put it on the ballot and allow people to vote? Of course, that "politicizes" it and invites all kinds of campaign cash spending by "interested" parties, but we manage to survive more consequential decisions by voting on them. Who knows, maybe it would result in bringing more people to the polls....
6
Yes, lets vote on it. But wait, would it be a popular vote or would some states votes count more than others?
3
Get rid of it, its out dated & not necessary.
8
People, at 7 p.m. do you want it to be light or dark? Do you want your kids playing outside or sitting lumplike in front of their screens? Do you want to walk in the park or do laundry? Everything else is irrelevant.
9
The heating system in our house has a complicated timer which regulates day and night temperatures, forcing me twice a year to go search for a tricky manual to adjust the timer for DST.
If 1 billion households spend 5 minutes each per year adjusting their clocks back and forth the result is 10 million working days lost (add to this the costs and trouble when people forget the time change).
The only sensible thing to do is to nail the summer setting and get rid of a meaningless problem. (We shouldn't be less rational than the Russians, should we?)
If 1 billion households spend 5 minutes each per year adjusting their clocks back and forth the result is 10 million working days lost (add to this the costs and trouble when people forget the time change).
The only sensible thing to do is to nail the summer setting and get rid of a meaningless problem. (We shouldn't be less rational than the Russians, should we?)
4
Lars,
Maybe the world needs a simpler timer mechanism.
Maybe the world needs a simpler timer mechanism.
1
I vote for eliminating DST.
Here in the Northwest just as we start waking to the sun DST comes along plunges us back into morning darkness.
I'd rather have tea in the glow of an early sunrise than sip a beer late into the evening as the sun sets.
Feels easier to live a healthier lifestyle if the light motivates in the beginning of the day.
Here in the Northwest just as we start waking to the sun DST comes along plunges us back into morning darkness.
I'd rather have tea in the glow of an early sunrise than sip a beer late into the evening as the sun sets.
Feels easier to live a healthier lifestyle if the light motivates in the beginning of the day.
7
The logic ofthis piece isn't even correct. You do not uniformly get more light at night. If you live in the western end of a time zone that may be so but those of us who live in the eastern edge of a time zone dread seeing dusk come at five suddenly on that day in October. There is nothing at all to support the claims for daylight saving time.
7
During WWII the Brits went to double Summer time for a while. Why?
Get rid of daylight "saving" time. It's concept is 100 years old and has no place or need in this century. We now have streetlights everywhere.
5
Just leave it the way it is. Summer fun all spring and summer. Fall and winter time to do your work ad go straight home have dinner watch tv read brush your teeth and go to sleep
4
I don't see why a person can't just get up an hour earlier and go to work an hour earlier but of course employers would have to agree to that, even though in practice, changing the clock amounts to the same thing without any permissions. Come to think of it, who cares.
2
The one hour time difference actually causes a mini-jet lag on top of what most of us already have every weekend: a social jet-lag. Read more about how to have a smooth spring forward: www.linkedin.com/pulse/daylight-savings-5-tips-smooth-transition-your-cl...
6
Look at it his way. If the 9-5 workday is replaced by 8-4, then it would accomplish the same thing with standard time all year. But for whatever reason, people don't like to be at work by 8. So DST shifts the labels so that "8" becomes "9" and "4" becomes "5". This feels better - but only as long as for a part of the year "9" is truly "9" and "5" is truly "5". The confusion and sleep adjustment twice a year is the price we pay for this nonsense.
Why no one points out the science and human perception of day. Regions in Northern latitudes face wide swings in day vs. night and it makes perfect sense to have clocks match the sunrise. However, most regions closer to equator have very narrow swings of nights and days in a year. They don't need to adjust the clocks. It is the middle regions - unfortunately most of the United States where the answer is not clear cut. Most Northern States would prefer to have clocks follow the Sunrise. However, Southern States can stay on the same time and not notice Sunrise swings.
1
I live in Northern Alberta and DST hasn't saved a dime. The extension only caused us to go back into darkness in March. We have short daylight in winter and long in summer. This is just an inconvenience to us. If the US is serious about energy conservation and climate change (which I doubt) there are far better ways to achieve it than through time changes. Get a grip!
1
I've long suggested we move our clocks ahead still another hour from the first Sunday in May to the first Sunday in August. Imagine the things we could do with all that evening sunlight--18 holes, instead of 9, 9 innings instead of abbreviated games, longer after dinner hikes. Might it encourage us to be less sedentary after dinner?
2
As I see it, it's all about golf. Golf golf and more golf, the more the better, the more sunlight to play golf in the better. Oligarchs love golf. And hence: daylight savings time forever.
5
I work straight 12-hour night shifts and I am dreading the onset of DST. Driving home is much safer for me when it is light out.
On my off days (I work 7 on/7 off) I still hate DST because it is much harder to reset my internal clock when it stays dark later. I need the bright light in the mornings to help get me out of bed at a reasonable hour.
In any case I am sure I could learn to live with any method of calculating time -- with others what I HATE is switching back and forth!
On my off days (I work 7 on/7 off) I still hate DST because it is much harder to reset my internal clock when it stays dark later. I need the bright light in the mornings to help get me out of bed at a reasonable hour.
In any case I am sure I could learn to live with any method of calculating time -- with others what I HATE is switching back and forth!
5
I have been fighting DST by writing to Congress since my kids were small. Why subject kids to waiting for the school bus in the dark in winter?! They are almost college age now but I will continue to lobby for other people's kids. DST is stupid, a complete waste of time. If Congress was worth anything, they should change to back to standard time only. That will also mean the rest of the world will follow suit since other countries are forced into DST only because we are on it. And we all hate adjusting our bodies to the change in time!
9
My grandfather, a small-town lawyer from Sigourney Iowa, called it "pee-wee golf time." Looks like he was right.
2
Discussions such as these on DST leave me stunned at how math and science challenged we are as a nation.
Abolishing DST would be a DISASTER for people in the Northeast. If we stayed on standard time the whole year, the sun would come up at 4.30am in the NY area for the month of June, and set around 8pm. Complete waste of daylight.
And, of course, DST for Hawaii would be useless. In the tropics, the amount of daylight does not vary much from 12 hours/day. The further you go away from the tropics, the more extreme the daylight variation by season becomes.
Abolishing DST would be a DISASTER for people in the Northeast. If we stayed on standard time the whole year, the sun would come up at 4.30am in the NY area for the month of June, and set around 8pm. Complete waste of daylight.
And, of course, DST for Hawaii would be useless. In the tropics, the amount of daylight does not vary much from 12 hours/day. The further you go away from the tropics, the more extreme the daylight variation by season becomes.
14
My guess is that NY could adapt by starting the day (business openings, etc.) an hour earlier year around. No "loss" in sunlight.
Exactly. And I don't blame folks in Arizona and other extremely hot places for not wanting it, but it makes perfect sense for most of us.
I'm not sure how this has to do with math and science. If anything, science would dictate that we leave time alone. And let's not forget people that suffer from seasonal affective disorder due to time shift.
Perhaps we all need to migrate to different location to suit our needs. I know that's unrealistic, and one can only ponder as they watch migrating birds fly by....
Perhaps we all need to migrate to different location to suit our needs. I know that's unrealistic, and one can only ponder as they watch migrating birds fly by....
2
'none of your candle wax !' - an expression meaning 'none of your business' - may now be the origin of daylight saving - alright !
1
Daylight Savings Time seems to work pretty well in the Pacific Northwest. We're so glad to seem to improve it any way we can. JGAIA-
1
Hate the twice a year change. Pick one, standard or savings, and stay on it.
24
Do I recall correctly, that all of the PRC (People's Republic of China) uses the same Time Zone?
What's their experience with a single time zone? Do folk in Urumchi feel that something's different about having the same time of day as Beijing?
What's their experience with a single time zone? Do folk in Urumchi feel that something's different about having the same time of day as Beijing?
2
Unless you are a vampire, why should anyone be complaining about daylight savings time?
2
Ummm, you realize that changing what our clocks say does not actually add or reduce actual sunlight, right?
