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This year Daylight Saving Time begins on Sunday March 10th, when the majority of the USA will be “springing ahead” as they change the clocks.
DST has and continues to be a topic of discussion by
states and countries, should we still do it?
HISTORY
* “Summer time” was Englishman William Willett’s idea. He published “The Waste of Daylight” brochure in 1907 campaigning for the change. Willett died before his idea came to fruition.
* In 1916, Germany adopted the British idea in hopes of conserving energy for its war effort. The rest of Europe, along with the United States and other nations followed.
Sites to read more history of DST; Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian.com article 2, & History.com,
PROS
* Reduces crime during the summer.
* More time to exercise outdoors during the evening.
* Children would go to school in complete darkness all winter long in areas of the Northern Hemisphere.
CONS
* The original reason for DST, to conserve energy, has not worked out. We actually use more energy due to being active longer.
* There is evidence that switching sleeping schedules twice a year screws up our circadian rhythms leading to adverse health effects.
* Not everyone in the US and only about 25% of nations observe DST. (In the US, each state currently decides whether to use DST though the start and end dates are set by federal law.)