Tinkering with time
Thursday, 14 January 2010
Sayed Javed Ahmad
GOOD that Bangladesh is back to its standard time. The 'digital divide' became quite apparent during the 'daylight saving time' experiment, which split the nation into two groups, 'analog' and 'digital'. It means that a group that did not bother to change their clock at all. They followed Bangladesh Standard Time (BST). But the group that adopted daylight saving time lived in misery for a while.
Personally, it worked fine for me, especially in the month of Ramadan. I could go home early to fresh up and wait for the day end to break my fast with my family. There were no rush on the streets. One could go home in time and without much traffic hassle. I could get up around seven in the morning. The sun was yet to rise. It was convenient for me to offer my morning prayer just on time. Immediately afterwards I would get busy preparing to go to work on time. After the return to BST one has to readjust it with one's daily activities.
The Central Depository Bangladesh Limited (CDBL) had no problem adjusting. The two bourses, the stock exchanges in Dhaka and Chittagong are all that matter for the CDBL computer system. Switching back was equally easy.
Daylight saving time is convenient for the countries in the northern hemisphere. Clocks are adjusted forward one hour near the start of spring and are adjusted backward in autumn. Modern DST was first conceived in 1895 by George Vernon Hudson, a New Zealand entomologist. Many countries have used it since then. Details vary by location.
The practice is controversial. Daylight activities in afternoons benefit retailing, sports, and other pursuits that need sunlight after working hours. But it causes problems for farming, evening entertainment and other occupations tied to the sun. Traffic fatalities are reduced when there is extra afternoon daylight. Its effect on health and crime is less clear. Although an early goal of daylight saving time was to reduce the use of electricity in the evenings. Research shows DST saves limited energy. The findings are often contradictory.
Clock adjustments required by daylight saving time involves other challenges. The adjustments complicate timekeeping, and can disrupt appointment schedules, travel, billing, record keeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Often, software can adjust computer clocks automatically, but this can be limited and error-prone, particularly when daylight saving time rules change.
The AL-led government delayed its commitment to return to Bangladesh Standard Time. Bangladesh's short experiment should be taken into consideration in deciding whether or not it would return to daylight saving time next summer. After all, the government officially acknowledged that the benefits were less than anticipated.
Personally, I would not mind going back to it again as it suits my daily activities and schedule. But, there is doubt whether it suits the majority of the citizens in this democratic country. Daylight saving time requires only some minor adjustment.
(The writer is chief of operations, CDBL. He can be reached at : E-mail: javedahmad@yahoo.com)
GOOD that Bangladesh is back to its standard time. The 'digital divide' became quite apparent during the 'daylight saving time' experiment, which split the nation into two groups, 'analog' and 'digital'. It means that a group that did not bother to change their clock at all. They followed Bangladesh Standard Time (BST). But the group that adopted daylight saving time lived in misery for a while.
Personally, it worked fine for me, especially in the month of Ramadan. I could go home early to fresh up and wait for the day end to break my fast with my family. There were no rush on the streets. One could go home in time and without much traffic hassle. I could get up around seven in the morning. The sun was yet to rise. It was convenient for me to offer my morning prayer just on time. Immediately afterwards I would get busy preparing to go to work on time. After the return to BST one has to readjust it with one's daily activities.
The Central Depository Bangladesh Limited (CDBL) had no problem adjusting. The two bourses, the stock exchanges in Dhaka and Chittagong are all that matter for the CDBL computer system. Switching back was equally easy.
Daylight saving time is convenient for the countries in the northern hemisphere. Clocks are adjusted forward one hour near the start of spring and are adjusted backward in autumn. Modern DST was first conceived in 1895 by George Vernon Hudson, a New Zealand entomologist. Many countries have used it since then. Details vary by location.
The practice is controversial. Daylight activities in afternoons benefit retailing, sports, and other pursuits that need sunlight after working hours. But it causes problems for farming, evening entertainment and other occupations tied to the sun. Traffic fatalities are reduced when there is extra afternoon daylight. Its effect on health and crime is less clear. Although an early goal of daylight saving time was to reduce the use of electricity in the evenings. Research shows DST saves limited energy. The findings are often contradictory.
Clock adjustments required by daylight saving time involves other challenges. The adjustments complicate timekeeping, and can disrupt appointment schedules, travel, billing, record keeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Often, software can adjust computer clocks automatically, but this can be limited and error-prone, particularly when daylight saving time rules change.
The AL-led government delayed its commitment to return to Bangladesh Standard Time. Bangladesh's short experiment should be taken into consideration in deciding whether or not it would return to daylight saving time next summer. After all, the government officially acknowledged that the benefits were less than anticipated.
Personally, I would not mind going back to it again as it suits my daily activities and schedule. But, there is doubt whether it suits the majority of the citizens in this democratic country. Daylight saving time requires only some minor adjustment.
(The writer is chief of operations, CDBL. He can be reached at : E-mail: javedahmad@yahoo.com)