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Comment by ggm | Hacker News Reader

A change which may be rational closer to the equator, but which makes less sense in Edinburgh or further north surely?

Actually the closer you get to the poles the less you benefit from DST. At the poles you get 6 months of daylight and 6 months of night no matter what. The same at the equator, 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of night (this doesn't take into account the inclination of Earth's axis, but you got the idea.) The places that benefit most from DST are the ones in between, especially around 45 degrees latitude.

Then there are cultural factors, like those countries that like to spend their day time between 9 AM to midnight. It's easier to change the time on the clock than the minds of millions of people. For example, in my country there is a saying that only hens have dinner at 6 PM. It's not socially acceptable to get into a restaurant before 8 PM, friends will laugh at you if you suggest doing so. It's best to have dinner 9 or 10 PM, unless you're a tourist with different habits.

In Edinburgh, during the miners strike in the seventies we went to double summer time. In winter when it's bloody dark in the morning I found it credible a time shift helps. In summer when it's 11pm and bright outsides I find it credible a time shift helps.

I think your 'less useful the further to the pole you are' line may be the inside the arctic circle story. I definitely think summertime made sense in the Edinburgh from personal experience. I now live in Brisbane around 600k of the tropic of Capricorn and it makes no sense at all, except economically because the southern state neighbour (NSW) does summertime, as does Victoria and Tasmania both significantly further towards the pole.

Thanks, I lack the experience of living in the north for more than a few weeks in summer and a couple of days in winter.

I grew up in northern Sweden. I always found that summers are so bright it doesn't matter either way.

> In winter when it's bloody dark in the morning I found it credible a time shift helps.

Winter time is standard time anyway, and wouldn't be affected by this change.

> In summer when it's 11pm and bright outsides I find it credible a time shift helps.

DST pushes the clock ahead of the sun and makes it bright longer into the night.

> only hens have dinner at 6 PM

Which country is this saying from? I'm guessing Mediterranean.

In the north of Italy. People in the south probably don't think about dinner at 6 PM even in jokes.

Tinkering with clocks can't actually extend the length of the day, so it comes down to whether people prefer an extra hour of daylight in the morning, or in the evening.

Personally, I'd much prefer the later. Hopefully, the UK will decide to stay permanently on summer time from 2021.

UK have objected and wants to keep daylight savings unfortunately

I spent a year in Edinburgh. The sun rose after 9am in winter, after I started classes, and set at 4pm, before I got home. DST prevented me from ever seeing the sun for weeks. I went mad.

DST is not in effect during winter.

You spent a year there and didn’t work out there was no DST in winter?

... dammit. Alright, you've won me over. I'm an idiot.

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