I'm an amateur astronomer. Did you ever stop and think, mid summer, its not dark enough to see the stars until 10:30 PM DST ?
2
How about DST all year?
15
Don't forget the evidence that "springing forward" is responsible for a couple dozen car crash deaths each year (sleep-deprived drivers, anyone?): http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2015/01/08/daylight-saving-time-make-you-...
I don't care if we keep DST or not, but we need to end the craziness of changing clocks twice a year. Let's pick one and stick with it year round.
I don't care if we keep DST or not, but we need to end the craziness of changing clocks twice a year. Let's pick one and stick with it year round.
25
Sasha, first correlation does not necessarily mean causation.
Two, one thing neither you nor the article in question consider is what not "springing forward" would do to people's sleep. As I have noted elsewhere, in the Northeast, retaining standard time would cause the sun to come up at 4.30am for a several week period around the solstice. What would being awakened at that time do to people in those areas getting a good night's sleep?
Two, one thing neither you nor the article in question consider is what not "springing forward" would do to people's sleep. As I have noted elsewhere, in the Northeast, retaining standard time would cause the sun to come up at 4.30am for a several week period around the solstice. What would being awakened at that time do to people in those areas getting a good night's sleep?
DST ALL YEAR! More light! More time outside! More saving on fuel!
21
Not necessarily! Longer hot days = more AC, more use of electricity.
Why does everyone keep referring to an "extra" hour of daylight. Same amount of daylight with or without. It's about how we use that daylight. Lets eliminate DST and use the hours of daylight we have!
16
Because you get an extra hour of daylight in the evening. It goes without saying that you lose an hour of daylight in the morning, but most people are asleep at that time and would hardly notice.
3
Jay, no one is referring to an extra hour of sunlight overall, that is a false straw man. The extra hour of daylight is in the evening (it goes without saying that you "lose" an hour of daylight in the morning, when most are sleeping anyway).
Not sure where in MA you are, but let's assume the Boston area. If we stayed on standard time the entire year, the sun would rise in Boston at or prior to 4.30am
from May 8th through July 25th - 2-1/2 months. The latest sunset would be 7.25pm. How exactly does that allow us to efficiently "use the hours of daylight we have"?
Not sure where in MA you are, but let's assume the Boston area. If we stayed on standard time the entire year, the sun would rise in Boston at or prior to 4.30am
from May 8th through July 25th - 2-1/2 months. The latest sunset would be 7.25pm. How exactly does that allow us to efficiently "use the hours of daylight we have"?
1
DST all year long, please!
The switching back and forth is hard on everyone--especially schoolchildren.
And for what?
The switching back and forth is hard on everyone--especially schoolchildren.
And for what?
25
For what? for the sake of LOBBYISTS and their companies. Ugh.
Why change the clocks? If you want change working hours in the Summer. It would have the same effect without all the disruption.
22
My vote is for 'no' for Daylight Savings Time.
I don't like or require the change... that is disruptive for everything but digital clocks that 'get it.'
My mom always complained, "I'm tired and sleepy for six months until I get that hour back." : )
I don't like or require the change... that is disruptive for everything but digital clocks that 'get it.'
My mom always complained, "I'm tired and sleepy for six months until I get that hour back." : )
23
Even with DST there is still too much daylight wasted in the morning which could be used for longer evenings.
In fact we should shift another hour. DST in the winter and double-DST in the summer.
In fact we should shift another hour. DST in the winter and double-DST in the summer.
16
I agree. I hate the afternoon darkness in winter. We should measure depression in winter.
2
Not when you go to work at 6:30 a.m.
1
The quantity of daylight has nothing to do with your clock. And this morning person can tell you that no morning daylight is ever wasted.
I'm totally for abolishing DST, its ridiculous, and the socalled justifications for it are all bogus.
65
Not ridiculous at all. The early-morning light wakes me too early, but a longer evening DOES allow me an evening walk!
6
When people ask why AZ does not observe daylight savings, I point out that with summer highs over 110-plus degrees, the last thing we need is extra hour of sunlight.
45
After just moving from Phoenix, after living there 3.5 years, I can say it was completely depressing to get off work and immediately see the sun go down. Please, I will choose the heat (that only decreases about 8 degrees at night) over decreased sunlight. Also, you do a complete disservice to all the communities with normals climates: Flagstaff, Prescott, etc.
2
There's no extra sunlight.
2
There is no extra hour of sunlight.
2
I remember the political fight to introduce it to Ohio - the major opponents then were the drive-in movie theaters. Remember those?
3
Daylight Saving Time is another example of how Congress meddles and interferes and creates a nuisance out of something that is basically irrelevant. They put out that we are going to have DST in order to save energy but it turns out that there are conflicting studies about whether we save or not. Then they said it is to help the farmers but this article says that is not true. So I don't know what the rationale is for having DST. It would be nice to have the same time year round.
On the topic of Congress, I think that the U. S. Congress is an absolute menace. They resolutely refuse to do anything constructive but they love to tinker with topics like DST. I suspect that if we could investigate we would find that some group who thinks that they benefit from the time changes has spread money around capitol hill to get DST and to have it come earlier and last longer than it once did. People lament the gridlock on capitol hill, but we should be happy for gridlock. If congress wasn't tied up in gridlock there is no telling the crazy things they would come up with.
The best way to deal with DST is to have clocks which set themselves. It is annoying to go around the house resetting clocks twice a year but we have gradually gotten rid of most of the clocks that we have to manually reset.
On the topic of Congress, I think that the U. S. Congress is an absolute menace. They resolutely refuse to do anything constructive but they love to tinker with topics like DST. I suspect that if we could investigate we would find that some group who thinks that they benefit from the time changes has spread money around capitol hill to get DST and to have it come earlier and last longer than it once did. People lament the gridlock on capitol hill, but we should be happy for gridlock. If congress wasn't tied up in gridlock there is no telling the crazy things they would come up with.
The best way to deal with DST is to have clocks which set themselves. It is annoying to go around the house resetting clocks twice a year but we have gradually gotten rid of most of the clocks that we have to manually reset.
2
You might want to reread the "Who Profits?" section
where the groups spreading the money around are identified.
where the groups spreading the money around are identified.
The Continental US should have two time zones, Eastern and Western, with the dividing line on the sparsely populated western borders of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas. Daylight savings time would then would be unnecessary and we could travel from New York to LA with only a one hour time difference.
1
If people want to get up earlier or later, let them do it, and leave the flaming clocks alone.
18
Determining whether Daylight Saving Time is good or bad based on who's able to make money from it seems typical of the business class that runs this country. The importance of Daylight Saving Time has nothing to do with money. It allows ordinary people an extra hour of light in the evening. The end of DST in November is practically a day of mourning for me, and its return a holiday for me -- one of my favorite of the year.
9
As a result of an inability to get car insurance (far too many speeding tickets), at the age of 72 I am a full time bicyclist. I also work at several endeavors full time. Daylight savings time makes me significantly less apprehensive about peddling the 5 mile round trip to my closest supermarket.
Late sunsets also make it much more likely both that many moms and dads and sons and daughters will get outside and away from their computers and televisions and that they will be outdoors longer.
Denver Home for The Bewildered
@ 19:29 on 11 March 2016
Late sunsets also make it much more likely both that many moms and dads and sons and daughters will get outside and away from their computers and televisions and that they will be outdoors longer.
Denver Home for The Bewildered
@ 19:29 on 11 March 2016
4
What people don't realize is that if we stayed on dst all year, in December the sun would not come up until 8am. All you guys who love the longer day would not put up with that. The days get longer anyway. Why do you need the sun up at 8pm at night?
5
Actually as a fellow New Mexican I would love that. There is nothing better than seeing the sun rising so I can wake with it too, rather than waking at 8 am (not unreasonable) and being assaulted by high intensity sun light.
1
Why? To be able to enjoy a nice long walk after dinner every day.
2
Don't forget, most of the push for daylight savings is the retail industry: more drive when it's light, and more candy is sold during Halloween if it's light later.
3
And more people exercise when it is light outside too... Must be the fitness industry wanting to rip all the money from our wallets.
