Set Your Clocks!

Today is the start of Daylight Saving Time.

Confused as to whether to set your clock an hour forward or an hour back? Use this helpful trick to remember - fall back and spring forward! In the fall we set clocks back an hour and in the spring we set clocks forward an hour.

Why do we have Daylight Saving Time? According to Wikipedia, Daylight saving time was first proposed in 1895 by George Vernon Hudson, a New Zealand entomologist. Many countries have used it since then; details vary by location and change occasionally.

The practice is controversial. Adding daylight to afternoons benefits retailing, sports, and other activities that exploit sunlight after working hours, but causes problems for farming, evening entertainment and other occupations tied to the sun. Traffic fatalities are reduced when there is extra afternoon daylight; its effect on health and crime is less clear. Although an early goal of DST was to reduce evening usage of incandescent lighting, formerly a primary use of electricity, modern heating and cooling usage patterns differ greatly, and research about how DST currently affects energy use is limited and often contradictory.

DST's occasional clock shifts present other challenges. They complicate timekeeping, and can disrupt meetings, travel, billing, recordkeeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Often, software can adjust computer clocks automatically, but this can be limited and error-prone, particularly when DST rules change.

Do you have an opinion about Daylight saving time? Post a message to the blog and share your thoughts!