When Does The Time Change?

'When does the time change' is a rather ambiguous statement. From wanting to pause time to the different time zones where the clocks function differently, it covers a whole range of things. However, it is the rotation and revolution cycle of planet Earth, which acts as the sole reason why sunlight does not cover an equal surface area on the globe.

Daylight saving time is one of the most common phenomena in the USA when clocks are moved forward by an hour. As a result, the bright shiny morning slips into a dark mode and the evenings gain sufficient light to save energy. 

(Image Courtesy: Houston Chronicle)

Daylight Saving Time occurs in the Europe, parts of the Middle East and many US states and territories except Arizona, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Island. Earlier Utah also featured in the list; However, it has recently sparked debates of reconsidering its participation in the energy saving process and fueled rumors about backing out its name from the list of cities that adhere to the practice.

The year 2017 marks the 101st anniversary of daylight saving time and around 100 years of variously associated delusions that DST gave rise to. The whole idea behind daylight saving time originated from Benjamin Franklin; a renowned scientist who spent 9 years as American ambassador to France. 

According to him if people woke up sooner they would be able to make use of the natural light and save all the money spent on candles. The essay that was penned by him on this subject was called ‘An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light’.

(Image Courtesy: The Telegraph)

Though saving time according to daylight and setting up the clock differently happened many years later, it was precisely in 1907 when William Willett introduced the idea of British Summer Time. This would later be called as daylight saving time. Again the sole reason of this was to prevent the wastage of light in summers and burning of candles later in the day. He urged people to get out of their bed sooner and even wrote a paper on it which was titled ‘The Waste of Daylight.'

Day light saving time was not followed in the USA until 1981. The same year, former US President, George W. Bush published the current time table and introduced it as the mean of practice. He signed the Energy Policy Act on August 8, 2005, and the official end time for DST was set as the first Sunday in November, it begins on the second Sunday in March.

Do you think the current use of DST makes sense? Share your feedback in the comment section below.

(Featured Image Courtesy: Savy)