Daylight Savings Time Ends, Sunday November 2, 2014

[runco]

Reminder, its back to standard time now beginning at 2 a.m. on Sunday, November 2, 2014. 

 

Wee bit of trivia
a.m. = ante merideim which is Latin for before noon.

p.m. = post meridiem which is Latin for after noon.

 

Why Daylight Savings Time to begin with?

http://www.timeanddate.com/time/dst/history.html

 

History of Daylight Saving Time - DST

The concept of setting the clocks ahead in the spring in order to make better use of natural daylight was first introduced by US inventor Benjamin Franklin in 1784.

Benjamin Franklin first introduced DST. ©iStockphoto.com/Oleg Shipov

Daylight Saving Time (DST) is a change in the standard time with the purpose of making better use of daylight and conserving energy.

Clocks are generally set ahead one hour during DST, meaning that the Sun rises one hour later in the morning and sets one hour later than it otherwise would have done.

Sunrise & Sunset in my city

Benjamin Franklin

Although DST has only been used for about 100 years, the idea was conceived many years before. Ancient civilizations are known to have engaged in a practice similar to modern DST where they would adjust their daily schedules to the Sun's schedule. For example, the Roman water clocks used different scales for different months of the Year.

American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin is often credited with being the inventor of DST, even though it was never put into practice in his lifetime. In his 1784 essay “An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light” he proposed the idea, although a little jokingly, to economize the use of candles by getting people out of bed earlier in the morning, making use of the natural morning light instead.

George Vernon Hudson

Another major contributor to the invention of DST was New Zealand entomologist George Vernon Hudson. In 1895, Hudson presented a paper to the Wellington Philosophical Society, proposing a two-hour shift forward in October and a two-hour shift back in March.

Seasons are opposite in the Earth's two hemispheres

Hudson followed up his proposal with an article in 1898, and although there was interest in the idea, it was never followed through.

William Willett

Indepentently from Hudson, British builder William Willett proposed the introduction of DST in 1905. He suggested setting the clocks ahead 20 minutes on each of the four Sundays in April, and switching them back by the same amount on each of four Sundays in September, a total of eight DST switches per year.

Willett’s Daylight Saving plan caught the attention of Robert Pearce who introduced a bill to the House of Commons in February 1908. The first Daylight Saving Bill was drafted in 1909, presented to Parliament several times and examined by a select committee. However, the idea was opposed by many, especially farmers, and thus the bill was never made into a law. Willett died in 1915 without getting the chance to see his idea come to life.

DST first used in Europe

Germany was the first country to implement DST. Clocks there were first turned forward at 11:00 p.m. (23:00) on April 30, 1916.

DST history in Europe

The rationale was to minimize the use of artificial lighting in order to save fuel for the war effort during World War I. The idea was quickly followed by Britain and many other countries, including the United States. Many countries reverted back to standard time post-World War I. It wasn’t until the next World War that DST made its return in many countries in order to save vital energy resources for the war.

Franklin D. Roosevelt

US President Franklin D. Roosevelt instituted year-round DST in the United States, called “War Time” during World War II from February 9, 1942 to September 30, 1945. The change was implemented 40 days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and during this time, the U.S. time zones were called “Eastern War Time”, “Central War Time”, and “Pacific War Time”. After the surrender of Japan in mid-August 1945, the time zones were relabeled “Peace Time”.

Britain applied “Double Summer Time” during World War II by setting the clocks two hours ahead of GMT during the summer and one hour ahead of GMT during the winter.

Modern DST in the US

In the United States, DST caused widespread confusion from 1945 to 1966 for trains, buses and the broadcasting industry because states and localities were free to choose when and if they would observe DST. Congress decided to end the confusion and establish the Uniform Time Act of 1966 that stated DST would begin on the last Sunday of April and end on the last Sunday of October. However, states still had the ability to be exempt from DST by passing a local ordinance.

The U.S. Congress extended DST to a period of ten months in 1974 and eight months in 1975, in hopes to save energy following the 1973 oil embargo. The trial period showed that DST saved the energy equivalent of 10,000 barrels of oil each day, but DST still proved to be controversial. Many complained that the dark winter mornings endangered the lives of children going to school. After the energy crisis was over in 1976, the U.S. changed their DST schedule again to begin on the last Sunday in April. DST was amended again to begin on the first Sunday in April in 1987. Further changes were made after the introduction of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

Daylight Saving or Savings?

Daylight Saving today

DST aka Daylight savings time is now in use in over 70 countries worldwide and affects over a billion people every year. The beginning and end dates vary from one country to another. The European Union adopted the “Summer Time” period that was used in the United Kingdom for many years, where DST begins on the last Sunday in March and ends on the last Sunday in October.

• DST changes in the US (Washington DC)
• DST changes in the UK (London)
• DST changes in Europe (Paris)

The DST schedule in the U.S. was revised several times throughout the years. From 1987 to 2006, the country observed DST for about seven months each year. The current schedule was introduced in 2007 and follows the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which extended the period by about one month. Today, DST starts on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November. Currently, most of the United States observes DST except for Hawaii and most of Arizona, as well as the U.S. insular areas of Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Guam.