1
My God everyone, get a grip. I can't believe so many people are bothered by this. Can't anyone adapt to a little change in their schedule twice a year?
9
I've always wondered why we don't adjust the time by half an hour and keep it that way all year round. On a contentious issue, getting half of what you want is better for both sides, albeit not perfect for anyone. AND. we wouldn't have to go through the adjustment to an earlier or later hour twice a year.
10
Yanking the clock back and forth each year to enhance business profits is about as lame a reason as I can imagine.
29
I think we should stay ON daylight savings all year - that would be the best solution. (The article fails to mention the significant disruption to the sleep patterns of babies, children and adults that we go through twice per year with the current system.)
16
My own selfish desire is to continue DST. Already the seasonal blues that drag me down and pack on fat are fading as the sun makes me feel like less of a trogdolite or a bear in the den.
Next week I get another hour. The extra energy we consume must be counterbalanced by all the energy our sun riddled psyches produce.
Next week I get another hour. The extra energy we consume must be counterbalanced by all the energy our sun riddled psyches produce.
35
It's terrible for school kids. Many high schools start at 7:30. The kids just can't seem to wake up. It really goes against everything we know about teenagers and their need for sleep.
15
Teenagers need MUCH later start times to respect their biological need for more sleep.
4
The problem is with schools that start that early, regardless. More and more evidence shows that teenagers need later school start times because of their physiology.
6
Where I live, without daylight savings time it is light at 4:30 am in the morning. I love daylight savings time.
7
We observe daylight "saving" time well over half the year. What's the point of having those few months of "standard" at all?
23
It would be very dark, very late into the morning if didn't "fall back."
5
The bottom line: the vast majority of people LOVE the extra daylight at the end of the day and, for whatever reason or with whatever result it might entail PREFER more daylight time in the evening as opposed to in the morning or coming home in the dark after work etc. It is funny how many mistaken notions exist about why we have this practice, however, when in fact the simple and straightforward answer proves to be the correct explanation.
12
Many of us fishermen and farmers will disagree with you . Like many others I get up before the sun rises ( sometimes up to 2 hours earlier). There is a whole working world of good people that love working before the rest of you pencil-pushers wake up.
This is a simple and straightforward answer as well ... and us harvesters were around long before you.
This is a simple and straightforward answer as well ... and us harvesters were around long before you.
2
Since the late '70s I've felt we shouldn't subscribe to the 'spring forward/fall back' seesaw of time change. I've felt the next time it's due to change don't go the entire hour. Either spring forward or fall back one half-hour and keep it there. That way you'll never have to concern yourself with any problems currently associated with it.
33
Biannual to-ing anf fro-ing and government mandated time zones are anti-democratic and anti-State's rights. This article illustrates perfectly yet another way in which lobbyists and their sycophantic legislators intrude deeply into our lives. I'm for local control. I want my community (which could be my State, since it's skinny) to vote to determine what time it is, and whether we have daylight saving time or not. What I don't want is corrupt, partisan legislators from Idaho or Tennessee or Florida or elsewhere, who have their strings pulled by their respective corrupt lobbyists, telling me what time it should be here in Northern California. Let my own corrupt, partisan legislators, with strings pulled by their corrupt lobbyists, do that for me.
California could always implement it's own local time. But I doubt if you could find a lot of people to vote for it.
The correct question is, do we need standard time?
14
I agree; we should stay on "daylight" all year round
3
China doesn't have DST. It doesn't even use time zones. The whole country is in the same time zone. People figure it out. It sure makes plane and train scheduling easier. I love riding my bike after work once DST kicks in, but a flexible work schedule would accomplish the same thing--at least not that I don't have a child in school. Now if we could just figure out how it make it rain only when it's dark.
1
Frequent comments about Arizona's general lack of daylight time (exception: Navajo Nation land, both in AZ and neighboring states) are that people in Phoenix and other lower elevation areas don't want DST because it would be 100 degrees at 10 o'clock at night then. Wake up, folks. Even without DST, it is 100 late at night. We are depriving ourselves of the usefulness of the cooler mornings by having sunrises too early when we're nearly all on fixed schedules: work times, school times, shopping times, etc. Those in or visiting the highlands of AZ don't face this kind of nighttime heat, yet they are deprived of the longer, daylight filled evenings that encourage outdoor activities and socializing. Although AZ is great, I miss summer's evening daylight.
Think also of the need throughout the year of coordinating with other parts of the country. Want to call friends or relatives back East? Let's see, is it 2 hours or 3 hours different? It depends on the time of year. Better to have clock changes uniform throughout at least the continental US so we're not constantly in that dilemma.
With that in mind, North America and Europe should standardize they're spring and fall time changes. My vote is to have DST start in late March as the Europeans now do, and end in early November like North America now does.
Think also of the need throughout the year of coordinating with other parts of the country. Want to call friends or relatives back East? Let's see, is it 2 hours or 3 hours different? It depends on the time of year. Better to have clock changes uniform throughout at least the continental US so we're not constantly in that dilemma.
With that in mind, North America and Europe should standardize they're spring and fall time changes. My vote is to have DST start in late March as the Europeans now do, and end in early November like North America now does.
2
I love extended daylight at the end of the day - a perfect match for warmer weather. It's our version of Scotland's 'glooming' time. You can make a lot more use of the day/post-work day and do it outside.
6
I find the shift from one time to another very disorienting. It takes me several weeks to adjust my natural rhythms to the new time, which results in decreased efficiency. The loss of an hour in the spring is especially disruptive.
12
I hate it, as a confirmed morning person, just as I am beginning to get a few more minutes of the beautiful. traffic free clean aired early morning, it is snatched away from me, and when bush pushed the dated back, it was just one more reason to hate him. I don't know anyone who thinks it is for farmers, it is well known it is for the candy industry at Halloween, and capitalism the rest of the year. Farmers hate it cuz cows don't understand it. Simple as that.
7
"it is well known it is for the candy industry at Halloween ..."
-------
Actually, DST used to end before Hallowe'en. It's only relatively recently that it goes past October 31, and it was extended because of parental fears about kids' safety, since we live in such a fear-filled culture about everything these days. (What's the point in going trick-or-treating in the daylight?)
-------
Actually, DST used to end before Hallowe'en. It's only relatively recently that it goes past October 31, and it was extended because of parental fears about kids' safety, since we live in such a fear-filled culture about everything these days. (What's the point in going trick-or-treating in the daylight?)
1
From a selfish perspective, since I almost always awaken when the sun hasn't, I'd rather have my extra daylight at the end of the day.
6
so get up an hour earlier.
I vote DST year round. That extra hour of sunlight gives people time to exercise at the end of the day and not just watch an extra hour of TV. We need all the help we can get to get people to do stuff other than sit around watching TV and surfing the internet.
16
In an increasingly obese nation, we all could use a little extra exercise - and the extra daylight afforded us helps to promote that. Whether we're playing outdoor sports, gardening or simply enjoying an extended walk with the dog, extra daylight is good for our bodies and it's good for our souls.
9
I've always hated dst. Of course it's about money. I recently saw on the news more heart attacks and strokes happen at daylight savings time. According to what I saw, the solution to avoid that is to get up half an hour earlier each day so it wasn't a jolt to our circadian rythm. Or get rid of daylight savings time!
7
I hate it. I wish we could abolish it and this article makes me wish it even more. It's an abomination. I like to wake with the sun, so if I wake earlier in the summer then I get up and get going. I hate it.
11
Yes, we really need DST. Unnecessary government intervention? Oh, jeez, there's no issue that can't be politicized. A missed hour of sleep once a year, made up a few months later. We've lived with this all my long life. Just deal with it. We don't need an extra hour of light in the morning, when most people are sleeping anyway. The day is longer and all living things naturally gravitate toward the light. Warm summer evenings and beautiful dusky sunsets. I live for this all year long. Enjoy it.
6
The misinterpretations of Ben Franklin's letter illustrate the dangers of irony. He woke up "early", after a long night of carousing, surprised that anyone was up before noon("shocked, shocked", not, in modern parlance). His suggestions, such as the one repeated here, were clearly meant as jokes. Ben was no anti-federalist but he would've been against "daylight savings".
