Community Corner

When is Daylight Savings Time 2013?

Get ready to set those clocks ahead one hour. Daylight savings time begins at 2 a.m. this Sunday, March 10.

While one day this week gave us a teaser for spring, the drearier weather that followed may make it seem like it's not quite "Spring Ahead" time yet in Brewster and Southeast.

But, believe it or not, Daylight Saving Time starts at 2 a.m. this Sunday, March 10. That means you need to move your clocks forward one hour, and, unfortunately, lose an hour of sleep.

But, on the plus side, we get more sunlight later in the evening—more time for the kids to play outside—and it makes it feel like spring is finally on its way.

Find out what's happening in Southeast-Brewsterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Spring 2013 officially starts on Wednesday, March 20.

Many electronic devices, like your cell phone and computer, automatically adjust when Daylight Savings Time begins or ends.

Find out what's happening in Southeast-Brewsterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

So, why do we do this at 2 a.m., and why shift our clocks at all?

According to Webexhibit:

In the United States, 2 a.m. was originally chosen as the changeover time because it was practical and minimized disruption. Most people were at home and this was the time when the fewest trains were running. It is late enough to minimally affect bars and restaurants, and it prevents the day from switching to yesterday, which would be confusing. It is early enough that the entire continental U.S. switches by daybreak, and the changeover occurs before most early shift workers and early churchgoers are affected.

The larger reason for shifting our clocks, however, is energy conservation.

Ben Franklin first suggested shifting the clocks
to save on candles, according to Discovery, but no one took him up on his idea at the time.

The first official national time shift wasn’t until 1918. Then the United States stopped the practice, started again during World War II for energy conservation reasons, stopped when the war was over and re-started with the Uniform Time Act in 1966.

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 lengthened daylight saving to eight months instead of six months.

Does Daylight Saving actually save energy?

Discovery News reported:

Although a U.S. Department of Transportation study in the 1970s found that daylight saving trimmed electricity usage by about 1 percent, later studies have shown that the savings is offset by air conditioners running in warmer climates.

It may not all be for naught, however. Another study, performed in 2007 by the RAND Corporation found that the increase in daylight in spring led to a roughly 10 percent drop in vehicular crashes.


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