British Summer Time

[JohnC6]

Daylight Saving Time (DST). I read a report today in The Times..it's pay-walled online so I can't post a link. Here's what it said:

"A paper in the journal Current Bilology found there wee 6% more road deaths in the US each year in the week after the clocks went forwrd but in other countries there was a minimal effect. Where most experts agree is that there are more cardiovascular deaths. In one study heart attacks went up by 20%. Sleep researchers say that there are subtle consequences to almost everything we do ,only some of which are measurable. Another study looked at judgements handed down by courts on the Monday after the return to daylight saving time. In a paper entitled "Sleepy Punishers Are Hard Punishers" criminals unfortunate enough to be sentenced that day could expect to be sentenced to 5% longer in prison. Stock markets were found to be less efficient because of impaired judgements by traders. DST was introduced,in part,for economic reasons: to save on artificial lighting.Our bodies,however, have evolved to follow natural light.Some chronobiolgists think that by forcing our bodies to be out of synch for six months every year we are exacerbating mental health problems not only in the days after the change but throughout the year"

"These days economic rationale for DST has largely gone.Research by the London School of Economics suggested that when you account for all the health and welfare impacts DST might be costing us more than £600 per person per year. This is one reason that in the past five years major sleep research societies in the US and Europe have called for its abolition. Our bodies have evolved to follow natural light"

Here's a UK article from last October when the clocks went back. https://patient.info/news-and-featu...why-the-clocks-changing-can-affect-our-health

What it's all about. https://www.shellenergy.co.uk/first...published the,natural daylight in the morning.

 

[Tori_T]

While there's definitely an argument for abolishing DST, some of the ones given here are flawed.
Humans almost everywhere do not follow natural daylight (which slowly changes throughout the year, except around the equator), they follow the local clock.
The effect of DST is the same as jet lag from moving one timezone over, and adapting to that takes on average one day for every hour you move, so the consequences listed would no longer be apparent by Tuesday/Wednesday following changeover.
Then you have the almost universal use of artificial light to allow functioning both before we would've woken up naturally, and after we should've gone to sleep.
This issue is a lot more complex and involved than just the clock change.

 

[JonathanRyan]

While there's definitely an argument for abolishing DST, some of the ones given here are flawed.

Very much so.

Here's what Rospa say

In 1968, there was a three-year experiment when BST was employed all year round. The clocks were advanced in March 1968 and were not put back until October 1971. Although this is now several decades ago, this period provided an opportunity to evaluate the effect of discontinuing clock changes on road traffic casualties. Road casualty figures during the morning (7:00 am – 10:00 am) and afternoon (4:00 pm – 7:00 pm) for the period affected by time change in the two winters (1966/67 and 1967/68) before the experiment and in the first two winters (1968/69 and 1969/70) when BST was retained were analysed. The data showed that keeping British Standard time had resulted in an 11% reduction in casualties during the hours affected by the time change in England and Wales and a 17% reduction in Scotland. The overall reduction for Great Britain was 11.7%. Although casualties in the morning had increased, the decrease in casualties in the evening far outweighed this. Overall, about 2,500 fewer people were killed and seriously injured during the first two winters of the experiment. However, it must be noted the 1968/71 experiment coincided with the introduction of roadside breath tests and the 70mph speed limit, which may have affected the casualty reduction figures.

https://www.rospa.com/media/documents/road-safety/british-summertime-factsheet.pdf

Further down you'll see the RAC's numbers that it would save about 200 (278 - 74 but it's a bit more complicated) road accidents per year.

 

[Nod]

While there's definitely an argument for abolishing DST, some of the ones given here are flawed.
Humans almost everywhere do not follow natural daylight (which slowly changes throughout the year, except around the equator), they follow the local clock.
The effect of DST is the same as jet lag from moving one timezone over, and adapting to that takes on average one day for every hour you move, so the consequences listed would no longer be apparent by Tuesday/Wednesday following changeover.
Then you have the almost universal use of artificial light to allow functioning both before we would've woken up naturally, and after we should've gone to sleep.
This issue is a lot more complex and involved than just the clock change.

Of course, once you're retired, it's hard enough to remember what DAY it is, let alone what hour!

On holiday, a drop or 2 of the local liquids confuses the internal clock enough to negate any time difference (in Europe, at least!!!)

 

[simon ess]

Hang on!

I may be misunderstanding what is being said here,

BST is the non standard time, isn't it?

What they seem to be calling DST is the proper time - GMT.

Surely?

 

[Nod]

BST is the British version of DST - British Summer Time and Daylight Saving Time. Other countries have their own version of DST.

 

[simon ess]

BST is the British version of DST - British Summer Time and Daylight Saving Time. Other countries have their own version of DST.

I'm still not understanding it, sadly.

How is it necessary to save daylight when there's more of it rather than less?

 

[JohnC6]

Of course, once you're retired, it's hard enough to remember what DAY it is, let alone what hour!

On holiday, a drop or 2 of the local liquids confuses the internal clock enough to negate any time difference (in Europe, at least!!!)

True. The only reason I know what day it is is because it's written on my prescription tablet box..

 

[Nod]

I'm still not understanding it, sadly.

How is it necessary to save daylight when there's more of it rather than less?

It's typical political nonsense - you save it up during the Summer and then, when you start to run out of it in late Autumn, you find you can't spend what you've saved...