3
I believe that a single universal clock time for the whole planet would be a beneficial move for most people. Especially for computer folks.
Hate DST! Makes winter completely depressing. Get up in the dark, work inside all day, go home in the dark. Besides that isn't more energy used lighting up those extra hours of evening gloom. Saving daylight is expensive. I live in California, I think a ballot initiative is in order.
5
Eric, sounds like you hate winter.
IT is the STANDARD time that is making you SAD,
you would prefer we stay on daylight savings all year. I agree.
you would prefer we stay on daylight savings all year. I agree.
2
Here on the eastern edge of the Eastern time zone, the sun sets at 3:50 in late December. The drive home from work, during the snowy, sleety time of year, is in pitch black.
As someone with SAD, I go into quasi-hibernation mode as soon as we turn the clocks back, and don't emerge from it until we "spring forward."
The extra month of DST has been a real boon for me.
For some reason, I prefer to get up while it's still dark. I like having my coffee while the world is still quiet.
I live for the evening, being outdoors in the garden after work, sitting on the deck enjoying the sun's last rays.
I once visited Newfoundland in early July, and I could read outdoors after 10 p.m. At 11, it was still light enough for the kids in town to be riding their bicycles and tricycles around. Everybody stayed up late to enjoy the wonderful long days.
One year Richard Nixon suspended the time change - we never turned the clocks back, just stayed on summer time. That was the best thing that President did, in my opinion.
As someone with SAD, I go into quasi-hibernation mode as soon as we turn the clocks back, and don't emerge from it until we "spring forward."
The extra month of DST has been a real boon for me.
For some reason, I prefer to get up while it's still dark. I like having my coffee while the world is still quiet.
I live for the evening, being outdoors in the garden after work, sitting on the deck enjoying the sun's last rays.
I once visited Newfoundland in early July, and I could read outdoors after 10 p.m. At 11, it was still light enough for the kids in town to be riding their bicycles and tricycles around. Everybody stayed up late to enjoy the wonderful long days.
One year Richard Nixon suspended the time change - we never turned the clocks back, just stayed on summer time. That was the best thing that President did, in my opinion.
24
I've always felt bad for Maine folks because of this, since I'm annoyed enough by unreasonably early sunsets in NYC. How much better it was when I lived in Knoxville, Tenn., on the western edge of the Eastern Time Zone. Sun never set before 530.
2
I would question the wisdom of individual states within the connected 48 states, such as Arizona, going their own way on DST. There is value in all states in a time zone being on the same time schedule. For Hawaii, which is separate and in a zone of its own and with little change in sunrise since it is close to the equator, to keep its clocks unchanged makes sense. Also for Alaska, in the north where the sunrise shifts by many hours, to not bother with a shift on an hour would also make sense.
During WWII we had a War Time shifting the time forward one hour throughout the year plus an hour of DST on top of that during the summer. The sunrise varies about 3 hour in the United States, less in the South and more in the Northern States. To make most of daylight, we should have Standard Time in the winter, a one hour DST shift Spring and Fall, and an additional one hour shift for the Summer months. But if many find two time changes difficult, four shifts a year would seem intolerable. A possible solution would be to accept a Sun Time with clocks which ran fast by one minute each day for the first half year (180 minutes or 3 hours) and slow by a minute a day for the second half of the year, which would keep clocks in sync with sunrise.
During WWII we had a War Time shifting the time forward one hour throughout the year plus an hour of DST on top of that during the summer. The sunrise varies about 3 hour in the United States, less in the South and more in the Northern States. To make most of daylight, we should have Standard Time in the winter, a one hour DST shift Spring and Fall, and an additional one hour shift for the Summer months. But if many find two time changes difficult, four shifts a year would seem intolerable. A possible solution would be to accept a Sun Time with clocks which ran fast by one minute each day for the first half year (180 minutes or 3 hours) and slow by a minute a day for the second half of the year, which would keep clocks in sync with sunrise.
1
It might be simpler to leave the clock alone (time zones make things complicated enough) and let people and businesses decide their own schedules relative to their region's daylight changes. We *already* hold schedules different from each other. Why radically complicate things with DST?
1
it may seem trivial, but the fundamental reason for daylight saving is clocks. if we all simply got up and went to dinner with the sunrise and sunset, we'd naturally adjust to the fraction of a minute time change that occur each day.
clocks were first used as an economic regulator in the urban 18th century, which really invented schedules, time tables and even new words such as "punctual" and "late" (meaning "laggard" rather than "previous"). since that era their principal function has always been economic, so any regulation of their use would necessarily have an economic rationale and a measurable economic impact.
clocks were first used as an economic regulator in the urban 18th century, which really invented schedules, time tables and even new words such as "punctual" and "late" (meaning "laggard" rather than "previous"). since that era their principal function has always been economic, so any regulation of their use would necessarily have an economic rationale and a measurable economic impact.
3
I never gave much thought to this until the first year my children, then aged two and four, were enrolled in day care. After the switch back to standard time, I arrived to pick them up as usual, at around 6 p.m., only to find them crying inconsolably. All they knew was that it was already dark and I hadn't come to get them. They were terrified. Now they are grown, and my husband and I live in Arizona, where Daylight Saving Time is not observed. I much prefer experiencing the natural rhythym of the gradual lengthening and then shortening of the day. It's made me realize just how jarring the artificial time change is for the human body and spirit.
219
Ellen: your comment: "I much prefer experiencing the natural rhythym (sic) of the gradual lengthening and then shortening of the day"— is not logical.
I'm reasonably certain that the sun rising and setting happens just as naturally and gradually in states with DST as those without. Clock "time" is a relatively recent human invention— a grid for our convenience and for commerce only, not a dictate of natural (or even religious) laws.
How "jarring" it is, depends on how adaptable you choose to be for the few days it takes to adjust you sleep schedule.
For those of us who enjoy the extra productivity and activity of that extra hour of light, it is not jarring in the least.
I'm reasonably certain that the sun rising and setting happens just as naturally and gradually in states with DST as those without. Clock "time" is a relatively recent human invention— a grid for our convenience and for commerce only, not a dictate of natural (or even religious) laws.
How "jarring" it is, depends on how adaptable you choose to be for the few days it takes to adjust you sleep schedule.
For those of us who enjoy the extra productivity and activity of that extra hour of light, it is not jarring in the least.
2
Howeve, the difference in daylight for your section of the country is small compared to what it means for your northern neighbors.
1
You are so right., and I am glad you mention this. It is something only a parent who picks their children up knows!
1
I get up early and go to work so when this change happens after the dark has already slowly turned to light in the morning makes me feel robbed of the natural progression to spring. I have been asking myself the same question this article poses: why? To find out that capitalism, among other things, is the answer to this question is very disconcerting.
83
It seems we must always ask, "cui bono?" - "who benefits?" Often enough we can't tell, so it's good in this case to at least have an answer.
3
Were it not for capitalism, the new york times would not be available as a medium for you to express your insightful commentary.
1
For some of us these time shifts are very disruptive. I find it disrupts my sleep for some time when these twice yearly shifts occur. You might imagine, if the shift is no problem for you, that over time you'd gradually find it easier to adjust. But in my case, it's just getting harder and more annoying, not easier. And I'm retired!
I hate the fact that it stays light later and later. I hate waking up before sunrise. I hate changing the clocks so much that I now have 2 of them that never get changed. Soon they won't tell the correct time. But in the Fall, once again they'll be correct.
In a world where change is all too frequent, at the very least we could have some continuity, when it comes to telling time.
I hate the fact that it stays light later and later. I hate waking up before sunrise. I hate changing the clocks so much that I now have 2 of them that never get changed. Soon they won't tell the correct time. But in the Fall, once again they'll be correct.
In a world where change is all too frequent, at the very least we could have some continuity, when it comes to telling time.
43
We don't have DST in Hawaii, but I wish we did. That extra hour would mean more time after work to enjoy the most beautiful sunsets on the planet.
