I have too many damn clocks in my house

[KQ]

Damn daylight savings time! Doesn't save me any time. My day begins and ends with the sun regardless of what the hands on the clock say.



Five reasons why it's time to re-think daylight saving time clock change

Clocks will be “falling back” an hour this Sunday, marking the end of daylight saving time (DST) and the beginning of an old debate as to whether the practice should be continued.

Although some people relish the opportunity to gain an extra hour of sleep every fall, many Americans don’t see the necessity in adjusting their clocks — and their schedules — twice a year. With so much opposition to DST, here are a few reasons why it might be time to stop changing the clocks.

1. An unpopular tradition

The main argument against daylight saving time is simple: People don’t like to do it. According to a Rasmussen report from March of 2013, only 37 percent of Americans believe that DST should continue, while 45 percent said that the practice was pointless and was not “worth the hassle.”

2. Farmers

Much of the argument for maintaining DST lies in the belief that the practice is beneficial to farmers. However, the changing hours have little to no effect on the daily tasks required on a farm, according to Hillary Barile, partner at Rabbit Hill Farms, of Shiloh.

“There's still the same number of daylight hours, but I would say this time of year makes it even harder,” said Barile. “We don't have as many evening daylight hours left and you're still constrained by the clock, but now it just gets darker earlier.”

She added, “You don't always know until you get started in the morning what you need to do, so having morning daylight doesn't always make a difference.”

3. Safety concerns

Changing the clocks means waking up and going to bed at different hours, but it can also create a higher risk of traffic accidents for commuters who normally drive home during daylight hours.

A study published by the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that drivers unaccustomed to the time differences due to DST are more likely to get into accidents due to disrupted circadian rhythms and insufficient sleep.

"As a society we are chronically sleep-deprived and that small additional losses of sleep may have consequences for public and individual safety," said Dr. Stanley Coren in his report.

4. Health hazards

Changing an individual's schedule by a single hour might not just interrupt their day, but could also be hazardous to their health. Recent studies have linked the beginning and end of DST to a variety of health problems, including an increased risk of heart attacks and a rise in suicide rates.

According to Dr. Sean Duffy, an associate professor of Psychology at Rutgers-Camden, DST is not only a risk to physical health, but it could negatively affect a person's mood. “Falling back” in the winter marks the beginning of early nights, sometimes leading to symptoms of depression.

“The change in DST in fall is also a marker of the end of the summer season and the beginning of winter,” said Duffy. “This can be depressing for those longing for the extravagances of summer.”

5. Interrupted sleeping schedules

Setting clocks back an hour means gaining an extra hour of sleep time. For others who might be more sensitive to time changes, however, going to bed an hour later could cause anything but sweet dreams.

According to Dr. Sean Duffy, an associate professor of Psychology at Rutgers-Camden, time changes could upset a person’s natural sleeping schedule. In some cases, the process of adjusting to “springing forward” and “falling back” can affect learning and memory processes by changing the way that the brain functions.

“Sleep is a critical process for the whole body, helping it repair damage, but particularly for the brain, which consolidates memory and helps us learn,” said Duffy. “Most people can handle the one hour switch of daylight saving time but if you are prone to sleep disorders or insomnia, the change in timing can take some adjustment.”

[DasBlunt]

i just keep an atomic clock with temp and moon cycles.....it changes itself, so i really never notice... cell phones also change themselves..

[digitaldeath]

Time is not what you think it is.

[DasBlunt]

Time is not what you think it is.

it is just a reference to align with other people. The passage of time in our minds is purely subjective.

[KQ]

it is just a reference to align with other people.

Father Time: Sir Sandford Fleming

Inventor of worldwide standard time

After missing a train in 1876 in Ireland because its printed schedule listed p.m. instead of a.m., he proposed a single 24-hour clock for the entire world, located at the centre of the Earth and not linked to any surface meridian.[8] At a meeting of the Royal Canadian Institute on February 8, 1879 he linked it to the anti-meridian of Greenwich (now 180°). He suggested that standard time zones could be used locally, but they were subordinate to his single world time, which he called Cosmic Time. He continued to promote his system at major international conferences[9] including the International Meridian Conference of 1884. That conference accepted a different version of Universal Time, but refused to accept his zones, stating that they were a local issue outside its purview. Nevertheless, by 1929 all of the major countries of the world had accepted time zones.

