As Daylight Saving Time (DST) draws to a close, we will have to "Fall back" once again and set our clocks back by an hour.

On Sunday, November 2, 2014, the clock will be changed at 2:00 a.m, back one hour, making it 1:00 a.m local time in the United States, Canada, as well as some regions of Mexico. The actual reason behind daylight savings and the time shift is to exploit the daylight in the mornings as well as the lighter evenings to our advantage during the summer.

During the 1973 oil embargo, summer time saved energy equivalent to 10,000 barrels of oil daily in the United States. During this period, DST was extended to as many as ten months in 1974 and eight months in 1975. The normal schedule was reverted back in 1976 after the energy crisis ended, with the period for daylight savings commencing on the first Sunday of April. Barring Hawaii, and major parts of Arizona, nearly the entire United States observes DST.

However, daylight savings time has its critics, as many people are of the view that it does not have any effect on energy consumption.

Frankly speaking, this practice has received advocacy as well as criticism. While putting clocks forward helps retailing, sports, and other activities that take advantage of sunlight after working hours, it can cause problems for evening entertainment as well as for other activities associated with the sun or darkness.

A number of early supporters of DST aimed to reduce evening use of incandescent lighting (previously one of the most important uses of electricity), but, contemporary heating and cooling usage patterns differ greatly. Moreover, research on how DST affects energy use at present is limited or contradictory.

Sometimes DST clock shifts causes a number of issues, such as confusing timekeeping, upsetting meetings, travel, billing, record keeping, heavy equipment, medical devices, and even sleep patterns. While use of software can often regulate computer clocks automatically, this can be limited and prone to error.