11
So just change your work hours. Why change the clock?
Why do you think that's an option? Isn't for most of us.
2
People use more gas, energy and spend more money with the extra hour in the evening. If we have to have this time change, can we at least move it back to the end of April? Or better yet, get rid of it all together.
28
The two holdouts on DST aren't acting out of pique or ideology. Hawaii is close to the equator, so the day/night balance doesn't change nearly as much as it does farther north, and it's not near anyone so isn't pressed to sync its clock with anyone else. Arizona's urban population is concentrated in the desert, where summer nights can't come soon enough-- they don't want or need the extra hours of sweltering daytime heat.
As for me, I love DST, and don't mind one bit losing an hour's sleep one day for eight months of extra daylight hours after work.
As for me, I love DST, and don't mind one bit losing an hour's sleep one day for eight months of extra daylight hours after work.
169
Ummm, the clocks may change but they still have the same number of hours of sweltering daytime heat.
2
There are no "extra hours" achieved by fiddling with the clocks. 24 per day, that is all.
But they spend more of it at work, April, and isn't it more efficient to air condition one large building filled with people than to cool many small structures?
I would actually prefer to have daylight savings time in the winter not the summer. It is dark at 5 pm in Memphis in the winter.
12
I dread DST every spring. I have a brain disorder that requires a pretty strict sleep schedule, and DST wreaks utter havoc...everything is thrown off for days/weeks afterward. I'm probably not the only one. Just seems senseless to me.
74
I have the opposite issue. The early morning light wakes me about 4:30 - 5:00a.m. So I love DST.
1
I dread DST every spring. I have a brain disorder that requires a pretty strict sleep schedule, and DST wreaks utter havoc...everything is thrown off for days/weeks afterward. I bet I'm not the only one. Just seems senseless to me.
6
Clearly some people need to get away from their computers and just GO OUTSIDE.
Seriously folks -- enjoy the extra hour of daylight and give thanks for being in the world. Take a walk. Ride a bike. Play some frisbee in the park. Or come out sailing with me!
Seriously folks -- enjoy the extra hour of daylight and give thanks for being in the world. Take a walk. Ride a bike. Play some frisbee in the park. Or come out sailing with me!
12
There is no "extra" hour of daylight.
5
We'd much prefer it if DST were in effect year round.
54
Oh if you only knew how terrible it is to be on double daylight. That is one hour for the wrong zone (all of Indiana is geographically located within the Central Time Zone) and one hour for DST. Consequently, we have children going to school in the dark almost all year long and permanent jet lag for adults.
3
Time zone boundaries, which originally aligned with the 15° meridians, have tended to drift westward. Look at any world time zone map. I think that is largely a result of people's liking of the extra evening daylight, but sometimes (e.g., Spain) it was for political reasons. Spain seems to cope reasonably well with the situation.
2
Yes, so is Michigan virtually completely geographically located in the Central Time Zone (west of 82.5 degrees West). That makes for sunset around 10:00 PM near the Summer Solstice when it's DST and sunrise around 8:00 rear the Winter Solstice when it's Eastern Standard Time in Detroit. I remember those 8:00 AM sunrises as a child in Detroit. Then, Michigan didn't go on DST.
Actually, I've always liked DST because of the additional hour of daylight in the evening; and of course, the warm weather too after a long dreary winter in the Allegheny Mountains.
Actually, I've always liked DST because of the additional hour of daylight in the evening; and of course, the warm weather too after a long dreary winter in the Allegheny Mountains.
1
DST should go...it wastes electricity in the summer months forcing people to use air conditioning later into the evening. Further when it's light outside late..until nearly 10pm in June and July...people stay up later during the week so cutting into their sleep time when they still get up early for work..leading to increased accidents and lower productivity at work. And as the article mentions the later evenings causes people to drive more...which isn't good for the environment.
25
Why not pick a time and stick to it? The time changes from east to west in the US time zones, so why complicate matters with DST?
18
We're all too stupid to read a clock or use our watches, so we have to be guided by where the sun is in the sky.
Wait a minute. Don't we have iPhones?
This is a relic of long ago. Leave the time alone. Abolish DST. It's an insult to modern intelligence
Wait a minute. Don't we have iPhones?
This is a relic of long ago. Leave the time alone. Abolish DST. It's an insult to modern intelligence
23
My vote is for a single Universal Time for the whole planet. Uh, yes... I do work with networks and servers...
I dread DST every spring. I have a brain disorder that requires a pretty strict sleep schedule and DST wreaks utter havoc...everything gets thrown off for days/weeks, I bet I'm not the only one out there. Just seems senseless to me.
8
With "standard" time being in effect for less than half a year, daylight savings time is the true standard time. It makes more sense to make DST the official standard time and to quit adjusting the clocks twice a year. I live on the western edge of the Eastern Time Zone and even here, I would prefer that DST become the standard.
41
While I'd prefer to eliminate DST, I'd really prefer to pick either DST or Standard Time & leave it there all year. The twice-a-year shifting plays havoc w/anything that's not a human tied to the clock. Resetting babies' & pets' appetites are just two examples...after learning for six months that breakfast came at a certain time, my infant/toddler daughter's stomach didn't understand that breakfast was now going to be an hour earlier or an hour later "just because." Fortunately my daughter's 18 now & we don't have issues w/that anymore, but our three cats are happy to take on that infant/toddler role & demand breakfast when they're hungry, not when the clock says a specific time.
68
Yes, I go around resetting the clocks, but I've never found the little control panel for resetting the cat.
She plays her cards pretty close to the vest, so it's probably a lost cause. I will wake up to a paw smack and an outraged glare for the next three weeks.
She plays her cards pretty close to the vest, so it's probably a lost cause. I will wake up to a paw smack and an outraged glare for the next three weeks.
3
I always suspected it was alarm clock manufacturers. Having to change your clock settings results in more wear and tear of your clock leading to more frequent replacement.
5
No daylight is "saved." Daylight Saving Time simply moves the arbitrary man-made clock that has become more important to our daily schedules than the sun. The only actual effect on your total daylight hours is due to your position on the Earth and the Earth's position in it's orbit around the sun.
19
I will first say that I am a steadfast proponent of extended usable daylight hours. Daylight savings time (DST), in its current form, gets me more usable daylight hours than one of the proposed alternatives: abolishing DST. Another proposed alternative, extending DST to be year-round, would actually serve the purpose of further extending usable daylight hours by extending the period of afternoon light throughout the year.
Why do I put such a point on usable daylight hours? As the article and other commenters have mentioned work habits in the US and around the world have changed over time. We work longer hours than in the past, and we are much more confined to offices and other indoor environments that limit our exposure to natural light and the outdoors. We also spend much of the morning hours preparing for and commuting to work, which further limits the utility of those hours of daylight. For those reasons I propose that the afternoon and evening hours are the main periods when working Americans can do leisure activities, spend time with family/friends, and enjoy the outdoors. If we increase daylight hours during those periods we may all have a chance to utilize/enjoy them more.
Everyone can agree that there is a limited amount of daylight available in any given location in any given season. Financial interests aside I am in favor of whatever strategy allows people to get out of work and enjoy a sunlit world. DST is the best thing going on that front right now.
Why do I put such a point on usable daylight hours? As the article and other commenters have mentioned work habits in the US and around the world have changed over time. We work longer hours than in the past, and we are much more confined to offices and other indoor environments that limit our exposure to natural light and the outdoors. We also spend much of the morning hours preparing for and commuting to work, which further limits the utility of those hours of daylight. For those reasons I propose that the afternoon and evening hours are the main periods when working Americans can do leisure activities, spend time with family/friends, and enjoy the outdoors. If we increase daylight hours during those periods we may all have a chance to utilize/enjoy them more.
Everyone can agree that there is a limited amount of daylight available in any given location in any given season. Financial interests aside I am in favor of whatever strategy allows people to get out of work and enjoy a sunlit world. DST is the best thing going on that front right now.
46
Lots of good points, but DST in the winter would have kids getting up to go to school way before dawn.
1
During WWII, Great Britain had "Double Summer Time."
