BellaOnline Forums Education History Daylight Saving Time

Do you know the history behind the time change event we call Daylight Saving Time? Did you know it was first implemented in Germany during World War I in order to save energy?

Click on the link below to read more about the history of this event.

Daylight Saving Time

Didn't know that and wish they would stop changing the clocks - keep it either Standard or Daylight Savings Times. What a nuisance.

I'm with you, Angie.

Adjusting your schedule by setting the clocks an hour ahead disrupts your body rhythms. I always felt sick for about 5-7 days afterwards while I got in sync with the new time. You can adjust more easily when turning it back an hour.

I like having the light in the afternoon rather than the morning when my eyes are closed anyway. So I'd be glad to turn the clocks forward and then leave them there. I hate this turning them back and forth, especially as there's scant evidence that any energy is actually saved.

Here's an article discussing pros and cons of "daylight saving". But it seems a bit off that you have to show DST is useless - even harmful - to get rid of it. For all the fuss and inconvenience involved, it's about time governments came up with some clear evidence that it's worthwhile!

Mona, time zones are set by the government anyway - we are daylight to dusk creatures.

Yes, the time zones are set by governments, but there is a rationale to them. Dividing a circle (360°) by 24 (hours in a day) you get zones of 15° of longitude. This is the basic framework for setting time zones, but it's not obligatory to do it precisely.

The boundaries can be wiggly to keep communities together, for example. Norway is easily big enough for two time zones, but it's all on the same time as western Europe. Northeastern Norway is very sparsely populated, and doesn't have it's own time zone. Some places use half hour divisions.

The general idea is to keep the clocks at least somewhat related to the Sun.

Before communications and more travel (like trains back in the day), clocks only kept the hour. I just wish they would pick one time and leave it.

I hope they stop it soon! It seems everybody hates it but they keep doing it anyway!

I agree with the energy savings aspect of it. There was a study done by economists at the University of California at Santa Barbara for Indiana when the state moved to Daylight Saving Time in 2006.

They found a 1 percent rise in residential electricity use because of an additional demand for air conditioning on summer evenings and due to heating in the early spring and late fall mornings. Economists have also said that the increased recreational activity during Daylight Saving Time has resulted in more gasoline usage for autos and rec vehicles.