[Tye 1on]

has nothing to do with your question but what the hell---

[The AD]

"Much of the argument for maintaining DST lies in the belief that the practice is beneficial to farmers."

Nobody believes that. Nobody who's given it any thought, anyway.

Personally I like it. Except for a brief period in the summer it's dark when I drive to work anyway. I'd much rather have it stay late into the evening if given the choice. I'm willing to spend five minutes every six months to change the clocks in my house for this. It's not really a big deal.

[iceman]

I want a clock that wakes me up when the sun rises. The alarm time would change a little bit each day to go off at dawn (or a pre-set amount of time before or after dawn, like say 20 minutes after sunrise or whatever). This does not seem to be a product that is available. Anyone know of one, or else who wants to do a kickstarter with me?

(plenty of "sunrise alarms" out there but they don't work this way)

[Meadow Skipper]

The first three responses to this thread lowered the collective forum IQ by around 40 points.

I'd be fine with DST if it was a summer-only thing like it used to be. Now that we have for around 7 months it is kind of aggravating and counter-productive per KQ's OP. There are a few states/areas that ignore DST and they seem to get along just fine.

[The AD]

1. An unpopular tradition

The main argument against daylight saving time is simple: People don’t like to do it. According to a Rasmussen report from March of 2013, only 37 percent of Americans believe that DST should continue, while 45 percent said that the practice was pointless and was not “worth the hassle.”

Note the time when the survey was taken. Right when DST starts in the spring. Talk about cooking the books!

[BCMtnHound]

I get the daylight and productivity arguments for having the damn change, and there was a time (heh) when the actual dates of the change made sense. But since our dumbfuck business politicos decided to follow the time change dates of our southern neighbours, it's just become stupid. At 51 latitude and above, having the change so far past the equinoxes makes no sense for anyone outside of the direct business of the NYSE (whose cubes are lit by fluorescents all day regardless of the natural light outside).

And most of our farming communities (BC's Peace R country, Saskatchewan, etc) don't change the clocks. When I lived in those locales, I much preferred their system.

[systemoverblow'd]

[Danno]

I'll be pissed if we got rid of DST. I'd be fine if we kept DST all year long. I want to have daylight when my workday is done.

[hutash]

"Time is irrelevant. Lunch time doubly so."

[systemoverblow'd]

3 pints?

[creaky fossil]

DST, what is DST, all I know is my phone said 8am when I woke up but the 3 other clocks in my house said 9am and I began thinking the phone was broken.

[neufox47]

Get rid of standard time, duh. DST is wayyy better than ST. Think how much better ski season would be.

[KQ]

I want a clock that wakes me up when the sun rises. The alarm time would change a little bit each day to go off at dawn (or a pre-set amount of time before or after dawn, like say 20 minutes after sunrise or whatever). This does not seem to be a product that is available. Anyone know of one, or else who wants to do a kickstarter with me?

(plenty of "sunrise alarms" out there but they don't work this way)

DST, what is DST, all I know is my phone said 8am when I woke up but the 3 other clocks in my house said 9am and I began thinking the phone was broken.

Just wait until you get in your car.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

Get rid of standard time, duh. DST is wayyy better than ST. Think how much better ski season would be.

Why would ski season be better?

[creaky fossil]

Just wait until you get in your car.

I ignored the clock in the truck when I went to the store this AM, but if I'd looked it would have given me enough spasm to stop without a STOP or red light.

[irul&ublo]

Clocks. I had to read the title twice.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[Beaver]

Why would ski season be better?

It gives more dark hours for the snow to fall. Duh!

[capulin overdrive]

We have the technology, DST should be better, faster, stronger!

6 million deferent time zones is the ticket!


Greenwich reset to sunrise everyday, with north/south zones added to the east/west!

[Danno]

Why would ski season be better?

don't have to get up so damn early to ski a full day, lifts will be open later.

[Danno]

Fuck, in winter I wouldn't mind one bit if it stayed dark until much later in teh morning, just so I could get some daylight outdoor recreation after work.