Twice a year, we all agree to feel slightly off.

The clock changes.

Sleep breaks.

Schedules wobble.

And we just… accept it.

In this episode of Curious by Design, we explore why Daylight Saving Time exists—and how a wartime energy strategy became one of the most persistent design choices in modern life.

The idea didn’t start with farmers. It started with fuel. During World War I, countries shifted their clocks to conserve coal, hoping to extend usable daylight into the evening. The policy returned in World War II, resurfaced during the energy crisis of the 1970s, and was eventually standardized in the United States under the Uniform Time Act of 1966.

But the energy savings were always modest. The disruption, however, is measurable—sleep loss, increased accidents, and even short-term health effects follow the clock change each year. And yet, it persists.

This episode looks at how Daylight Saving Time became embedded into transportation, commerce, broadcasting, and software—how coordination hardened into infrastructure—and why changing it now is harder than keeping it.

Daylight Saving Time isn’t really about time.

It’s about synchronization.

The next time you wake up feeling slightly misaligned with the world, remember: you’re not failing to adjust. You’re responding to a design choice inherited from a moment of crisis—one that worked just enough to stick.

That’s Curious by Design.

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