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Daylight Saving Time
Most western nations advance the clock ahead one-hour during the summer months. We call this period Daylight Saving Time. Benjamin Franklin originally suggested the idea. He wanted to take advantage of the additional daylight time in the summer when many people were sleeping. The United States did not adopt Daylight Saving Time until the 1900s, and today every state but Hawaii and Arizona observe Daylight Saving Time. Hawaii is closer to the equator than the other states, and since the amount of daylight does not vary as much, the state did not feel it was necessary to set back the clock. Summer temperatures in Arizona often reach 100o, so lawmakers there decided it would be better to end the day early so Arizonians could enjoy an extra hour of cooler evening weather.
Daylight Saving Time lasts from the first Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October in the United States, but in 2007 the period will last longer. It will begin the second Sunday in March and end the first week in November.
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