Energy Conservation — Quiz — National Geographic Magazine

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Managing Editor, NGM.com Rob Covey <![CDATA[Producer]]> Paul Heltzel Flash Developer Stefan Estrada Editing and Styling Nancy Gupton Researcher Taryn Salinas /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-01-470.jpg Thermographic photography offers clues to where energy is being wasted in this older house in Connecticut. Photograph by Tyrone Turner /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-03-470.jpg "We're farm people," says Janice Haney of Greensburg, Kansas. "I enjoy hanging clothes out. We don't have to waste electricity on the dryer. The good old Kansas wind can do it on its own." Photograph by Tyrone Turner /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-05-470.jpg Commuters on a Metrorail train contribute only half as much CO2 to the atmosphere as drivers on the Beltway around Washington, D.C. Photograph by Tyrone Turner /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-12-470.jpg A worker in Washington, D.C., installs a triple-glazed window in a structure designed to meet strict "green building" standards. Photograph by Tyrone Turner /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-15-470.jpg Instead of building a new 730-megawatt facility like the Decker Power Plant, the Austin, Texas, electric utility reduced demand by the same amount through rebates on energy-saving appliances and other programs. Photograph by Lynn Johnson /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-06-470.jpg Photograph by Tyrone Turner /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-07-470.jpg At a General Electric test site in Peebles, Ohio, technicians check connections before firing up a GEnx-2B development engine. Built with carbon-fiber parts, the test model uses less fuel and produces 15 percent less CO2 than predecessors. Photograph by Tyrone Turner /2009/03/energy-conservation/img/energy-bulb-470.jpg New energy-efficient lightbulbs require only a fourth as much electricity as incandescent bulbs. Photograph by Tyrone Turner 7 Excellent work. You are a carbon-cutting expert. Your knowledge of carbon emissions is impressive. Your carbon-cutting could use some work. You may want to try again. 0 60 pounds 150 pounds 300 pounds 1,000 pounds 2 1 15 percent 20 percent 50 percent 80 percent 4 The Weather Makers: How Man Is Changing the Climate and What It Means for Life on Earth, cites the need to reduce carbon emissions by 80 percent. In his book, Flannery stresses the need to reduce personal energy consumption.]]> 2 5 pounds 20 pounds 40 pounds 100 pounds 2 3 One-fifth A quarter A third Half 1 4 Buildings Air transportation Farm equipment Commercial trucking 1 5 Power plants Heavy machinery Transportation Wildfires 3 6 1 million tons 10.5 million tons 100 million tons 1.3 billion tons 4 7 2 percent 5 percent 8 percent 11 percent 2