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About This Quiz
Shakespeare cautioned us to "Defer no time, delays have dangerous ends." Does daylight saving time have effects that have escaped our attention? Spend a few minutes with this quiz and see if you're a time bandit or a buffoon.
Which founding father of the U.S. conceived of daylight saving time?
John Adams
Benjamin Franklin
Although he didn't name it, Benjamin Franklin had the idea for daylight saving time in 1784, while serving as U.S. ambassador to France. His tongue-in-cheek solution to people making better use of daylight hours? Fire a cannon just after daybreak.
Thomas Jefferson
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Which country was the first to implement daylight saving time?
England
Germany
It took a global conflict -- World War I -- before any country took the idea of shifting the clocks seriously. Germany adopted daylight saving time rules in 1916 in an effort to preserve its supplies of coal.
the United States
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How many countries adopted daylight saving time during World War I?
1
12
31
Germany took the lead in implementing daylight saving time during World War I, but other countries, including the United States, quickly followed suit. In total, 31 nations began shifting their clocks to make better use of daylight hours and to preserve resources for the war effort.
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What crisis in the early 1970s prompted the U.S. to extend daylight saving time through the winter?
Arab oil embargo
The energy crisis caused shortages of gasoline in the United States and led to gas rationing and year-round daylight saving time. When the crisis ended in 1974, the U.S. resumed its normal DST schedule.
Three Mile Island
disco fever
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Which two U.S. states currently don't follow daylight saving time rules?
Alaska and Texas
Arizona and Hawaii
Two U.S. states -- Arizona and Hawaii -- don't observe time-shifting practices. In Arizona, you can blame the heat. The cost to cool homes an extra hour outweighs the savings that come from turning on lights later. In Hawaii, you can blame location. Because the islands sit close to the equator, the length of summer days is about the same as the length of winter days.
California and Florida
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Which U.S. government agency conducted the first major study showing that daylight saving time conserves energy?
Department of Energy
Department of the Interior
Department of Transportation
Between 1973 and 1975, the U.S. Department of Transportation conducted a study showing that daylight saving time reduced national electricity usage by roughly 1 percent compared with standard time. It's one of the main reasons the U.S. continues DST today.
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Which U.S. state recently adopted daylight saving time, allowing researchers to compare the effects of DST on energy usage?
Indiana
Until recently, Indiana observed DST in only 15 of its 90 counties. Then the state passed a law stating that all counties would observe DST beginning in April 2006.
Arkansas
Hawaii
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Each year, daylight saving time affects about how many people across the world?
Approximately 1.6 million
Approximately 1.6 billion
Almost 300 million Americans "spring forward" and "fall back" each year. Globally, the number is much larger because the U.S. is just one of almost 80 countries currently observing DST. According to a 2008 paper by the National Bureau of Economic Research, DST affects 1.6 billion people worldwide.
Approximately 16 billion
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What's another name for daylight saving time?
Greenwich Mean Time
standard time
summer time
Because daylight saving time begins in the summer, it's sometimes called summer time. In much of Europe, DST is still known as summer time.
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Which British prime minister said of daylight saving time, "An extra yawn one morning in the springtime, an extra snooze one night in the autumn is all that we ask in return for dazzling gifts. We borrow an hour one night in April; we pay it back with golden interest five months later"?
Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill was a staunch supporter of William Willett and Willett's idea of "summer season time." In 1911, Churchill, then England's home secretary, gave a rousing speech in support of yet another daylight saving time bill introduced into Parliament.
David Lloyd George
Margaret Thatcher
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When does daylight saving time begin and end in the Northern Hemisphere?
begins between September and November, ends in March or April
begins in March or April, ends between September and November
In the Northern Hemisphere, DST starts just before summer begins -- typically between March and April -- and winds up just after summer ends -- between September and November. In the Southern Hemisphere, DST begins between September and November and ends between March and April.
It never ends. Ever.
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At what time of the day does daylight saving time begin and end in the U.S.?
11:11 p.m.
12 a.m.
2 a.m.
The beginning and ending dates of daylight saving time in the U.S. have changed over the years, but ever since Congress passed the Uniform Time Act in 1966, the changeover time of 2 a.m. has stayed the same.
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What happens to the one hour between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. when clocks "spring forward" each year?
The hour is repeated.
The hour is skipped.
In the spring, when clocks move forward, the time moves from 1:59:59 to 3:00:00. That's not a typo. The full hour between 2:00:00 and 2:59:59 disappears completely. In the fall, when daylight saving time ends, we get the lost hour back.
Nothing -- it stays the same.
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How does daylight saving time prevent traffic injuries?
Many drivers conduct their evening commute in daylight.
DST allows commuters to drive home from work in the daylight, which means, in theory, they see the road better and avoid accidents. In one study, the Department of Transportation estimated that 50 lives were saved and about 2,000 injuries were prevented in March and April of the study years.
Drivers use their cell phones less during DST.
There is less road construction during DST.
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Which of the following is NOT an accurate argument in support of daylight saving time?
It conserves energy.
It helps farmers.
One of the biggest misconceptions about daylight saving time is that it helps farmers do their work. On the contrary, farmers have long opposed the practice for how it disrupts their schedules.
It prevents crime.
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What legislation most recently switched up the daylight saving time rules in the U.S.?
Energy Policy Act
The U.S. has changed its DST policies several times over the years. The most recent modification came in 2005 with the Energy Policy Act, which tweaked the start and end dates for daylight saving time.
Public Law 99-359
Uniform Time Act
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Here's another legal question for you: Which legislation standardized how daylight saving time is implemented in the U.S.?
The Standard Time Act of 1883
The Uniform Time Act of 1966
In 1966, the U.S. passed the Uniform Time Act, which set the beginning and ending of DST, as well as the time when the changeover should occur. Between 1966 and 1986, DST began at 2 a.m. on the last Sunday in April and ended at 2 a.m. on the last Sunday in October.
The Energy Policy Act of 2005
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What is one possible health consequence of daylight saving time?
DST has been linked to increased rates of shingles.
DST disrupts circadian sleep patterns.
In recent years, researchers have begun to focus on the impact of daylight saving time on human health. In Germany, biologists specializing in natural physiological rhythms and other cyclical phenomena have shown that our circadian body clocks never adjust to DST.
DST resets the internal clocks of pacemakers.
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Which American holiday played a role in shaping daylight saving time rules?
Easter
Halloween
Some studies have indicated that children's pedestrian deaths were four times higher on Halloween than on any other night of the year. This finding provided some of the impetus to extend DST to the first Sunday in November, which officially took effect in 2007.
Thanksgiving
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How does Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) relate to daylight saving time?
DST displaced GMT in 1966.
GMT and DST are the same.
GMT doesn't change with the seasons.
GMT doesn't change with the seasons. In countries that observe daylight saving time, the time shift is often expressed in terms of GMT. For example, when the United Kingdom and Ireland switch to British summer time, they are one hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT + 1).
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You Got:
/20
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