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  3. Sally Kemmerer has, so far, escaped Northern California’s rolling blackouts. But up on the roof for her Oakland home, worker

Sally Kemmerer has, so far, escaped Northern California’s rolling blackouts. But up on the roof for her Oakland home, worker

admin2015-01-15  3
问题     Sally Kemmerer has, so far, escaped Northern California’s rolling blackouts.
    But up on the roof for her Oakland home, workers are tapping into, perhaps, the most reliable power source, the sun. It could mean no more worries about blackouts or power rates.
    Sally Kemmerer, a home owner, says, "I hope that we’ll be able to zero out, you know, our electric bill. I mean that’s definitely our goal. "
    Turning the sun’s rays into electricity is, of course, nothing new.
    But California’s power crisis has cast a new light on the technology.
    Gary Gerber, a solar power contractor, says, "I might have been getting three phone calls a week a couple of months ago. I’m getting six a day now, it’s completely crazy. "
    Alternative energy is even more attractive, thanks to a state rebate program. So far this month, California’s energy commission has received 200 project applications. That is more than the number of applications all last year.
    Putting in a solar roof is still a relatively expensive proposition. This project cost around 45,000 dollars. Even taking into account the state subsidy of 12,000 dollars, that leaves a net cost to the home owner of around 33,000 dollars.
    Sally says, "We were happy to find out that, eventually, the system should pay for itself, you know 20 years, maybe. "
    Aaron Wellendorf has had a p-v(or photovoltaic generator)for more than a year. Like most solar systems, his is not off the grid completely and the utility still kicks in at night, or when there’s no sun. But when there is bright light, things change.
    Wellendorf says, "I’m turning my meter backward with extra power that I’m generating. " Backward?
    That’s right! Wellendorf’s meter tracks how much power goes back into the utility grid. Last year all he paid for electricity was a service charge. That charge was around five dollars a month.
    In fact, even after powering his super-efficient household appliances and his converted electric track, Wellendorf generated a net surplus of more than 2,000 kilowatt hours.
    Unfortunately, state law doesn’t require the utility to pay him for that. Wellendorf says, "I don’t get it in money, I just get the satisfaction of helping out the power grid. "
    And, he gets the satisfaction of being energy self-sufficient.
What does "off the grid" mean in the context of this story?
选项 A、Living in a suburban neighborhood.
B、Living in the only house in a wide area.
C、Living without the utility company’s electrical power.
D、Living without any electricity from any source.
答案C
解析 本文中，grid的意思是“输电网”，即指的是供电公司的电。对于安装了太阳能发电系统的住户来说，off the grid也就是不用供电公司的电。因此正确答案为C。
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