A3AndrewFischerTrevorApericio

A3AndrewFischerTrevorApericio

To-Do

Please answer the following questions about the article: what did you find interesting? what did you find not find interesting? what did you not understand? what did you learn (if anything) reading the article?

Within the article we found the experiments very interesting.  It was interesting to see how people responded to varying degrees of previous involvement.  When the previous comments were imposed upon those being subjected to the experiment, the subjects still generally went toward the energy saving option.  It appears that most people want to change their ways to lower energy usage as long as it does not inconvenience them too much.  We also, found the idea of the smart-grid quite interesting.  The thought of passing knowledge on to the consumer of how to improve energy consumption is awesome.  It would improve the environment drastically and resources would not be getting depleted so quickly.  However, we did not understand how a system would be able to give useful feedback to a consumer on an individual basis.  At least, not efficiently.  We learned that given the chance to become more energy conscious, most people would take the steps, if its not too much extra work.  Also, we learned about the idea of smart-grid energy technology and a little bit about how it would be implemented in a society such as Boulder, Colorado.

Based on an exploration of the web, scientific articles, newspaper stories, ….. ? Write a Short Essay (about 1 page) about an interesting question / website related to one or more of the themes: Energy Sustainability, Smart Meters, Smart Grid

 Energy Suitability relies on the consumer.  So what if the consumer is unwilling to change his ways?  Boulder Colorado is often called “The People’s Republic of Boulder” because of it’s different views from the rest of the state on recycling, CO2 emissions, and Energy Sustainability, so even if this model works in Boulder, how can we ensure that it will work elsewhere.  And what about in places where there are less educated people?  Boulder is home to a world renowned university where academia take pride in active participation in improving life on an international level.  What about places without such resources? What about places like intercity LA? Or poor parts of NY city?  Even places in the deep south where people aren’t necessarily stupid, just ignorant and unwilling to change?  If Smart Grid technology is to be a success in places other than Boulder, such a system will have to do with less voluntary consumer interaction and more incentivized consumer interaction.  If such a system were to survive outside of Boulder, monetary incentives would be the key to success.  “According to (The National Center for Educational Statistics)'s graph (Link Below) 63,100,000 students (out of the 74M-drop outs) were in "Elementary and secondary school" (K-12). It also shows that of that 63M students, only 21M are in "post-secondary school" (College). There for, only 33.28% of all High School graduates go on to college.” (>http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d08/tables/dt08_001.asp )  In leiu of this statement, we know that most of the movers and shakers of this world are those who are college educated.  College educated people tend to understand social, environmental, and political problems better then those who are not college educated.  And even though they may be educated enough to understand, they may not be motivated to act twards “Green” pollocies.  Therefore we can count on an even lower percentage of people who would be able AND willing to work to make energy sustainability and smart grids a reality just because it is the right thing to do.   That said, money talks.  Money is the one thing that every one wants.  So, if you threaten someones money or are willing to compliment it, you can make anyone do anything. 

Briefly describe your own interests, experiences, actions, changes in your behavior (if any) related to “energy awareness”!

Throughout my life I've been brought up to regard energy conservation as an important aspect of my life.  So, I watch my water usage and turn off the electricity when a room is not in use.  I find that conserving energy in these ways is quite satisfying.  Not only am I helping the environment, but I am saving money on monthly energy bills.  After reading this article, I would like for Boulder to really push for the smart-grid energy idea.  I would happily go along with it, and incorporate it into my daily life.