At 2 a.m. Sunday, daylight saving time comes to an end — at least until March 12 or whenever federal legislation proposing to make it permanent is enacted — meaning that the clocks must be reset and we get back the hour we lost in March.
For most of us, the extra hour comes and goes because we are in bed at 2 a.m., sleeping, and other than noticing more sunlight in the morning and perhaps feeling a little more refreshed, we hardly even notice it. Smart clocks, now, know when to change on their own.
But every year, partly because stupid clocks still need to be changed, news outlets remind everyone to "fall back." And the debate begins: How did this tradition start? Is it good for us? And if it is not, should we always be an hour ahead or an hour behind?
What is daylight saving time?
Daylight saving time, or some people say daylight savings time, is the term we use to distinguish between the part of the year starting in March when we advance clocks — or they now advance themselves — an hour ahead. Ironically, when this happens there's less daylight in the morning.
When we set clocks back an hour, it's called standard time.
To help schoolchildren remember what to do with clocks when they learn the mnemonic device: "spring forward" and "fall back." Get it?
Benjamin Franklin, the statesman and inventor whose picture appears on the $100 bill, is credited with the idea to conserve candles back in 1784. Others offered other proposals over the years, and in 1966, when President Lyndon Johnson signed the Uniform Time Act, the twice-year time change became law.
Despite the commonly held belief that daylight saving time was to help farmers, it was created to save energy, and according to the U.S. Department of Transportation, when the sun sets later, it's presumed that people will stay out longer and spend more time outside leading to a need for less electricity usage for lights and appliances.
Proposed changes to the law
But there's also lots of debate about whether the time change is good for our health.
Among the evidence: Americans experience physical health problems caused by the biannual time changes, according to a study by the National Institutes of Health. The problems included strokes, heart attacks, accidents, and changes in mood.
As a result, at least 350 bills and resolutions have been introduced since 2015 in virtually every state, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Earlier this year, the Senate passed the Sunshine Protection Act, which, if approved by the House and signed by the president, would make daylight saving time permanent. If that happens, and here's where it gets especially confusing, daylight saving time becomes the new standard time.
"Pardon the pun, but this is an idea whose time has come," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who introduced the proposal, said. "I know this is not the most important issue confronting America, but it's one of those issues where there's a lot of agreement."
Well, there's still plenty of disagreement.
Right after the Senate passed its proposal, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine issued a statement cautioning that the move overlooks potential health risks associated with that time system. Sleep experts said standard time, not daylight saving time, should be — to use another pun — the year-round standard.
So, on Sunday, if you don't know what else to do with your extra hour, use it to think about whether we should get rid of it — or not.
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