By Nicole Chan
Check out our most recent stories, from daylight savings to community planting.
UMD students react to the end of daylight saving time
By Lena LaJoy
University of Maryland students woke up well rested on the morning of Sunday, Nov. 2 when daylight savings ended, setting clocks back one hour and granting students an extra hour of sleep.
Daylight savings is the yearly event where clocks are turned forward one hour to provide an extra hour of daylight in the summer, according to Time and Date. This year it began on Mar. 9.
Caitlin Kim, a sophomore government and politics major, said she was confused when she woke up because the time change caused her to wake up earlier than usual. She said this had a negative impact on her sleep schedule. She typically he goes to bed at, 11 p.m., and said she is extra tired due to the time change.
On the other hand, Nera Weinstein, a freshman education major, said the time change has made her less tired due to the extra hour of sleep. She also said she has been waking up earlier since the time change began, due to the sun rising earlier.
Tabitha Harmer, a sophomore cellular biology and molecular genetics major, said she dislikes the end of daylight savings because the sun sets earlier.
“I don’t like it, especially with my lab, it ends at 6:20 p.m. and walking back from it in the dark just makes everything feel really late and tired,” Harmer said.
Overall, these UMD students both appreciated and disliked certain aspects of daylight saving time.
Planting Joy
By Kendrick Brown
Roughly 20 University of Maryland community members assembled to plant 25,000 daffodils on the front patio of the Adele H. Stamp Student Union on Wednesday, Nov. 5, according to Richard Rupert, the university’s associate director of landscaping services.
The event, Planting Joy at Stamp, started as one of many campus landscaping projects, with this one specifically aiming to add daffodils to Stamp’s front patio to add vibrancy in the spring.
Though this project was originally put together by facilities management, when Rupert spoke to Stamp Director Marsha Guenzler-Stevens, she asked if they could make it a volunteer event to build community and give students a morale boosting activity as final exams and projects start to ramp up.
Daffodils were chosen because of their size, an expected height of 8-10 inches, and color.
“They’re gold, you know? So we get red, we get gold, we get the white pillars,the black railing, so we have all the colors,” said Guenzler-Stevens.
The flowers are also a sign that spring is coming after the long winter months, according to Rupert.
The daffodils are expected to bloom around March or April, according to a Pro Landscapes chart. Guenzler-Stevens plans to do more events like this in the future to help build further connections between all members of the UMD community.
“All those events where you’re in a community, you’re doing something with your hands, is a great way to build a greater sense of community, but also deal with the stress that is inherently college,” Guenzler-Stevens said.
Featured Image: A tree with orange leaves. Photo by Monique James.