Is daylight savings time 'useless'?

rockin'robin

rockin'robin

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.We're used to falling back in October and springing forward in March — but some argue that the biannual ritual does more harm than good
As we grudgingly set our clocks ahead this weekend, sacrificing a precious hour of sleep to the daylight savings gods, many of us likely had an identical thought: "Is this really necessary?" Daylight savings time (DST) is a decades-old tradition, but many suspect that it "does nothing more than create a nation of groggy and confused citizens," says Deanna Gillen at PolicyMic. Some particularly ticked-off Americans are even circulating an "End Daylight Savings Time" petition on the internet, claiming that DST offers few benefits and calling on lawmakers to end the madness. Here, a guide to DST and its controversies:



When did DST start?
Daylight savings was first introduced by European countries during World War I, with much of the U.S. joining the party in 1918. The idea was that more hours of daylight would "conserve coal for the war effort," says Brad Plumer at The Washington Post. Since then, energy conservation continues to be the central argument for keeping DST.

Does DST actually save energy?
It's pretty much "useless" in this respect, says Gillen. While more sunlight does encourage people to use less electrical lighting, they tend to crank up their air conditioners when they get home from work in the summer months, and run their ACs longer. When Indiana implemented DST in 2006, the state's electrical costs jumped by as much as $14.5 million per year.

So who supports DST?

Retailers are huge fans. With more people out and about in the late afternoon, many tend to go shopping. In fact, under pressure from big businesses, Congress in 2005 extended daylight savings by four weeks (we used to spring forward in April, not March). However, while DST is a boon for some sectors of the economy, its tendency to keep people on the town into the evenings hurts others. Television networks are bummed that fewer people are at home channel-surfing. Fox's most popular show, American Idol, "typically plunges in ratings the week after DST is initiated," says Sterling Wong at Minyanville.

Are there any physical side effects?
Yes, and they're not limited to sleepiness and general grouchiness. A sudden change to your daily schedule can cause inflammation, increasing the risk of a heart attack by 10 percent, according to a study from the University of Alabama. Altering your circadian rhythms, which are determined by light and darkness, can mess with your body at the level of cells, all of which are being jarred awake an hour earlier than usual. And one study shows that traffic accidents spike in the spring, when people are tired from springing forward, and subside in the autumn.

But don't people find more hours of sunshine pleasant?
It's all in the eye of the beholder. "It's great to get home and still have sunlight. But it's also great to wake up in the morning and see sunlight," John Lowe, the head of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, tells The Los Angeles Times. "I guess it depends on whether you are a morning person or an evening person."

Is daylight savings time 'useless'? - Yahoo! News
 
PowerON said:
So, what's your opinion?
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Well, I like it, because we have an extra hour of daylight in the summer months, since I'm from sunny Florida and like to be outside a lot. However, didn't like it too much when I awoke this AM, and forget to change my clockl in my bedroom, to find it was an hour later than it was supposed to have been.....
 
I like it, and wish we could be on DST all year round. But then you would have kids going to school in the dark in winter.

It makes more of a difference the further north you go. In Michigan, it doesn't get dark until 10 p.m. or even later during the longest days. I used to like those long summer evenings at the beach. In the Mid-Atlantic area, it gets dark around 9 even on the longest days around the end of June. Down in Florida, do you really gain much?
 
I did do something different for one clock this year. It is an electric wall clock in the kitchen which would have made no difference in getting anywhere Sunday. I left it until Sunday evening and rather than climb up there to change it unplugged the cord which runs down the wall to a lower outlet. Then when other clocks, that had been changed, showed that time plugged it back in this morning and am off and running on time!
 
One hour of extra daylight? Really? Who gives a shit? :lol: Days are longer means more stressed I think. That is why I nap more in summer.
 
DeafTim said:
One hour of extra daylight? Really? Who gives a shit? :lol: Days are longer means more stressed I think. That is why I nap more in summer.
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Oh, that's explains about why you got diarrhea. :lol:
 
I like it but it changed so early!
 
Beach girl said:
I like it, and wish we could be on DST all year round. But then you would have kids going to school in the dark in winter.

It makes more of a difference the further north you go. In Michigan, it doesn't get dark until 10 p.m. or even later during the longest days. I used to like those long summer evenings at the beach. In the Mid-Atlantic area, it gets dark around 9 even on the longest days around the end of June. Down in Florida, do you really gain much?
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I think the major reason for the difference in what time the sun sets in Michigan and in NC is due to the fact that Michigan is on the western edge of the same time zone as NC, not because it's farther north.
 
My mom disliked being woken up at 4 am by the sun when Indiana didn't have DST. I don't mind it, but I also never change my clocks to DST!
 
mid summer we don't really get dark here anyways, and during winter the shortest day is less than 4 hours long so daylight savings time doesn't really do anything here.
 
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