Change Clocks, Batteries: Time To 'Fall Back'

When (if) you're lucky enough—post Sandy—to have electricity to power up the clocks in your house, get ready to set them back one hour.

Daylight Saving Time—which began in March when we set the clocks forward one hour—ends 2 a.m. Sunday, so it's time to "fall back" before you go to bed Saturday to return to Standard Time.

It's also a good time to change the batteries in your carbon monoxide and fire detectors, said Dean Pappas, second assistant fire chief in Katonah.

"With the extended power outages, these detectors are being drained of battery life. It's really important to swap in new batteries," he said.

So, why do we observe DST?

Benjamin Franklin first proposed the idea in 1784, according to TimeandDate.com and it has since evolved as a way to make better use of the daylight in the evenings, save energy and even boost tourism.

Arizona, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, U.S. Virgin Islands and American Samoa do not observe Daylight Savings Time. Around the world, about 75 countries and territories have at least one location that observes daylight saving time, according to the website. On the other hand, 164 don't observe the time change at all.

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