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1-Page Summary of The Grid

Overview

The electric grid has evolved over the years, but modern life is still putting new demands on it. There’s a need for us to rethink how we deliver energy and make sure that our infrastructure can withstand any kind of disruption.

Have you heard of the grid? It’s a massive infrastructure that powers the entire United States, as well as parts of Mexico and western Canada. The grid includes power plants, wires, batteries, utility poles and transformers that make up an immense network that keeps America functioning.

The power grid requires a lot of energy to function. It mostly comes from nuclear, natural gas, coal and oil. However, there have been several attempts over the years to add more renewable and alternative sources of energy into the mix. This is difficult because the weather can be unpredictable sometimes; therefore, it’s hard for businesses to predict how much electricity will be needed in their area at any given time.

Before we can start thinking about how to improve the energy grid, we need to look at its history.

In this section, you will learn how a priest helped develop the grid and how conservationists came up with ways to save energy. You’ll also read about smart grids, which might be revolutionary.

Big Idea #1: The first electric grid was launched in the 1870s and quickly became a popular way to provide electricity to homes.

The discovery of electricity has had a huge impact on our lives. It’s allowed us to do things that were previously impossible, such as replacing candles and gas-fueled lamps with electric light. This new lighting made the day longer and enabled companies to work later into the night. Father Joseph Neri was the person who started this process by using battery-powered electricity for his window in 1871.

Word of his invention spread quickly, and the system was installed in California. Within a few years, thousands of electric lights were powered by water-driven dynamos.

But soon after, the grid was changed by Thomas Edison. His parallel circuit invention allowed electricity to pass through any part of the grid without shutting down the whole system if something went wrong with a single bulb.

Edison noticed that current can travel through many different paths. This discovery helped people create a parallel circuit, which prevents blackouts in the event of a failed bulb.

By 1892, streetlights were wired in parallel circuits and the New York Times hung dozens of light bulbs around its offices.

Big Idea #2: Electricity resulted in local power grids, but the invention of AC enabled larger ones too.

A parallel circuit was invented, but it wasn’t until Thomas Edison created the first grid that things changed. This grid connected power plants to each other and cities were able to connect to the grid through wires. The problem, though, was that these wires were tangled everywhere and it made it hard for people living in big cities like New York City to see above them.

The system of electrical grids in the early days were not really a grid, but rather a series of independent systems owned by different entities. Take downtown Manhattan for example. In 1893, there were 20 companies that provided electricity to customers in this area.

Alternating current was not discovered until 1887, when it was found that the energy could be transmitted with constant changes in direction. The electromagnetic generator that creates this current has rotating poles, meaning the energy can flow in one direction in one moment and the reverse direction in another.

AC enabled people to convert low voltages into higher ones with the help of a transformer. This was important because high voltages could travel long distances and reduce power loss, which meant that it became possible to build a plant that supplied electricity to cities several miles away.