November 11, 2011
At 2 a.m. local time on Nov. 6, the clocks fell backwards an hour due to Daylight Savings Time (DST).
Etomologist and Astronomer George Vernon Hudson first proposed DST in 1895, and many countries have used it since. The federal government does not require U.S. states to obey DST, so some states such as Arizona and Hawaii do not participate in this event.
With time falling back an hour, people had an extra hour of the day to do chores, homework, or even sleep. An advantage to this is that it is lighter in the morning but it is offset by the disadvantage that the darkness creeps up around 5 p.m. “I had an extra hour to sleep in on Sunday and that was a plus but I don’t like how I can’t go running after 5 cause of the darkness,” said senior Kevin Ou.
DST also proposes other challenges. Changing the time complicates timekeeping and can disrupt traveling, meeting, sleep patterns, and timing. “I had a soccer game that day and I wasn’t sure if I should go according to the time before it was changed or after it was changed,” said senior Tamsin Kennedy.
Usually, clocks are adjusted forward an hour during spring and backward an hour during autumn. Some people have trouble remembering which season to switch their time forward or switch their time backwards. “I like Daylight Savings but I always forget if time is moved up or back,” said freshmen Jasper Lee. A saying that may help people remember is “In fall time falls back and in spring time springs forward.”