Universal Solar Time (UST)

With computers running most clocks, perhaps rather than arguing over daylight savings, we should consider a completely new paradigm to time – Universal Solar Time. With UST the clock is adjusted up by 10 minutes every month for the first six months, and then down by 10 minutes in the same manner, and can be offset by your timezone. The computerized systems can handle the time shift the same on the 1st of everyday, just like they currently do twice a year.

The benefit of such an automated system is the day cycle stays perceptibly the same — the sun is up roughly at the same period each day for any given month.

While there are many challenges to such a system, such as what to do with all of the analog clocks, the advantages of a system like this should give all of the positive benefits of Daylight Savings, without the negative impact on a person’s day.

With a system like this one would have to become comfortable using UTC for coordinating time across regions (everybody uses the same zone ~ universal), and yet could still discuss things in local solar time:

“That meeting is at 1300 — UTC. Oh, that’s 11am on my solar clock.”

Adopting such a dramatic change is not a minor effort, and would likely take decades. However, as the old proverb goes, when is the best time to plant a tree? 40 years ago. When is the second best time? Right now.

What do you think? Setting aside the problem of how to make such a change using existing infrastructure, would you like a clock that automatically adjusted itself each month to keep your day cycle roughly the same, as far as you could tell?

Is it time to start talking about such a thing?