Daylight Saving Time 2011: 3 Things to Remember

As Daylight Saving Time of 2011 approaches its end this weekend, make sure you are ready to 'fall back' and make necessary adjustments.

First and foremost, remember to set your clocks back one hour before you go to sleep on Saturday Night. Daylight Saving Tme for 2011 officially ends in the U.S and Canada at 2.am on Sunday.

Winding your clock back an hour will not only bring you to standard time along with the rest of the world, but it also gives you an extra hour of sleep. It means that if you forget to set the clock back, you will only be early to your next day appointments, which is always better than being late.

Second, if you are flying to the U.S. on Sunday, remind those who are picking you up about the time change, and save them from waiting an extra hour at the airport. More importantly not all areas in the U.S. observe Daylight Saving Time. These include the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Guan, American Samoa, Hawaii and most of Arizona except for the Navajo Reservation.

Third, and finally; setting clocks back around the house is a good reminder to check smoke alarm batteries and carbon monoxide monitors. There is no better time to do it than when altering the clock on different household units.

Daylight Saving Time, or DST begins in the northern hemisphere between March-April and ends between September-November. Standard time begins in the northern hemisphere between September-November and ends between March-April. Many countries in the northern hemisphere observe DST, which gives them an extra hour of sun in the summer months.

In the Southern hemisphere DST begins between September-November and ends between March-April. Standard time begins in the southern hemisphere between March-April and ends between September-November.

Countries that observe daylight saving also believe that it is a means of preserving energy due to less artificial light needed during the evening hours-clocks are set one hour ahead during the spring, and one hour back to standard time in the autumn.

Benjamin Franklin first suggested DST in 1784, but it was not conceptualized until 1905 when an English bulder, William Willet proposed to advance the clock during summer months.

His proposal was published two years later and introduced to the House of Commons in February 1908. The first Daylight Saving Bill was examined by a select committee but was never made into a law. It wasn't until World War I, in 1916, that DST was adopted and implemented by several countries in Europe who initially rejected the idea.