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Question

Difficulty: HardResolving Paradoxes and Discrepancies

A regional electric utility company launched a program offering residential customers subsidized smart thermostats designed to lower household electricity usage during peak demand hours. Over the three years following the program's rollout, total peak-period electricity demand on the regional grid increased by 12 percent, even though more than 80 percent of households in the region installed the smart thermostats and each participating household successfully reduced its peak-period power consumption by an average of 15 percent.

Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain the apparent discrepancy described above?

  1. A
    The majority of households that installed the smart thermostats reported a noticeable decrease in their monthly utility bills during peak summer months.
  2. During the three-year period, rapid commercial development led to the construction of several large data centers in the region whose combined peak-period power consumption far exceeded the energy savings achieved by all participating households.Answer
  3. C
    Because the smart thermostats automatically optimized home heating and cooling during off-peak hours as well, participating households experienced an additional drop in overall daily electricity usage.
  4. D
    The retail price of smart thermostats decreased steadily over the three-year period due to increased competition among device manufacturers.
  5. E
    Utility customers who chose not to install smart thermostats cited privacy concerns regarding automated data collection by energy providers.

Answer

During the three-year period, rapid commercial development led to the construction of several large data centers in the region whose combined peak-period power consumption far exceeded the energy savings achieved by all participating households.
The correct answer successfully resolves the paradox by demonstrating that residential consumption is only one component of total grid demand. If large-scale commercial entities like data centers entered the region and consumed power during peak hours in quantities that surpassed the residential savings, overall grid demand would increase despite widespread household efficiency gains.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the two conflicting facts presented in the passage.
Fact 1: Over 80% of regional households installed smart thermostats and reduced their individual peak power use by 15%. Fact 2: Total regional grid demand during peak hours increased by 12%.
Resolving a discrepancy requires clearly isolating the two facts that appear contradictory.
2
Determine what information is needed to reconcile both facts.
A valid resolution must explain how total grid demand can rise even when residential demand drops significantly.
The correct answer must account for both facts simultaneously without denying either premise.
3
Evaluate the option introducing commercial data center expansion.
If non-residential peak electricity demand grew substantially due to new high-consumption data centers, total grid demand could increase by 12% despite household savings.
This provides a logical third factor that accounts for the net increase across the entire grid while preserving the fact that households saved energy.

Key Concept

Resolving Paradoxes: Accounting for Total Volume vs. Subgroup Shifts and Confounding Variables
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Topics

Resolving Paradoxes and Discrepancies

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