Even though Benjamin Franklin's suggestion of Daylight Savings Time in an essay called “An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light” in 1784 was mostly a joke, people took it seriously. He had written that, in order to save money on light sources, people should get up earlier in the mornings to use as much of the sun's natural light as possible. In late April of 1916, Germany became the first country to begin using Daylight Savings Time to preserve fuel that could be delegated to World War I needs. Other European countries followed this trend, and in 1918, the United States implemented Daylight Savings Time when President Woodrow Wilson signed the law, making it official as means of preserving energy, reducing war costs, and rationing the usage of artificial light. While I'm sure it was necessary during war, especially when there was limited technology and a complex world of energy research still in the making, Standard Time sounds way better to me.
Instead of jumping in a time machine and letting yourself get one more hour of sleep, the government of the United States decided that we would all just change our clocks back one hour during the middle of the night. For the 2015 end of Daylight Savings Time, it occurred at 2:00 AM on Sunday, November 1. I always feel much more rested when Daylight Savings Time ends because I get to catch up on a bit of sleep. Even that one hour makes all the difference. On the contrary, when Daylight Savings Time starts, I always end up feeling exceptionally tired. You don't technically gain sleep, but instead you shift your sleeping pattern to where you wake up when it is daylight. It's easier to get out of bed when the sun is already up rather than having to roll out of bed, look outside and think "It's still dark outside. I shouldn't be awake right now." Waking up with the sun, rather than before it, just seems more natural.
Since Standard Time occurs during the winter, it gets darker earlier in the day, which allows for snuggling under a warm blanket after dinner an appealing nightlife option. It seems that when cold weather is upon us, we are less productive because we don't want to go outside and brave the chilly wind and low temperatures. So it makes more sense for it to get darker at an earlier hour.
As we say our final goodbye to summer while we eagerly reach towards fall, winter creeps up quickly. Daylight Savings Time is great for conserving energy and for promoting maximum productivity levels, Standard Time is more practical and natural in relation to human behavior and desires and I have to say that I look forward to Standard Time every year.
