Park Forest, IL–(ENEWSPF)–March 13, 2010. On Sunday, March 14 at 2 AM it will be time to ‘spring forward’ and move your clocks ahead one hour. It is also a good time to replace the batteries in all your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in your home.
Contrary to what many of us may think, Daylight Saving Time was created for reasons other than to confuse our schedules. Here are some interesting Daylight Saving Time facts.
- Daylight Saving Time was instituted in the United States during World War I as a way to save energy for war production by taking advantage of the increased hours of daylight between April and October. During World War II, the government again required states to observe the time change.
- Between the wars and after World War II, states and communities could decide whether or not to observe Daylight Saving Time.
- Congress passed the Uniform Time Act in 1966 which standardized the length of Daylight Saving time across the U.S.
- In 2007, Daylight Saving Time became four weeks longer due to the passage of the Energy Policy Act.
- Arizona (except for some Indian Reservations), Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and American Samoa do not observe Daylight Saving Time. Since these locations are closer to the equator, the days are more consistent in length throughout the year.
- In 1996, the European Union (EU) standardized a EU-wide European Summer Time — the European version of Daylight Saving Time.
- Kyrgyzstan is the only country that observes year-round Daylight Saving Time.
- Clock shifts can disrupt sleep and reduce efficiency. The effects of seasonal time changes can be severe and last for weeks.
- A 2008 Swedish study found that heart attacks are more common during the first three weekdays following the start of Daylight Saving Time, and significantly less common during this same period following the autumn transition.
- More automobile accidents reportedly occur on the first Monday following the start of Daylight Saving Time than at any other time of the year.
But for those of us living in the Midwest, the change to Daylight Saving Time simply means that spring can’t be far behind.
Source: wikipedia.org
