Abolition of time zones

Short description: Replacing time zones with UTC

Time zones of the world

The abolition of time zones involves replacing time zones with Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) as a local time.

History

For most of part of history, the position of the sun was used for timekeeping. During the 19th century, most towns kept their own local time. The standardization of time zones started in 1884 in the US.^[1]

Proposals

The time-zone map is a hodgepodge — a jigsaw puzzle by Dalí.

James Gleick, The New York Times ^[2]

Arthur C. Clarke proposed to use a single time zone in 1976.^[2] Attempts to abolish time zones date back half a century^[1] and include the Swatch Internet Time. Economics professor Steve Hanke and astrophysics professor Dick Henry at Johns Hopkins University have been proponents of the concept and have integrated it in their Hanke–Henry Permanent Calendar.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

Usage

UTC as a universal time zone is already used by airline operators around the world^[7] and other international settings where time coordination is especially critical. This includes military operations, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the International Space Station.^[8] The effective international use of UTC shows that a universal time standard could work within the United States. The authority to modify this would be the Secretary of Transportation's.^[8]

Advantages

The same time is used globally, which removes the requirement of calculations between different zones.
Possible health benefits as people who live on the eastern side of a time zone are out of sync with the circadian rhythms.^[1]^[9]

Disadvantages

The date will switch between sunrise and sunset in parts of the Americas and Asia-Pacific.
Requires changes in linguistic terminology related to time.
Conceptually, time zones would still be in effect as different regions would still carry out activities such as business hours, lunch, school etc at different UTC times, essentially trading one system for a tantamount one.
It further complicates the Tz database because historical time zones would still exist.^[10]

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 "Let's Get Rid of Time Zones, Not Just Daylight Savings" (in en). Bloomberg L.P.. 2021-03-20. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-03-20/let-s-get-rid-of-daylight-savings-and-time-zones.
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 Gleick, James (5 November 2016). "Time to Dump Time Zones". https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/06/opinion/sunday/time-to-dump-time-zones.html.
↑ Taylor, Adam. "The radical plan to destroy time zones" (in en-US). Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/02/12/the-radical-plan-to-destroy-time-zones-2/.
↑ Bradshaw, Tim (11 August 2020). "Is it time to call time on time zones?". https://www.ft.com/content/e1be6777-2bf6-4fd0-a868-35c60f3ad82f.
↑ Clarke, Laurie (2019-10-28). "What would happen if we abolished time zones altogether?" (in en-GB). Wired UK. ISSN 1357-0978. https://www.wired.co.uk/article/universal-time-zones. Retrieved 2021-03-30.
↑ "Professors say a new calendar would eliminate leap years and save you over $500 a year" (in en). February 29, 2020. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/leap-day-debate-sparks-radical-calendar-proposal-eliminate-time-zones-halloween/.
↑ "The Day Of Two Noons : Planet Money" (in en). https://www.npr.org/2019/06/07/730727038/episode-918-the-day-of-two-noons.
↑ ^8.0 ^8.1 Deal, Ryan (2021-01-01). "It's Five O'Clock Everywhere: A Framework for the Modernization of Time". Washington University Law Review 98 (3): 911–936. ISSN 2166-7993. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/law_lawreview/vol98/iss3/9.
↑ "This Guy Says Getting Rid of Time Zones Will Improve Everyone's Life" (in en). https://www.vice.com/en/article/nney3k/meet-the-professor-that-wants-to-change-the-way-we-measure-time.
↑ "So You Want To Abolish Time Zones @ Things Of Interest". https://qntm.org/abolish.

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Original source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abolition of time zones. Read more

[:0-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 "Let's Get Rid of Time Zones, Not Just Daylight Savings" (in en). Bloomberg L.P.. 2021-03-20. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-03-20/let-s-get-rid-of-daylight-savings-and-time-zones.

[jamesgleick-2] 2.0 ^2.1 Gleick, James (5 November 2016). "Time to Dump Time Zones". https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/06/opinion/sunday/time-to-dump-time-zones.html.

[3] Taylor, Adam. "The radical plan to destroy time zones" (in en-US). Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/02/12/the-radical-plan-to-destroy-time-zones-2/.

[4] Bradshaw, Tim (11 August 2020). "Is it time to call time on time zones?". https://www.ft.com/content/e1be6777-2bf6-4fd0-a868-35c60f3ad82f.

[5] Clarke, Laurie (2019-10-28). "What would happen if we abolished time zones altogether?" (in en-GB). Wired UK. ISSN 1357-0978. https://www.wired.co.uk/article/universal-time-zones. Retrieved 2021-03-30.

[6] "Professors say a new calendar would eliminate leap years and save you over $500 a year" (in en). February 29, 2020. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/leap-day-debate-sparks-radical-calendar-proposal-eliminate-time-zones-halloween/.

[7] "The Day Of Two Noons : Planet Money" (in en). https://www.npr.org/2019/06/07/730727038/episode-918-the-day-of-two-noons.

[:1-8] 8.0 ^8.1 Deal, Ryan (2021-01-01). "It's Five O'Clock Everywhere: A Framework for the Modernization of Time". Washington University Law Review 98 (3): 911–936. ISSN 2166-7993. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/law_lawreview/vol98/iss3/9.

[9] "This Guy Says Getting Rid of Time Zones Will Improve Everyone's Life" (in en). https://www.vice.com/en/article/nney3k/meet-the-professor-that-wants-to-change-the-way-we-measure-time.

[10] "So You Want To Abolish Time Zones @ Things Of Interest". https://qntm.org/abolish.

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v t e Time measurement and standards
Chronometry Orders of magnitude Metrology
International standards	Coordinated Universal Time offset UT ΔT DUT1 International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service ISO 31-1 ISO 8601 International Atomic Time 6-hour clock (Italian · Thai) 12-hour clock 24-hour clock Barycentric Coordinate Time Barycentric Dynamical Time Civil time Daylight saving time Geocentric Coordinate Time International Date Line Leap second Solar time Terrestrial Time Time zone 180th meridian
Obsolete standards	Ephemeris time Greenwich Mean Time Prime meridian
Time in physics	Absolute space and time Spacetime Chronon Continuous signal Coordinate time Cosmological decade Discrete time and continuous time Planck time Proper time Theory of relativity Time dilation Gravitational time dilation Time domain Time translation symmetry T-symmetry
Horology	Clock Astrarium Atomic clock Complication History of timekeeping devices Hourglass Marine chronometer Marine sandglass Radio clock Watch stopwatch Water clock Sundial Dialing scales Equation of time History of sundials Sundial markup schema
Calendar	Astronomical Dominical letter Epact Equinox Gregorian Hebrew Hindu Holocene Intercalation Islamic Julian Leap year Lunar Lunisolar Solar Solstice Tropical year Weekday determination Weekday names
Archaeology and geology	Chronological dating Geologic time scale International Commission on Stratigraphy
Astronomical chronology	Galactic year Nuclear timescale Precession Sidereal time
Other units of time	Flick Shake Jiffy Second Minute Moment Hour Day Week Fortnight Month Year Olympiad Lustrum Decade Century Saeculum Millennium
Related topics	Chronology Duration music Mental chronometry Decimal time Metric time System time Time value of money Timekeeper