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Unit One 1.The research project was done with an eye toward guiding policy on energy-saving programs. Efficiency programs promise to curb the nation’s fuel bill and reduce damage to the environment, if consumers can be persuaded to use energy more intelligently. Still, a big question among economists and energy experts is how to tailor incentives to prompt changes in energy consumption. 这个研究项目着眼于为节能项目提供指导性政策。如果能说服顾客更聪明地使用能源，节能项目应该能控制国家的能源消耗，同时减少对环境的破坏。但是，经济学家和能源专家始终面临一个大问题，那就是如何通过调整激励因素来促进能源消耗方面的改变。 2.The market signals from household utility bills are not clear to people, some experts say. Conservation steps, they note, may bring savings of only a few percentage points, and even those may be obscured by seasonal swings in electricity use and pricing. Thus, they say, the only way to make real progress in household energy efficiency is with sizable subsidies and mandated product standards. 一些专家指出，家庭电费单传递出的市场信号还不太清楚。他们指出，能源保护措施也许只能节省几个百分点的支出，而且即使是这几个百分点也会因为用电量和电价的季节性波动而变得不明显。因此，他们认为，如果要在家庭节能方面取得真正的进展，就必须由政府提供大规模的经济援助，并指定强制性的产品标志。 3.The federal laboratory’s project was instead a test of market incentives and up-to-the-minute information. But how quickly the kind of technology used in the project might be deployed across the country is uncertain. Many utilities are experimenting with this so-called smart-grid technology, but most are using it to upgrade their own networks, not to let households manage consumption. 不过，联邦实验室的研究项目只是一次对于市场激励机制和最新技术的检测，但是这种技术能以什么速度在全国得到广泛使用还不能确定。目前有很多电力公司正在尝试使用这种所谓的智能电网技术。但是，绝大多数电力公司主要是为了升级自己的网站，而不是为了让用户控制自己的耗电量。 4.Scientists wanted to find out if the ability to monitor consumption constantly would cause people to save energy—just as studies have shown that people walk more if they wear pedometers to count their steps. 科学家希望查明持续控制（能源）消耗的能力能够让人们最终节省能源——正如已有研究表明，如果穿上计步器计算自己的脚程，人们往往会步行更长时间。 5.The homeowners could go to a Website to set their ideal home temperature and how many degrees they were willing to have that temperature move above or be