Introducing energy
What is energy? Energy is the stuff that keeps things alive and makes them go. There are different types of energy. Electricity is only one of them, but here in the UAE, it's the one we use for almost everything we do.
How is electricity generated? First, the electricity needs to be made somewhere. Power plants make electricity by using generators. These generators use coal, gas, water or wind to produce it.
Once the electricity is produced, it’s sent through a transformer, which increases the voltage so that it can be sent long distances. The transformer then sends it over high-voltage transmission lines, which run all through the country.
When the electricity nears its destination, it goes through a substation that returns it to low-voltage electricity so it can be sent over the smaller power lines that run to homes, schools and businesses.
The electricity enters the building through a service panel, which is usually found in the basement or garage. This panel uses breakers or fuses to protect the wires from being overloaded. The electricity then travels through the wires in your home to the outlets and switches. So there’s always electricity for you when you need it!
And we need it an awful lot, whether it’s for turning on the lights, watching TV, taking a shower or keeping our homes cool with AC. Without electricity, we just couldn’t live like we do today.
Why do we need so much? Well, it’s because our country has a very hot, dry climate, and because it’s growing so fast. As more people come to live here, more buildings go up, more cars come onto the roads, our use of electricity keeps on rising.
But we must remember that it doesn’t last forever. Everybody, grown-ups and children together, need to look for ways to use less of it, or one day we might very likely run out of it.
Try to imagine what one single day would be like with no electricity, no AC and no lighting. We wouldn’t last long, would we?
