Why do we change the clocks twice a year? Are we actually saving daylight? And whose idea was this anyway?

In this episode of Wait... Why Do We Do That?, we uncover the surprisingly complicated history behind daylight saving time.

We'll find out why Benjamin Franklin didn't actually invent it, why farmers weren't responsible for it, and how a British builder riding his horse one summer morning decided humanity had a serious problem: everyone was sleeping while the sun was shining.

Then came World War One, energy conservation, a wonderfully chaotic period when American cities couldn't agree what time it was, and even an experiment with year-round daylight saving time that didn't quite go according to plan.

We'll also look at whether changing the clocks really saves energy, why businesses love evening sunshine, what sleep researchers think about the whole thing, and why agreeing that we should stop changing the clocks turns out to be much easier than agreeing which time we should keep.

And through it all, one appliance remains completely unmoved by more than a century of debate...

the microwave.

Because we aren't actually changing daylight.

We're just changing the numbers on our clocks and hoping our bodies, our schedules and apparently our kitchen appliances eventually catch up.

Because apparently, there's a reason for almost everything.

Even if it isn't a particularly good one.

Send us Fan Mail

Why do people voluntarily run 26.2 miles, and who decided that the final 385 yards were absolutely necessary?

In this episode, Steve explores the strange history of the marathon, from an ancient Greek legend and the early Olympic Games to the chaotic 1908 race that helped establish the distance we know today. Along the way, we meet exhausted runners, interfering officials, a determined royal family, and Dorando Pietri, who crossed the finish line first but did not actually win.

It is a story of endurance, tradition, questionable decisions, and the remarkable human willingness to pay good money to suffer for several hours.

Because apparently, there is a reason for almost everything. Even if it is not a particularly good one.

Send us Fan Mail

Why do we change the clocks twice a year? Are we actually saving daylight? And whose idea was this anyway?

In this episode of Wait... Why Do We Do That?, we uncover the surprisingly complicated history behind daylight saving time.

We'll find out why Benjamin Franklin didn't actually invent it, why farmers weren't responsible for it, and how a British builder riding his horse one summer morning decided humanity had a serious problem: everyone was sleeping while the sun was shining.

Then came World War One, energy conservation, a wonderfully chaotic period when American cities couldn't agree what time it was, and even an experiment with year-round daylight saving time that didn't quite go according to plan.

We'll also look at whether changing the clocks really saves energy, why businesses love evening sunshine, what sleep researchers think about the whole thing, and why agreeing that we should stop changing the clocks turns out to be much easier than agreeing which time we should keep.

And through it all, one appliance remains completely unmoved by more than a century of debate...

the microwave.

Because we aren't actually changing daylight.

We're just changing the numbers on our clocks and hoping our bodies, our schedules and apparently our kitchen appliances eventually catch up.

Because apparently, there's a reason for almost everything.

Even if it isn't a particularly good one.

Send us Fan Mail