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From: vangeldr@cmgm.Stanford.EDU (Russ Van Gelder)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: DST Harmful?
Message-ID: <1991Apr8.180949.19534@medisg.Stanford.EDU>
Date: 8 Apr 91 18:09:49 GMT
References: <1991Apr7.180823.1462@cs.rochester.edu>
Sender: news@medisg.Stanford.EDU
Organization: Stanford Center for Molecular and Genetic Medicine - CMGM
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	The human circadian clock free-runs (that is, adopts a period
in the absence of time-cues) of about 25 hours - so most people adapt
easily to the "fall back", but have a really hard time with "spring
forward".  This is the same reason most people find it easier to fly
west than east.

	A great suggestion that I heard a few years ago is to make the
spring (forward) change "fun Friday".  Instead of causing increased
sleep-loss by moving the clocks forward on Sunday morning, why not
move them forward at 4:00 Friday afternoon?  I think most sleep
researchers would agree that this is a better time to shift the clock
than the middle of the sleep period.  Politically I think it would be
popular with the working folk, too...


	Russ