INTRODUCTION: As a relatively recent transplant to Chicago, IL from Pittsburgh, PA (and before that Rochester, NY), it seemed as though adjusting to Central Standard Time (CST) would be relatively simple. Aside from being mindful of late night telephone calls to friends and family on Eastern Standard Time (EST), and watching primetime television shows an hour earlier than normal, it seemed as though there was no significant difference between CST and EST. However, as I became more attuned to my surroundings, I noticed that the long summer evenings and short winter days seemed… shorter. At first, I dismissed this idea as simply a nostalgic recollection of my childhood, when summer days lasted forever and I was finished with school at 2:30PM instead of walking out of work at 5:00PM. However, while driving from Rochester, NY to Chicago, IL and watching the clock on my phone change from one time to an hour earlier in the span of a mile, I began to formulate another theory. In fact, it seemed that because Chicago was so close to the EST border, what was evening darkness in Indiana became late afternoon darkness in Chicago. What follows is my scientific exploration into this theory.
HYPOTHESIS: Due to its proximity to the eastern border of the CST, Chicago has longer morning daylight hours and shorter evening daylight hours than cities in close proximity to the western border of the EST.
METHOD: Using the google search engine, I recorded the sunrise and sunset times for Chicago, IL and South Bend, IN on December 6th, 2012 and June 6th, 2012. South Bend was chosen for its close proximity to the western border of the EST.
RESULTS:
| Table 1 | Sunrise | Sunset | |
| 06-06-2012 | |||
| Chicago, IL | 5:16AM CST | 8:22PM CST | |
| South Bend, IN | 6:11AM EST | 9:16PM CST | |
| 12-06-2012 | |||
| Chicago, IL | 7:05AM CST | 4:19PM CST | |
| South Bend, IN | 7:58AM EST | 5:14PM EST |
Table 1 clearly demonstrates that the sun consistently rises and sets earlier in Chicago, IL compared to South Bend, IN (based on the local time in each location).
CONCLUSION: There are many factors that people consider when determining where to live, including cost of living, job market, proximity to family, transportation system, arts and culture, and weather. It is my recommendation that proximity to a time zone border be a part of this equation. Early risers may favor locations close to the eastern border of a time zone, while night owls may prefer locations close to the western border of a time zone to maximize exposure to daylight hours.
My less objective conclusion is that I really wish they could move the CST border so that Chicago was in EST because longer summer nights are obviously better than full daylight at 6:00AM and the sun really set at 4:19PM today? That is absurd.
Inside & Out 