IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 26
tech life
BRAIN FREEZE: lG's smart refrigerators,
shown here at the 2011 consumer
Electronics Show, can send an alert to
your phone if you leave the door open.
photo: DaviD Becker/Getty imaGes
Smart Conservation
for the Lazy Consumer
people aren't conserving energy for love or money-
you have to trick them into it
I
f your electric company
tells you to cut back your
energy use or face the
possibility of a blackout,
you'll probably comply.
You'll turn off unnecessary
lights and appliances and
use the air conditioner less.
But the moment the crisis is
averted, you'll quickly return
to your old habits. That's
because in spite of what
26
people say about wanting to
protect the environment and
save money, they rarely limit
their energy consumption
to achieve these goals.
Convenience always trumps
conservation.
At one time, managers
at electric utilities thought
they could change consumer
behavior by making elec-
tricity more expensive at
NA * iEEE SpEctrum * july 2012
certain times of day. That
hasn't worked. The price
premium needed to spur
conservation seems to be
higher than utilities will-
or can-charge. That's the
bad news. But there's also
good news: Although price
hikes may not work, clever
tricks, it seems, will.
First, let's talk about
the problem.
These days, it's not really
about efficiency. Energy-
efficient appliances have
helped reduce overall
electricity demand, but
a big problem remains.
Most people still get out of
bed, leave for work, and
return home at roughly the
same time of day. And-
no surprise-their schedules
dictate their energy use,
which tends to peak in the late
afternoon on weekdays, from
3 to 6 p.m. or so, when offices
are still open but people are
also arriving home from work,
turning on air conditioners,
TVs, and ovens. The resulting
surge in demand can double
the amount of energy flowing
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Spectrum July, 2012
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - Cover1
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - Cover2
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 1
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 2
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 3
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 4
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IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 24
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 25
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 26
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 27
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 28
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 29
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 30
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 31
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 32
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 33
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 34
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 35
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 36
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 37
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IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 40
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 41
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 42
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 43
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IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 45
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 46
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 47
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 48
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 49
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 50
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 51
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 52
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 53
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 54
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 55
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 56
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 57
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 58
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 59
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - 60
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - Cover3
IEEE Spectrum July, 2012 - Cover4
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