HOME > WordMaster® > DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME | サマータイム
2009.03.06(Review of 2004.04.02 edition)
Hello! We greet you on this lovely Friday with a puzzle of sorts: If a man in the United States goes to bed tomorrow (Saturday) night at 11:00 and wakes up Sunday morning at 7:00, how many hours will he have slept?
Easy? Well, before you give us your final answer, take a look at today's edition first!
DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME サマータイム
- In the United States, daylight saving time is the period from late winter to early fall when clocks are set one hour ahead so that there is more daylight in the evening.
Be Careful! In the United States, we do NOT use the expression “summer time” like the Japanese サマータイム to mean daylight saving time. - アメリカにおいて daylight saving time とは、冬の終わりから秋のはじめにかけて時計の針を１時間進ませる期間のことです。これによって、日照時間が長く使えます。
注意：アメリカでは、日本のサマータイムのように summer time とは言わず、daylight saving time と言います。
- (two Americans living in Japan)
a: Do they have daylight saving time in Japan?
b: No they don't. That's why the days seem shorter here than back home. - (in Tokyo)
a: Do you know what time it is in California right now?
b: Let's see ... they're not on daylight saving time until Sunday, so I think it's 7:30 in the morning there. - (the morning of Sunday, March 8th in the United States)
a: You're an hour late. What happened?
b: Oh, my gosh! Daylight saving time started last night, didn't it? I'm sorry, I completely forgot. - a: I can never remember whether I'm supposed to set the clock ahead one hour or back one hour on the first day of daylight saving time.
b: You set it ahead one hour. Remember, the rule is “spring forward, fall back.”
So you see, the problem we gave you at the start of this edition is actually harder than it looks. That man in the U.S. will only have slept 7 hours (not 8) because daylight saving time will begin after he goes to bed on Saturday. Clocks will be moved ahead one hour, and he'll lose one hour of sleep!
So be glad you live - and sleep - in Japan and enjoy your full eight hours every night this weekend!