San Jacinto Building's mechanical clock, Beaumont, Texas

© Richard T. Nowitz/Getty Image

Time to change the time. Daylight Savings

Time is of the essence today: the second Sunday of March marks the start of daylight saving time. At 2 AM this morning, the clocks sprang forward one hour, meaning there will be an extra hour of daylight this evening. While Benjamin Franklin is often credited with inventing daylight saving, the first real proposal for changing the clocks came from New Zealand entomologist George Hudson in 1895, who valued having more daylight so he could collect insects after work.

Daylight saving is now observed in around 70 countries around the world, with many places adjusting their clocks in March. The clock in today's image is in the San Jacinto Building in Beaumont, Texas, which was built in the 1920s. Each clock dial is around 5 metres in diameter, so it must be quite a job to put the time forward for daylight saving!