[Randall53]

The fall back is always much easier than the spring forward......LOL!

[runco]

The fall back is always much easier than the spring forward......LOL!

Agree for sleepers, but I am a earlier riser, and don't like when we lose DST, I like coming home after work in the daylight, not night time.

[gun sane]

I stayed up to watch this miraculous event, but I gotta say it was a bit disappointing.

[macville]

I don't know why we don't solve the problem and just go halfway (:30) and keep it there year round!

[Lowpower]

And to think...all of that info at our fingertips and I still got up at 0620 this morning! 

 

I hate it when that happens....

 

On a side note...my Dogs don;t care about daylight savings time. Their body clocks know when it's time to eat!

[teecro]

I don't know why we don't solve the problem and just go halfway (:30) and keep it there year round!

 

Drives me nuts that some states or even areas within states don't do DST or had their own thing that they did IN was like that....

[Hozzie]

And to think...all of that info at our fingertips and I still got up at 0620 this morning! 

 

I hate it when that happens....

 

On a side note...my Dogs don;t care about daylight savings time. Their body clocks know when it's time to eat!

 

Amen.  Mine was ready for breakfast at 4:30 this morning.

[hipower]

Agree for sleepers, but I am a earlier riser, and don't like when we lose DST, I like coming home after work in the daylight, not night time.

 

This part I agreed with. When I was on the road with my parts company job, I absolutely hated the time change. It always put me coming back into Nashville in the evenings in the dark.

 

And I'm sure you all just love the northbound I40/I65 junction when rush hour traffic is in the dark. It sucked!

[Major Kong]

I saw something this morning at said "Change your clocks back on Sunday and your country back on Tuesday."

Sounds about right...

[bersaguy]

I can set my clocks by my old dogs stomach.  7AM if she is inside her paws hit the edge of the mattress telling me it's time to get up and feed me and let me out. At 4PM she is normally most times out side and she comes to the aluminum storm door and when she drags her nails across that serrated solid bottom it can be heard all over the house. This morning she was inside and her paws hit the bed mattress at 6AM as I set all my clocks back last night before retiring for the night. This evening she will be at the door at 3PM for supper but I will put that off till 4PM. It's a lot easier setting her evening tummy clock that it is her morning tummy because of the having to go out part so that one takes longer................ :rofl:  :rofl:  :up:  

[teecro]

I can set my clocks by my old dogs stomach.  7AM if she is inside her paws hit the edge of the mattress telling me it's time to get up and feed me and let me out. At 4PM she is normally most times out side and she comes to the aluminum storm door and when she drags her nails across that serrated solid bottom it can be heard all over the house. This morning she was inside and her paws hit the bed mattress at 6AM as I set all my clocks back last night before retiring for the night. This evening she will be at the door at 3PM for supper but I will put that off till 4PM. It's a lot easier setting her evening tummy clock that it is her morning tummy because of the having to go out part so that one takes longer................ :rofl:  :rofl:  :up:  

 

Our middle dog used to be one that would snuggle in and let you sleep and while the other two would stir they would usually stay fairly quite. But since Bella has hit her middle age (6ish) she wakes up VERY early and does what is best described as the demented monkey dance all the while letting out the high pitched bark from the insane asylum... She wants potty, treat, breakfast in that order and then to take an early morning snooze!

[btq96r]

Drives me nuts that some states or even areas within states don't do DST or had their own thing that they did IN was like that....

 

It was even more annoying when I was deployed or living overseas.  I would do the time zone conversions in my head, and it always took at least a week to remember when DST started/ended without having to check myself.

[Duck]

The fall back is always much easier than the spring forward......LOL!

Unless you work nightshirt; that was a long 13.5 hours last night.

[10-Ring]

I've been dreading the change.  It's been kind of nice here lately because it's hardly daylight until 8 am.  That means I don't have to be up at 430 or 500 in order to get to work before daylight.  Now I'll have to get up earlier and come home in the dark most of the time as well.

[felinesNfreedom]

I wish we would just stay on daylight savings time.

[hipower]

Our middle dog used to be one that would snuggle in and let you sleep and while the other two would stir they would usually stay fairly quite. But since Bella has hit her middle age (6ish) she wakes up VERY early and does what is best described as the demented monkey dance all the while letting out the high pitched bark from the insane asylum... She wants potty, treat, breakfast in that order and then to take an early morning snooze!

 

Bella pretty much sounds like our Molly. A Border Collie/Heeler mix, she won't sleep anywhere but on the bed between us for odd parts of the night/morning.

 

But at 6:45, she wants out with my wife getting up. Comes back to bed, then wants out for a longer walk/potty run about 8:00.

 

And must have a Greenie treat before eating.

[DWARREN123]

I dislike DST and wish we could just do away with it!

[Hershmeister]

Taco Standard Time!

[btq96r]

Taco Standard Time!

 

Especially during Breast Awareness Month!

[TNMTBik3r]

Hate time changes - 4 hours and still a couple more to go working on fixing issues caused by time changing.