Only 70 countries around the world "save daylight" every year
Once again, it's that time of year! In the morning, you open your eyes to see the kitchen clock showing 8 am, despite the fact that your alarm clock was scheduled to go off at 7 am. You're certain you'll be late to work.
But hold on a second. 
You are on time. Daylight Saving Time is now in effect.
Clocks throughout the globe go forward or backward an hour twice a year, depending on the year.
But why bother? And will the United States' erratic time zones come to an end?
When Daylight Savings Time was first introduced, farmers were given an additional hour in the sun each day for harvesting crops. However, this isn't the underlying reason for its widespread adoption.
By lengthening daylight hours, Daylight Saving Time (DST) reduces power use. To make the most of the longer days, many nations, including the United States, observe Daylight Savings Time (DST) for eight months of the year then return to normal time for the other four months.
The time will be advanced by one hour on March 2nd, at 2 a.m. The time is then set back one hour on November 1st at 2:00 a.m. The best method to recall it? As the seasons change, so do the time changes. In March, the clocks "spring forward" by an hour, and in November, they "fall back." back.
It's easier to resist turning on the lights in the summer since the sun is out for longer periods of time. To ensure that the sun is able to rise earlier and that the globe begins its day with a ray of light, the clocks are reset to standard time during the winter months.
How long ago was it before it became a problem?
There is a considerably earlier idea of "saving daylight" than the current March-November scheme used in the United States, which started in 2007. It's unclear who initially proposed the notion, although it seems that Benjamin Franklin did so in a 1784 letter to the editor of the Journal of Paris.
However, DST wasn't generally used for more than a century. Several nations, notably the United Kingdom and Germany, adopted Daylight Saving Time (DST) during World War I. As a means of conserving gasoline for the war effort, the technique was used. It wasn't until the Uniform Time Act of 1966 that the United States finally codified its timekeeping system.
From the first Sunday in April through the last Sunday in October, the United States has observed Daylight Savings Time (DST). President George W. Bush prolonged Daylight Savings Time by four weeks in 2005, and the change went into effect on January 1, 2007.
Some people, though, have opted out of DST. The nations that "save daylight" each year are just around 70 in number. States in the United States are not compelled by law to observe Daylight Savings Time, therefore places like Hawaii and most of Arizona don't. DST is being considered for year-round implementation in many states, including Florida and California (rather than just between March and November).
Congress is considering making Daylight Saving Time a permanent feature of the calendar. On March 15, 2022, the Senate unanimously enacted the Sunshine Protection Act. House passage and President Joe Biden's signature are still required for the measure to become law. In the event that the proposal is adopted, the new policy will not go into effect until November of 2023.
Those in favor of the legislation claim that it would eliminate the inconvenience of time shifts.
DST: Does it truly work?
So, let's see... It's a hot topic of discussion.
Critics have voiced questions about whether the amount of energy saved is worth the difficulty of adopting the system over the globe, even though the technique can assist cut some energy use.
It was discovered that extending Daylight Saving Time by four weeks from April to October in 2008 resulted in daily savings of 0.5% in overall power. The amount of power utilized by more than 100,000 houses for a year is 1.3 billion kilowatt-hours, according to the Department of Energy (DOE).
Even if lighting use decreased, demand for heating and cooling grew, therefore power consumption remained the same, a research by the National Bureau of Economic Research found.
In some research, the advantages of DST may be location-specific. Electricity consumption fell in Norway and Sweden, whereas it rose in Indiana, according to two separate studies.
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteVery interesting post! I knew that daylight savings was originally implemented to allow farmers extra daylight hours, however I had no idea it was also an attempt to cut back on energy use. I personally dislike daylight savings because it unfortunately takes me about a week to adjust to the time change, however I can see that there are some benefits to it. I am not surprised to find out that daylight savings did not necessarily contribute to less power being used, as T.V's and other electronics that use power would still be in U.S. I saw a couple weeks ago that the senate passed a bill to make daylight savings time permanent, and I am wondering what the general public will feel about that if the time change becomes permanent. Great post!
I honestly never knew that Daylight Savings Time had anything at all to do with saving energy. I do know Georgia has been battling this for a few years now to get rid of the time change and always keep the daylight savings time. I do not really feel as if it affects my life deeply enough to care about this at all. That may sound harsh, but it means nothing to me whether we pass it or what not. I do wonder how things will be if we go ahead and pass it though.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate all the great details explaining Daylight Saving Time. Daylight Savings Time was an event the my state practices every year, though I'd never thought to further understand its purpose. According to many of its supporters, the removal of Daylights Savings would allow children to play outdoors later, and it may even reduce seasonal depression. I found it interesting that 30 states have introduced legislation to end the twice-yearly changing of clocks.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea that Daylight Savings Time was an old concept. The history behind the DST is so interesting and I would not have known that it was actually extended. The was so surprised to find out that the law signed by Brian Kemp doesn't really have the weight to actually be observed. The sun setting so late always throws me off when coming back from work but it only takes a week to get used to the change once again.
ReplyDeleteThis reveals so much more about the issues than I previously knew.Although the original reasoning is logically we have grown so much in technology that taking such a drastic measure is no longer required.I certainly agree that it is time for a change that is permanent as the current time change twice a year causes so much stress on the body and takes so long to get adjusted to.
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