Ten interesting things about energy

By NASA.gov, adapted by Newsela staff on 02.17.17

Word Count 893
Level MAX

Water rushes through a dam in Georgia. Inside the dam is a hydropower plant. It uses the water's energy to generate electricity. Photo by:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Energy is the ability to do work. Another word for energy is "power." It is what makes things move,
work and grow. Energy powers the lights in our schools and homes and fuels our cars and buses. A
lot of the energy we rely on each day comes from materials dug up from deep in the earth, such as
coal and oil. Today, scientists and other experts are learning more about renewable sources of
energy, such as wind, water and sunlight.

Here are 10 fascinating facts about energy.

Always Turn Off Lights When You Leave The Room, Unless...

You should always turn off the light when you leave a room, because it can save a lot of energy. But
if you have special light bulbs called CFLs, you don't always have to turn them off. Turning them
on and off too many times shortens their lifespans. You should turn them off if you'll be gone for
15 minutes or more, but if you'll be right back, you can leave them on.

Coal Is King, But Not Everywhere

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In the United States, coal makes 39 percent of our
electricity. It's burned in a power plant. The heat from
burning coal is used to boil water, and then the steam
moves a turbine and generates electricity. In West
Virginia, over 90 percent of the electricity is generated
from coal, but in California, only 1 percent of
electricity is generated from this fossil fuel.

Daylight Saving Time Is Good For The Planet

When we turn our clocks forward each spring, we

move an hour of daylight toward the end of the day. In 2008, we had four extra weeks of Daylight
Saving Time. Scientists studied how much energy we saved and found out that we saved 0.5
percent of electricity. Even though that sounds small, it's actually 1.3 billion kilowatt-hours, which
is about how much electricity 100,000 houses use in a whole year.

Every State Uses Hydropower For Electricity

A flowing river is powerful, and we can use the flow to make electricity. Ancient Greeks built water
wheels to grind grain thousands of years ago. Today, every state uses hydropower, which is
electricity from the flow of water. In Washington state, 70 percent of the electricity comes from
hydropower. Hydropower plants are inside dams, such as the Hoover Dam. Some places don't
build dams, but instead use just part of a river to make electricity.

The United States Is A World Leader In Wind

Wind has been a source of renewable energy since the

invention of the windmill thousands of years ago.
Today's wind power is made from big wind turbines.
They're over 300 feet tall, and some have 8,000 parts!
Along with China, Germany, Spain and others, the
United States is using wind to make lots of electricity.

The First Solar-Powered Satellite Is Still In Orbit

The sun gives us lots of energy every day. It hits us

with 10,000 times the world's total energy use. The
space industry has used solar power since the 1960s. It's great for spacecraft. Vanguard 1 was the
first spacecraft to use solar cells. It's the oldest artificial satellite still in orbit around Earth.

We Can Get Energy From Trash

All that waste we flush down the toilet and put in our trashcans doesn't have to go to, well, waste!
When waste breaks down, it can release methane, a natural gas that we can trap and use to make
electricity. This is also helpful because methane is a greenhouse gas. If we use it, we keep it out of
the atmosphere. This is great for the environment.

Electric Vehicles Are Great, But Not Everywhere

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Cars that run on electricity instead of gas don't release
pollution. But when you charge the car at home,
where does that electricity come from? If the
electricity comes from renewable sources, electric cars
are great for the environment, but if you charge a car
with electricity made from coal, it's not as good. The
car doesn't pollute, but the power plant that charges
that car does.

We Need Better Batteries

You might be surprised, but batteries need a lot of

work. They don't store enough energy. For us to use
solar power and wind power, we need to be able to store a lot of energy. That way, we can still have
electricity on cloudy days with no wind. Lots of researchers are working to make better batteries
that last longer and hold more energy.

We Measure Energy In BTUs

When we talk about energy, we all need to use the same unit to compare numbers. Just as we
might use feet or meters to talk about length, we need a unit for energy. The standard unit of
energy is called the BTU, which stands for British Thermal Unit. It's the amount of energy needed
to raise the temperature of a pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit. When you burn a four-inch
kitchen match, it releases about 1 BTU of energy.

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Quiz

1 What is the summary of the section “We Need Better Batteries”?

(A) Most people are surprised that batteries do not work very well.

(B) Scientists are looking for a way to store renewable energy sources.

(C) Solar and wind energy are important sources of renewable energy.

(D) We need to be able to get electricity even when it is a cloudy day.

2 Which of the following sentences from the article includes a central idea?

(A) Today, scientists and other experts are learning more about renewable sources of energy, such as wind,
water and sunlight.

(B) The heat from burning coal is used to boil water, and then the steam moves a turbine and generates
electricity.

(C) Even though that sounds small, it's actually 1.3 billion kilowatt-hours, which is about how much
electricity 100,000 houses use in a whole year.

(D) Wind has been a source of renewable energy since the invention of the windmill thousands of years
ago.

3 How does the section "Coal Is King, But Not Everywhere" relate to the section "Electric Vehicles Are Great, But Not
Everywhere"?

(A) Both sections discuss pollution and where it comes from.

(B) Both sections discuss the states that are currently using coal.

(C) Both sections discuss renewable sources of energy.

(D) Both sections discuss the affect that coal has on the Earth.

4 Why does the author include the last paragraph in the article?

(A) to show that there is a standard unit of measurement for energy

(B) to show that in Britain they are measuring energy

(C) to show that it is difficult to raise a pound of water by one degree

(D) to show how much energy one single match contains

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.