Daylight Savings Time hurts our health and the economy. Why are we doing this, again?
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84aWtseb2-4
Looking forward to losing an hour of sleep this weekend? Thanks to the advent of Daylight Saving Time, if you live in most places in the United States, whether you like it or not, you'll be putting your clocks an hour ahead. That means on Monday morning, given the disruption of your circadian rhythm, you'll probably be feeling pretty groggy and exhausted.
So why exactly are we "springing forward"? A couple of years ago education video maker C.G.P. Grey made an excellent clip that breaks down how we can blame our increased sleep deprivation on a guy named George Vernon Hudson. Hudson first proposed the idea of Daylight Savings Time in 1895—he wanted to make it easier to pursue his bug collecting hobby. Really.
Nowadays we hear countless claims that Daylight Savings Time saves America money and energy. Grey digs into all that, too, helpfully dropping the tidbit that decreased productivity during the week after Daylight Saving Time goes into effect actually costs the economy $480 million. And what's the impact on your health? Let's just say "DST Monday" doesn't exactly have a positive reputation in the medical community.
After watching the video, we won't blame you if you find yourself on the White House petition site, We the People, joining the thousands of other Americans calling for the end of Daylight Saving Time. Well, unless you're an avid 21st century bug collector.
Click here to add asking President Obama to end Daylight Saving Time to your GOOD "to-do" list.
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