<P> Daylight saving time (abbreviated DST), commonly referred to as daylight savings time in speech, and known as summer time in some countries, is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months so that evening daylight lasts longer, while sacrificing normal sunrise times . Typically, regions that use daylight saving time adjust clocks forward one hour close to the start of spring and adjust them backward in the autumn to standard time . </P> <P> George Hudson proposed the idea of daylight saving in 1895 . The German Empire and Austria - Hungary organized the first nationwide implementation, starting on April 30, 1916 . Many countries have used it at various times since then, particularly since the energy crisis of the 1970s . </P> <P> The practice has both advocates and critics . Some early proponents of DST aimed to reduce evening use of incandescent lighting, once a primary use of electricity . Today's heating and cooling usage patterns differ greatly, and research about how DST affects energy use is limited and contradictory . </P>

Who came up with daylight savings time wikipedia