Daylight Saving Times helps those in tourist areas during the summer, especially at the ocean. In the northern tier of the country (CONUS) we have light at 4:00 A.M. with DST. If we were on ST we'ed have light at 3:00 A.M. Not a good idea to go back to ST.
Daylight Saving Times helps those in tourist areas during the summer, especially at the ocean. In the northern tier of the country (CONUS) we have light at 4:00 A.M. with DST. If we were on ST we'ed have light at 3:00 A.M. Not a good idea to go back to ST.
2
My emotional response is that I'd like to get rid of it so I don't have to hear the complainers complain about it. My logical response is that we ought to get a serious analysis of the pros and cons. There could be some consequences we haven't thought of yet. It's no big deal to me either way. It's not like I have to set my clocks anymore; they set themselves. That and it's only twice a year.
3
I always feel a rush to wrap up work hastily when it's beginning to darken. With DST I could actually better manage my time.
5
I remember when DST didn't start quite so early--I believe in April, when it was actually starting to get a bit warmer. I hate having it start in March, because when it's finally light out when I get up around 6:30, now it will be dark again and I hate it! I don't know why it was extended but I think it should go back to being truly spring to fall.
26
Hello, Astronomical Spring starts March 20 so DST only starts 7 days before Spring starts
Or if you want to consider meteorological, Spring began March 1st and we're almost two weeks late.
Or if you want to consider meteorological, Spring began March 1st and we're almost two weeks late.
1
This entire article could have been written with a single-word response: "No."
Summer hours should apply at all times.
Summer hours should apply at all times.
118
It would be light out at 4 AM near the summer solstice if it were not for DST. Better to have the light in the evening than in the morning.
43
Try Oregon or Washington. Light at 3:00 A.M. if there were just Standard Time.
3
In the winter it would also be dark until after well after 8:00 in many regions of the country in late December and eraly January, particularly for regions on the western side of their time zone. I find it amusing how many people can't do the math on this.
3
JGH, I'm actually pretty good at math. What I don't have and never will is the ability to visualize directional relationships in my head. I have to draw them on a piece of paper, and sometimes still get it backwards. My mother is the same way. Thank heavens for GPS.
On the other hand, I am always surprised that other people have trouble spelling words. It's easy (...for me).
On the other hand, I am always surprised that other people have trouble spelling words. It's easy (...for me).
1
What am I seeing? Wouldn't the sun need to be rising for its reflection to show up on the water? or is this some kind of optical illusion?
the sun will be reflected on water depending on the angle a which you view the sun in relation to the water. It has absolutely no relation to whether it is setting or rising. But since this photo was taken in Maine, it has to be at sunrise. After all, the sun rises in the east, not the west
1
Daylight savings time always confused me but this article may me all for it!!!! In the mornings before work you don't need daylight, you need it after work to get out and have some fun or exercise after work or school! New York is a Northern climate, we go through so much darkmess all winter, going to work when it's dark and coming home when it's dark, we need all the sunlight we can get, for our health and enjoyment. The great Enllightenment rationalist Ben Franklin was right! Keep daylight savings time, at least for the Northern states!
109
The more east you are located within your time zone, the more the benefits are apparent. That's why people on the east coast are generally more positive about it than people on the west coast, which is located west of their time zone. In western France and Spain, where the time is already biased towards late sunsets, adding yet one more hour results in a 10pm sunset in summer, which is a bit strange. However, on the East Coast, it is truly a benefit to enjoy daylight until 8pm or so in the summer.
15
We, on the northern tier of states in CCONUS love daylight saving time. Light until 10:00 P.M. I sure wouldn't like to have it get light at 3 A.M. As it is, it is light at 4 A.M.
4
Actually, support/opposition is based on two factors: 1) how close 12:00 PM where you live is to solar noon, and 2) your latitude.
I live at 61N, 149W. Solar noon in my time zone is after 1 PM in winter, after 2 PM in summer. At the winter solstice, sunrise is at 10:15 AM, sunset at 3:40 PM. We are already on the equivalent of year-round DST, i.e., we should be in the same time zone as Hawai'i because we are as far west as that state, but instead we are in a time zone between Pacific and Hawai'ian time.
Staying on summer DST all year would make it dark out until after 11 AM in winter. The extra hour of afternoon daylight would still be gone by the the end of the normal workday. In parts of my state that are even farther west (Alaska actually spans 4-5 time zones but the entire state was put in a single zone several decades ago), permanent DST would be even worse, with the sun rising well after noon.
If you'd ever had to get up, get dressed, and commute to work 5-6 hours before sunrise for months at a time, working with the lights on until almost noon, you would know that the last thing you need is to lose yet another hour of morning light. Exposure to intense light soon after waking is so important to establish normal diurnal cycles and maintain mental health that many of us use 10,000 lumen "SAD" lights to simulate daylight each morning. The costs to health and happiness associated with DST decisions should count at least as much as gasoline sales profits.
I live at 61N, 149W. Solar noon in my time zone is after 1 PM in winter, after 2 PM in summer. At the winter solstice, sunrise is at 10:15 AM, sunset at 3:40 PM. We are already on the equivalent of year-round DST, i.e., we should be in the same time zone as Hawai'i because we are as far west as that state, but instead we are in a time zone between Pacific and Hawai'ian time.
Staying on summer DST all year would make it dark out until after 11 AM in winter. The extra hour of afternoon daylight would still be gone by the the end of the normal workday. In parts of my state that are even farther west (Alaska actually spans 4-5 time zones but the entire state was put in a single zone several decades ago), permanent DST would be even worse, with the sun rising well after noon.
If you'd ever had to get up, get dressed, and commute to work 5-6 hours before sunrise for months at a time, working with the lights on until almost noon, you would know that the last thing you need is to lose yet another hour of morning light. Exposure to intense light soon after waking is so important to establish normal diurnal cycles and maintain mental health that many of us use 10,000 lumen "SAD" lights to simulate daylight each morning. The costs to health and happiness associated with DST decisions should count at least as much as gasoline sales profits.
17
Humanist, Alaska should probably opt out of DST ... considering how far north you are, it won't make a difference. the prevailing factor for you is that the closer to the poles you are, the more extreme the change in hours of daylight around the solstices (to the point where northern parts of your state experience total light in June and total darkness in December.)
Very different in the middle latitudes, and depending on which edge of the time zone you are on. In NY, the sun would rise at or before 4.30am for six weeks, and for almost 3 months in Boston, which would be disastrous for proper sleep. So I am with Dick Diamond, we need to adjust the clocks by season.
Very different in the middle latitudes, and depending on which edge of the time zone you are on. In NY, the sun would rise at or before 4.30am for six weeks, and for almost 3 months in Boston, which would be disastrous for proper sleep. So I am with Dick Diamond, we need to adjust the clocks by season.
Interesting. I wish we could lock in DST. I'm against the moving of clocks twice per year, but prefer that it not get dark at 4 pm in the Winter.
98
Back up the clocks, no, forward them-good grief, leave 'em all alone already.
Most people HATE losing an hour of sleep. It messes with our circadian rhythms,
hurts commuting hours (alertness) and work in general, as we try and catch up on lost shut eye. I've lived in both Hawaii and AZ and did not miss this bi-annual ridiculousness, not for one minute (or hour).
Most people HATE losing an hour of sleep. It messes with our circadian rhythms,
hurts commuting hours (alertness) and work in general, as we try and catch up on lost shut eye. I've lived in both Hawaii and AZ and did not miss this bi-annual ridiculousness, not for one minute (or hour).
82
Semi-annual.
3
My apologies to sf.
Biannual and semiannual are synonymous.
Biennial means every two years.
Biannual and semiannual are synonymous.
Biennial means every two years.
1
Time to deep six daylight savings. It's not healthy to keep moving the clocks back and forth. Too stressful for working folks and older folks.
73
The incredibly early daylight hours in the summer without daylight savings would be more stressful for "working and older folks". The incredibly late sunrise in the winter, if we had daylight savings all year, would also be stressful for "the working folks". How about moving the change back to the first weekend in April where it belongs? Finally have some morning daylight and now it will be another month before it is reasonably light in the morning. it also would coincide with the change in European countries.
