In the early hours of March 11, most of the country experienced the dreaded loss of an hour of sleep. Upon the clock striking 2 a.m., the official time raced forward an hour and resumed its normal ticking at 3 a.m.

This moment marks the start of what is commonly known as daylight saving time (not “daylight savings time”). After the 11th, sunrise and sunset will be one hour earlier than it was prior, before gaining an hour again this November.

This annual eight-month time period was first proposed by entomologist George Hudson in 1895 and first established by the federal government on March 19, 1918, during World War I. Its purpose was to conserve coal during wartime, as people would use daylight instead of electricity for light. However, much of its original intent was forgotten over the years as people became accustomed to the cheaper electricity costs. Now, the main spectacle of the event is complaint of the loss of sleep when it happens.

“Going from a four hour nap to a three hour nap is going to be tough, but I think I can pull through,” senior Aayush Gupta said. “At this point, the only thing I can do is spend hours building castles on Fortnite to hope one of them protects me from this lost time.”

Although many have been bothered by the untimely change in time, many have also found solutions to help.

“We’re lucky to have smartphones with clocks that switch automatically,” sophomore Amelie Yang said, “so there’s not much I have to do to prepare besides remembering that I have one hour less to submit my assignments on Canvas.”

The history between the start of daylight saving time and now remains very convoluted. Not all states have decided to adopt this time system, for they don’t all experience the great shifts in daylight over the year. Some states near the equator, like Hawaii and Arizona, do not observe daylight saving. Also, parts of Indiana did not observe it until 2006.

In addition, the U.S. Congress ordered states to go on year-round daylight saving time between January 1974 and April 1975 due to an energy crisis.

After all, that extra exposure to daylight can get you some additional (and unnecessary?) vitamin D.

“Who need vitamin D’s when you can have D’s on Biology quizzes instead,” Gupta said.