It happens every year and we make the adjustments. Even so, it’s good to go through the rules and regs of Daylight Savings Time. On Sunday, March 8, at 2:00:00 am, the clocks are turned forward 1 hour to 3:00:00 am local daylight time. Two o’clock turns into three o’clock and there we have it. An hour vanishes, and when the alarm goes off, we might still be a little sleepy.
The History
We were curious as to what was the reasoning behind this “Daylight Savings Time” idea, and we found some interesting history at this [LINK].
“Before the U.S. adopted standardized time zones, cities set their clocks based on the sun, leading to widespread inconsistencies, especially for railroads, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. To address this, U.S. and Canadian railroads implemented four time zones in 1883, creating the foundation of today’s system.
“In 1918, Congress officially established time zones and introduced daylight saving time during World War I to conserve energy. Though DST was later repealed in 1919, inconsistent local observances of time created confusion. The Uniform Time Act of 1966 sought to fix this by standardizing DST nationwide while allowing states to opt-out.
“The Department of Transportation has helped ensure uniformity in timekeeping since 1966. Time zone boundaries have continued to evolve, with adjustments as recently as 2010, when Mercer County, North Dakota, chose to switch from Mountain to Central Time.”
There are two states that do not observe Daylight Savings Time, and they are Hawaii and Arizona. There is an exception in Arizona and that is the Navajo Indian Reservation. Also the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam and Puerto Rico do not observe Daylight Savings Time.
Saving Daylight?
Apparently, the notion of saving daylight is as follows: We will maximize the sunlight during the Spring and Summer evening hours. Also, when Daylight Savings Time was originally established, the argument was that we will reduce energy consumption, increase recreational time, reduce evening traffic accidents and crime, and boost retail sales.
The notion of ‘saving light’ was attributed to farmers, but in fact farmers generally oppose Daylight Savings Time because their schedules are dictated by the sun and not the clock. Critics also argue that the human circadian rhythms are disrupted and this leads to sleep deprivation and an increase in heart attacks.
Get Ready AMS!!
Whatever the arguments for and against, it is our reality. Beginning on March 8th and ending on November 7th our work schedule and our Associates will accommodate the change, giving up a morning hour of sleep in exchange for an hour of sunlight in the evening.
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