2
Heysus, thank you !! I have always hated DST and I hate it much more now that I am 'older folks.'
10
If we didn't suffer losing an hour in the spring, we'd never know the joy of gaining an hour in the fall.
3
Sounds like an exercise in futility. I enjoy the extra hour of daylight in the evening so would vote to just stay on DST year round. People with kids who would walk to school in the dark probably don't agree. Start school later.
115
Schools should be started later and end later, anyway.
32
I loathe DST! I count the days until we can get back to reality in the fall.
14
As a homesteader and someone who lives close to the cycles in Nature, DST robs me of observing the subtle changes in light and atmosphere throughout the year.
So often we hear the lament that we are becoming more and more divorsed from the natural world. DST is the epitome of our estrangement.
So often we hear the lament that we are becoming more and more divorsed from the natural world. DST is the epitome of our estrangement.
31
You realize that it's just the clocks that change, right? The actual natural world is going through precisely the same rhythms...you can still see all the same things at the same times...only the clock is different. If you are a homesteader, just ignore the clocks except when you have an appointment away from your homestead, and get in touch with nature all you want.
14
Back in the early 1950s I was managing editor of a small daily newspaper in California. Our paper dominated all news gathering, and pretty much all discussions in the small city. On a Saturday morning in spring, someone reminded me that Daylight Savings would begin that night. So I wrote a short blurb on page one, reminding everyone to turn their clocks back one hour. The radio stations went crazy all weekend, telling everyone that the newspaper was wrong -- terribly wrong, they chortled. The damage from my blunder became evident the next morning when folks showed up two hours early for church. And again on Monday when workers knocked on locked doors in the dark trying to start their shifts. And just a tad later when my phone began to wring and the venom spewed out. In my apology in that afternoon's paper I quoted many of the complainants, and later in the week we ran many of the letters. Some we couldn't run -- and I couldn't read them aloud to my children. So I have a bias against Daylight Savings, and I can't wait until fall when we can once again turn our clocks ahead an hour.
22
This is too funny. Thanks for the laugh!!!
4
The entire world should be on a single time zone, which the internet and international business is already on.
Daylight Savings would be irrelevant.
It's just that in some parts of the world 10 pm might be the middle of the night. But people would get used to it, especially future generations.
Of course, the USA still hasn't joined the rest of the world on Metric systems, so I doubt many people in the USA would want to be on a single universal time.
Daylight Savings would be irrelevant.
It's just that in some parts of the world 10 pm might be the middle of the night. But people would get used to it, especially future generations.
Of course, the USA still hasn't joined the rest of the world on Metric systems, so I doubt many people in the USA would want to be on a single universal time.
3
I'm going to take a wild guess that you live comparatively closer to the presumable "home" time zone, i.e. UTC/Greenwich Mean Time, than I do. No, I'm not going to "get used to" spending my entire Decembers here at 61 N, 149 W, working and playing during the 19+ hours of darkness we have each day at that time of year. And I don't think Homo sapiens can evolve fast enough to change the way light interacts with our serotonin and melatonin receptors, etc.
If we actually implemented your suggestion, the only way to make it fair on a global basis would be to advance the home time zone by one hour each year, through all 24 existing zones over each 24-year period. That way New Yorkers could also get to experience life as a vampire for several years at a time, at least two or three times over the course of their lives.
If we actually implemented your suggestion, the only way to make it fair on a global basis would be to advance the home time zone by one hour each year, through all 24 existing zones over each 24-year period. That way New Yorkers could also get to experience life as a vampire for several years at a time, at least two or three times over the course of their lives.
4
Wow! Another hilarious comment. Thanks to you, too!
1
Humanist, why would we need to follow the clock in Brian's scenario? Are you honestly thinking that if we had worldwide time that most everyone everywhere would get up and go to work at the same time? Sorry, but that's absurd. Some people would have morning at 8 a.m., others would have it at 9 p.m. Like relativity, it's all a matter of perspective.
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Sorry, I meant, much hotter in the afternoon than the morning. That would significantly change my previous comment.
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Why is the implication that Arizona and Hawaii are not on DST because they are anti-federalist? That seems awkwardly placed in the article.
Some fool state legislator last year tried to reintroduce DST to Arizona. He was educated thoroughly and swiftly.
There is absolutely no way I want the sun to still be out at 8:30pm in the summer. I definitely do not want it to be 100+ after 10pm. It is MUCH hotter here in the afternoon than the evening. That doesn't change according to what our clocks say. Why shift the hottest part of the day from 3-5pm to 4-6pm? That would be awful. Electricity consumption would no doubt skyrocket. Worse, it would shift electricity costs from big corporate employers to individuals and families.
That Indiana study should ensure Arizona never goes back to DST. Can you imagine those electricity increases in a place where the average high temperature in Jun-Aug is 100+ degrees? It isn't about the cost of light. Light is cheap. AIR CONDITIONING is not cheap.
Some fool state legislator last year tried to reintroduce DST to Arizona. He was educated thoroughly and swiftly.
There is absolutely no way I want the sun to still be out at 8:30pm in the summer. I definitely do not want it to be 100+ after 10pm. It is MUCH hotter here in the afternoon than the evening. That doesn't change according to what our clocks say. Why shift the hottest part of the day from 3-5pm to 4-6pm? That would be awful. Electricity consumption would no doubt skyrocket. Worse, it would shift electricity costs from big corporate employers to individuals and families.
That Indiana study should ensure Arizona never goes back to DST. Can you imagine those electricity increases in a place where the average high temperature in Jun-Aug is 100+ degrees? It isn't about the cost of light. Light is cheap. AIR CONDITIONING is not cheap.
11
As someone who just moved from Arizona 3 months ago and lived there for 3 and a half years, I can say your lack of day light savings time is something I will not miss. Most people in AZ were grossly misinformed about what daylight savings time entails (my girlfriend an AZ native thought you had more afternoon daylight not being on Day Light Savings). Additionally, for those of us who work, you hardly ever saw the afternoon sun on work days. This was frankly depressing. I would much rather have the sun and heat, rather than darkness and continued heat (remember how the temp remains above 100 in the night).
6
You didn't mention the movement to stay on daylight savings year round, which some people seem to think would make the winters more tolerable. Unfortunately, our winter darkness problem in the Northeast is the sheer reduction in the hours of daylight, and one hour one way or the other doesn't help that much. Here in Boston, we swing from a lovely 15 hours and 17 minutes of daylight in June to a horrible 9 hours and 4 minutes in December. That loss of more than six hours of daylight is painful, whether or not our December light ranges from 7:15 am (ish) to 4:15 pm (ish) off daylight savings, or 8:15 am to 5:15 pm if we stayed on. I do think a lot of us would have a hard time if dawn was after 8 am. I also think we would have a hard time if we didn't go on daylight savings in the summer, in which case dawn would be a few minutes after 4 am. That's just too early! So, I think our current daylight savings plans are pretty good--regardless of the impact on the economy. Now, if only we could do something about those six lost hours of daylight....
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You get 9 hours minimum sunlight? In Ottawa we only get 8 hours and 47 minutes!
Ummmm... I'm a Boston transplant to the Midwest, and I can assure you the days here shrink and expand just as much as they do on the East Coast.
1
Those six hours of daylight are not "lost." They are simply put into the "bank" until "withdrawn" in summer.
3
I think DST is a stupid practice, but at the very least the days when the U.S. changes should be the same as the rest of the world. It used to be that we started DST on first Sunday in April and ended it on the last Sunday in October.
I think the candy industry lobbied to extend it to November so the youngsters woful say more candy on Halloween. Not very good for our obesity epidemic! Before 1988 I think DST started the first Sunday in May.
I think the candy industry lobbied to extend it to November so the youngsters woful say more candy on Halloween. Not very good for our obesity epidemic! Before 1988 I think DST started the first Sunday in May.
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Concerning Halloween, it's probably a little safer for the younger kids to have an extra hour of light while walking around the neighborhood. Drivers can see them more easily, for example.
