Daylight Saving Time 2014 ends at 2 a.m. on Nov. 2. This is the good end of Daylight Saving Time when we get to turn our clocks back an hour and receive the reward of an extra hour of sleep on Sunday morning. Thank you, Daylight Saving Time.
In most places in the U.S., Daylight Saving Time has just become a part of our yearly routine, something we have to remember to participate in or risk being late to everything for the next four months. But do any of us really know why we participate in this ritual, and does it really matter all that much? Here's what you need to keep in mind while you feel incredibly rested on Sunday.
What is Daylight Saving Time?
Daylight Saving Time is the period from roughly March to November when you turn your clock back one hour ahead of standard time. This is in an effort to use daylight more efficiently and conserve energy. As you've probably noticed during this time, the sun rises one hour later in the morning and sets one hour later in the evening. The days feel just so long sometimes, don't they?
Who came up with the idea?
We've never known a day in our lives without Daylight Saving Time, and that's because it actually has a long history. According to TimeAndDate.com, some ancient civilizations were thought to participate in something similar to Daylight Saving Time, changing their daily schedules according to the sun. However, Benjamin Franklin is most often credited with conceptualizing Daylight Saving Time. He wrote in his 1784 essay "An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light" that people should get out of bed earlier to save candles, although he might have written this with a bit of a wink. Throughout history, others have championed the idea of a Daylight Saving Time, from New Zealand entomologist George Vernon Hudson to British builder William Willett.
Why was Daylight Saving Time created?
It wasn't until 11 p.m. on April 30, 1916 that Daylight Saving Time was first implemented in Germany. This was in an effort to conserve fuel for World War I, and as such, it was only a temporary practice. Many countries ended Daylight Saving Time when the war was over.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt instituted a year-round Daylight Saving Time in the U.S. during the second world war from Feb. 9, 1945 to Sept. 30, 1945 again to save energy. From 1945 to 1966, Daylight Saving Time was not observed in the U.S. Since 100 million Americans were reportedly already observing Daylight Saving Time in their local jurisdictions, Congress decided to enact the Uniform Time Act of 1966 to ensure the whole country followed Daylight Saving Time beginning on the last Sunday of April and ending on the final Sunday of October. After some revisions to the law through the decades, Daylight Saving Time now starts on the first Sunday of March and ends on the first Sunday of November.
Does everyone participate in Daylight Saving Time?
Even though Congress has decreed Daylight Saving Time a thing, not every state participates in it. Hawaii, most of Arizona and some parts of Alaska have opted out of Daylight Saving Time. Half of Indiana used to not participate in Daylight Saving Time, but the entire state has observed it since 2006.
However, most of the world doesn't observe Daylight Saving Time, as least it didn't in 2014. Just another thing that is (sort of) uniquely American.
Do we really need Daylight Saving Time?
You might think that turning your clock backward and forward every year doesn't really affect your life all that much. However, there are arguments that it can be both beneficial and detrimental to us.
Many people still believe that Daylight Saving Time helps save energy. A 2008 report from Congress found that extending Daylight Saving Time by four weeks could save 0.5 percent of the nation's electricity per day. However, in the past few years, several studies have cast doubt on whether or not Daylight Saving Time has any effect on energy expended.
Daylight Saving Time can also have good and bad consequences for your health. Some studies have shown that it can help reduce the number of traffic accidents and encourage children to be more active outside for longer. However, the American College of Cardiology has also found that there's a 25 percent increase in the number of heart attacks the Monday after Daylight Saving Time begins. Some experts also believe that Daylight Saving Time could negatively impact your health by throwing off your sleep schedule, giving you headaches and making you feel more depressed.
However, Daylight Saving Time could help the economy. With more waking hours of sunlight, people are encouraged to stay out later, which in turn makes them spend more money.
Some state legislatures are even looking to make changes when it comes to Daylight Saving Time. Alabama State Sen. Rusty Glover will introduce a bill to have Daylight Saving Time in the state year round in the 2015 session of the Alabama Legislature to aid those traveling home from business and school. Two Utah lawmakers are also considering dropping Daylight Saving Time because of the inconvenience of changing clocks and to avoid traveling home after work or school in the dark. Colorado, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming are also looking into abolishing the practice.
What can I do with my extra hour this year?
Love it or hate it, Daylight Saving Time is definitely coming to an end on Sunday, Nov. 2. That means you will have an extra hour to use however you see fit. If you've ever thought to yourself, "There just aren't enough hours in the day," it will be like Christmas has come early for you.
So a whole extra hour, huh? What will you do with your free time? The obvious choice is to sleep in for another hour. With Halloween happening the Friday before the end of Daylight Saving Time, that's probably your best bet. You could also wake up at your normal time and enjoy one more hour of sunlight. Go for a morning stroll, perhaps? Get your friends together for that brunch you're always planning to do? Or, you could just use that extra hour to watch one more episode of Gilmore Girls on Netflix.
Daylight Saving Time will begin again on March 8, 2015 at 2 a.m., so you better make that extra hour count.
Image: Jessica Hromas / Getty Images
