Ben Franklin and others claim that switching clocks saves energy. President Bush's only response to growing oil prices and global climate change was to add a month of daylight saving time (DST).
But thanks to that switch, a study in Indiana shows that electricity usage actually went up with more DST.
I was always skeptical that switching clocks could have much of an effect. But the argument was that if we're awake while the sun is up, we won't use as much artificial light.
Apparently, though, in places with hot summers, DST means more time awake in the humid summer heat, and more air conditioners running, so more energy used.
It's possible in other climate areas there are other effects, and it's possible that other benefits, like being able to see the sun when you go home from work, are worth the switch. But given how much effort we put into switching our clocks, it seems like we could just forget about it all.
I wonder why we don't just work different hours. If I switched my schedule to 7-3 instead of 9-5, then I'd get daylight. Why do we have to change what time it is? Why do all the sundials in the world have to be wrong half the year? Why can't we just go to bed sooner and get up earlier? (Teenagers excepted, because we know their brains keep them up late. It's true! High schools that delay classes see test scores go up!)
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