The University of Michigan continued its dominance in solar
car racing by winning the 1,200-mile American Solar
Challenge, a race through four Midwestern states which
concluded on June 26. Michigan, which won 5 of the event's
predecessors,
finished more than two hours ahead of second-place
University of Minnesota.
Appliances account for roughly 65% of electricity consumption in the average American household (2001), with refrigerators and lighting making up the largest categories. (Source: EIA)
Crude oil, taxes, refining, distribution and marking are the four main components that make up the retail price of a gallon of gasoline. (Source: EIA)
Public policies such as appliance and vehicle efficiency standards and building codes are responsible for at least 20% of the improvement in the US's energy intensity--energy use per unit of GDP. (Source: Institute for 21st Century Energy)
In 2007, the average monthly residential electricity consumption was 936 kWh. (Source: EIA)
Estimated energy demand is charted to grow by almost 50% in the next 20 years.
