Yes, it is that time of the year again when we have to set all of our analog clocks ahead one hour. Most of the digital timepieces do it on their own via the atomic clock in Boulder Colorado.
By measuring the oscillation of atoms, atomic clocks remain precise, but they’re not perfect. They experience an error of 1 second every one-hundred million years or so. Today, the NIST-F1 atomic clock in Colorado is considered to be one of the most precise clocks in the world.
Personally I would wish we could stay the same year round as do many others. Michigans congress has had the bill laying dormant to hold us at eastern standard time or central time all year – sure wish they would act on it.
While Germany and Austria were the first countries to use DST in 1916, it is a little-known fact that a few hundred Canadians beat the German Empire by eight years. On July 1, 1908, the residents of Port Arthur, Ontario, today’s Thunder Bay, turned their clocks forward by one hour to start the world’s first DST period.
Other locations in Canada soon followed suit. On April 23, 1914, Regina in Saskatchewan implemented DST. The cities of Winnipeg and Brandon in Manitoba did so on April 24, 1916. According to the April 3, 1916, edition of the Manitoba Free Press, Daylight Saving Time in Regina “proved so popular that bylaw now brings it into effect automatically.”
The idea did not catch on globally until Germany introduced DST in 1916. Clocks in the German Empire, and its ally Austria, were turned ahead by one hour on April 30, 1916—2 years into World War I. The rationale was to minimize the use of artificial lighting to save fuel for the war effort.
Within a few weeks, the idea was followed by the United Kingdom, France, and many other countries. Most of them reverted to standard time after World War I, and it wasn’t until the next World War that DST made its return in most of Europe.
If you think Daylight Saving Time is a good idea, thank New Zealand scientist George Vernon Hudson and British builder William Willett. In 1895, Hudson presented a paper to the Wellington Philosophical Society, proposing a 2-hour shift forward in October and a 2-hour shift back in March. There was interest in the idea, but it was never followed through.
In 1905, independently from Hudson, British builder William Willett suggested setting the clocks ahead 20 minutes on each of the four Sundays in April, and switching them back by the same amount on each of the four Sundays in September, a total of eight time switches per year.
Many sources credit Benjamin Franklin with being the first to suggest seasonal time change. However, the idea voiced by the American inventor and politician in 1784 can hardly be described as fundamental for the development of modern DST. After all, it did not even involve turning the clocks. In a letter to the editor of the Journal of Paris, which was entitled “An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light”, Franklin simply suggested that Parisians could economize candle usage by getting people out of bed earlier in the morning. What’s more: Franklin meant it as a joke.
Anyway, the plus side is we have daylight well into the evening, the negative is our biological clocks don’t adjust well to the change.
I am not complaining but what happen to the Spring green color at the top of the page?
The birds were going nuts today. Building nests in the bushes out back.
Well I am so ready for SPRING!! I keep watching for the greenhouses to say when they are opening. I love just walking thru them and seeing all the beautiful flowers and so colorful!
Simplest solution with regards to the time, move Michigan to central standard time and leave it there year around. We don’t belong in the same time zone as the East coast and everyone hates it getting dark at 430 in the afternoon during Winter. Put it up for a vote, it would pass with 95%. We voted on marijuana, why can’t we vote on this?
I agree
@Barry, if we move to central standard Time, wouldn’t that push us back an hour and make us darker in the afternoon? I am a big fan of moving forward to daylight savings time and staying there permanently. It would be great to have 6PM sunsets in the winter instead of 5PM.
I agree with Nathan
I agree with Nathan too. I don’t need it to get darker any earlier. As an older person who can’t drive in the dark you see what I mean. Also sunsets at 6PM makes sense. We need to be on one time and quit changing twice a year. It is hard on the body. Anybody with a dog knows how long it takes them to adjust too.
If Michigan was on central standard time it would get dark in the winter time at 4 PM and in the summer time it would get dark not one hour earlier but 2 hours earlier than now. I would much rather stay on the so call Eastern Daylight time all year long. I had lived in the central time for a while and it not good getting dark at 4. But I look at it this way we only do this 2 times a year and there are worse things that we have to deal with all the time.
Slim
I am looking forward to spending the day outside working on Sunday.
Gotta love March. 60 one day, and 30 the next.
Up and down is the way of spring and it will be that way until late May. Also the term “cooler by the lake” will now heard more often.
Slim
Current wind chill is 24 degrees! Wow!
That is the average low temp for today. Chilly and damp today.
Another very cold night is on tap? GR low around 20 degrees! Amazing!
It is another cold dreary wet March day, yet all we hear about is how warm it is! Incredible!
Everyday in March has been above average temps so far.
The time change is stupid and needs to stop! Pick a time and leave it alone all year! One of the most ridiculous things we are forced to do 2 times per year!
So far, March is +4 degrees warmer than average with no snow – as well as no snow on the ground. We are now more than 18″ below average snowfall and about 27″ less snow than last year!
This weekend looks incredible for early March. Plenty of sun and warm temps!
Who shook the snow globe?
LOL!! I saw those flakes this morning.
35 here with a light rain falling. As for the time change. Not being a morning person and working outside during the summer time I like the so called DST the better of the two. Now why is it still called daylight time and standard time? It used to be we did not change the time until the last week of April and now it is done in the 1st week of March. So that said why not have daylight time as the standard time and what is now standard time as the new “Winter Time” that would make more… Read more »
I can’t tell if thats snow or rain falling out my window temp is 33* degrees a cold wet March day great Scott looks good on the horizon though 50’s Sunday we will take it we are slowly getting into Spring…Have a super Friday …INDY