5
HA! Where I live, even the very little ones who need to go with older kids or parents won't dream of going trick or treating till after dark. It's scarier that way.
2
As someone who commutes by bike a few days a week I really appreciate having extra daylight in the evening after work. It makes for a safer ride home.
9
This is depressing. Another policy issue that comes down to interest groups wanting more cash. I here I was naively thinking it was a quirky yet innocent debate we have every year...
100
Depressing that someone wants to make more money. Maybe there's a government handout or social program to treat this capitalism-induced illness.
Depends on where you reside within the time zone. Here in Salt Lake City, we are in the western part of mountain time, so during the summer it will be light until 9:30 or so. On the other hand, the earliest it ever gets light is about 5:30, so for those of us who like to be up early for a morning run, hike or bike ride, the time is still very limited prior to having to get ready for work under the best of circumstances. I would just assume eliminate DST.
35
I too live in SLC, I find the extra daylight when I get off work much more useful to me than than if it were in the morning. I would just sleep through it and have more darkness. I prefer to get my daily responsibility out of the way first and them have time for myself, my family, and friends. If my work hours and my kids school hours were based on sun rise instead of a fixed time that would be one thing. Since that is not the case, Daylight Savings is the next best thing.
5
The vast majority of people are not active at 5:30 am, on the other hand most people are active around 7 pm. Eliminating daylight savings who disencentive the vast majority of people to do outdoor activity after work.
6
You might want to check with doctors / nurses / all other hospital personnel / EMTs and Paramedics / food service / hotel service / bus drivers / airline pilots / subway employees / over the road drivers / delivery drivers / railroad workers / airline workers / law enforcement / manufacturing plant employees / and all the other millions of people who must get up at 3:30 a.m. to 4:30 a.m. to be actively at work by 5 a.m. to 6 a.m.
There are millions and millions of us. We make lives healthier, safer, cleaner, and much more pleasant for the people who occupy offices and don't have to be at work until after the sun has come up.
As one of those millions (I'm a nurse), I can also tell you that many of us work from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m., 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Our co-workers are on the opposite shifts - 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. and so on. We also work weekends, holidays, and mandatory overtime when necessary.
We are there to take care of you. Perhaps we are the true majority.
There are millions and millions of us. We make lives healthier, safer, cleaner, and much more pleasant for the people who occupy offices and don't have to be at work until after the sun has come up.
As one of those millions (I'm a nurse), I can also tell you that many of us work from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m., 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Our co-workers are on the opposite shifts - 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. and so on. We also work weekends, holidays, and mandatory overtime when necessary.
We are there to take care of you. Perhaps we are the true majority.
5
I love it. It is so much easier to get outside and exercise, walk the dog, have a drink, whatever with that extra hour of sunlight...
89
I think what we really need is double daylight savings time for the months before and after June 21.
4
I have said this for years. For working people, the opportunity to enjoy more summer time outside in daylight would be fabulous. In the Northern latitudes, for awhile in summer, it never gets dark, just dusk. I am told people like it and adjust quickly.
6
Sitting outside with friends, talking and sipping good single malt on a salmon river in the North West Highlands while it's still light at midnight is indeed fabulous.
2
I adore daylight saving time.
On arriving home from a long day's work, I look forward to the extended opportunity to sit in the park with a glass of seltzer (on a stressful day, merlot), a good book (or the Times, of course), and for the subtle evening light that remains to illumine the world around me.
There's something so charming about evenings that stretch into the late eight o'clock hour.
But - the fact that gasoline consumption goes up, that early workers and children have to face the darkness in their morning commutes, that it MAY actually increase electricity use - I am willing to sacrifice my evening calm to mitigate these other factors.
(Not that I expect many in congress ever to take seriously the actual every day concerns of the American people)
Anyway, you have my two cents.
On arriving home from a long day's work, I look forward to the extended opportunity to sit in the park with a glass of seltzer (on a stressful day, merlot), a good book (or the Times, of course), and for the subtle evening light that remains to illumine the world around me.
There's something so charming about evenings that stretch into the late eight o'clock hour.
But - the fact that gasoline consumption goes up, that early workers and children have to face the darkness in their morning commutes, that it MAY actually increase electricity use - I am willing to sacrifice my evening calm to mitigate these other factors.
(Not that I expect many in congress ever to take seriously the actual every day concerns of the American people)
Anyway, you have my two cents.
132
I for one would like to spend quality time with my friends and family in the daylight and be active with them, rather than "saving on gasoline". And as for children, why don't we start school later to be safer and due to the growing research that they don't learn in the morning hours because of their biological clock?
13
Back when J.R.Perry was Governor of Texas he and the legislature were always clamoring about seceding from the USA.
I truly wish that we would like AZ and other States 'secede' from DST. I truly hate the swithching and swatching and jerking me around of DST.
And like Rachel, (Not that I expect many in congress ever to take seriously the actual every day concerns of the 'Texas' people)
I truly wish that we would like AZ and other States 'secede' from DST. I truly hate the swithching and swatching and jerking me around of DST.
And like Rachel, (Not that I expect many in congress ever to take seriously the actual every day concerns of the 'Texas' people)
4
Yes, back in the day, school didn't start till 9 AM and got out at 3 PM. AND we had recess!
10
For the many of us, mostly women I would guess, who want to get in a safe morning run before work, DST is not welcome. The morning light has just started to make morning runs doable -- and then the clocks are moved forward.
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The vast majority of people don't exercise in the morning, just based on a cursory look of people on the sidewalks (I go to work between 6 am-7 am). In contrast, many of like seeing our friends and family in the daylight of the afternoon, and yes, exercising in the afternoon.
2
So....why not move the time one hour ahead and keep it there?
18
Not addressed in this article? The fact that it's just great to have an extra hour of sunlight to enjoy.
Who wants daylight in the morning? Morning is for sleep, shower, commute, work. Nothing else. Why not have more daylight when you can actually enjoy it?
In fact, let's have quadruple daylight savings time, and have it all year around. Let's have the sun rise at noon.
And while the author mentions states that don't observe Daylight Saving, and states that are thinking of ending it, he doesn't mention Michigan, where state legislators are considering proposing a bill to expand it to year around.
There is no stress attached to Daylight Saving. There is stress attached to changing the time twice a year.
Who wants daylight in the morning? Morning is for sleep, shower, commute, work. Nothing else. Why not have more daylight when you can actually enjoy it?
In fact, let's have quadruple daylight savings time, and have it all year around. Let's have the sun rise at noon.
And while the author mentions states that don't observe Daylight Saving, and states that are thinking of ending it, he doesn't mention Michigan, where state legislators are considering proposing a bill to expand it to year around.
There is no stress attached to Daylight Saving. There is stress attached to changing the time twice a year.
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The fact that it's just great to have an extra hour of sunlight to enjoy.
Really/
You do realize that simply changing the label (time ) for sunrise and sunset has ZERO change on the amount of daylight in the day.
You are NOT getting an extra hour of daylight , you are simply calling it by an earlier time or later time depending on spring or fall. Hopefully you just poorly chose your words and do not truly believe what you wrote.
Really/
You do realize that simply changing the label (time ) for sunrise and sunset has ZERO change on the amount of daylight in the day.
You are NOT getting an extra hour of daylight , you are simply calling it by an earlier time or later time depending on spring or fall. Hopefully you just poorly chose your words and do not truly believe what you wrote.
5
@ Tony-In fact, you actually do "get" an extra hour of sunlight. Why you ask? Because we have work schedules that, by and large, are not synced to changing sun. This means that when the clocks change to DST many of us get an extra hour of sunlight freetime in relation to our work schedules.
18
Ok, then why do we have standard time?
7
Sunlight at 5am is useless to nearly everyone. Daylight at 6 or 7pm is tremendously useful and enjoyable for nearly everyone. DST should be extended, not eliminated.
195
Everyone? Maybe if you worked a 4 X 10 hour week you'd see it differently... Of course here in Arizona, it makes no difference for all!
3
Agreed, we should have DST all year round.
16
I see you never had to stand out in the dark and snow to wait for the school bus.
15