Sunday, November 1st at 2 am marks the date and time we officially set our clocks back one hour.
What does this mean? Aside from the abysmal reality that you’ll arrive at work when it’s dark and leave right as the sun is going down again, we’ve compiled a good bit of information to brighten up your day.
Here’s what Daylight Saving Time is all about. Fall back on these fast facts.
1) First off, Daylight Saving Time is the proper singular use of the word. If you were talking about multiple instances of the time-related event, you’d say Daylight Savings Time. People often get this confused and use the plural at all times.
2) Benjamin Franklin first came up with the idea for Daylight Saving Time in 1784.
3) Despite this, the United States (and the rest of the world for that matter) did not begin observing Daylight Saving Time until World War I. This allowed troops to conserve their energy for the daylight hours.
4) Popular belief is that the time change was created for farmers, but the cultivators actually opposed the idea at first. They hated the idea so much that Congress actually appealed the act. Woodrow Wilson vetoed the appeal, but Congress overrode this with a two-thirds vote.
5) The Time Uniform Act of 1966 established Daylight Saving Time as throughout the U.S. States were allowed to exempt themselves from the act if they wanted to.
6) Only three states did not participate in Daylight Saving Time. Arizona, Indiana, and Hawaii. Indiana eventually joined the rest of the country in 2007, but the other two remain outliers.
7) Around 70 different countries observe Daylight Saving Time.
8) According to the U.S. Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, crime drops during Daylight Saving Time by 10 to 13 percent.
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Photo Credit: NBC Chicago, Nation of Change & The Huffington Post