Smart Energy Grids in the Real World  

WorldChanging has a note up on smart energy grids. As we transition to a lower energy future, we'll need to be generating a lot more energy locally, using renewable sources, and using this energy more efficiently. As renewable energy sources tend to be intermittent, this means we need smarter grids and management of when and how we use energy in our homes and businesses.

Smart energy grids will be a critical part of a bright green future, making it possible to integrate a wide array of energy sources with varying production levels (from giant wind turbines to home solar to wave power arrays) along with sophisticated abilities to control levels of demand and consumption. Much of the discussion of smart grids has been somewhat theoretical, however, or focused on the back-end systems juggling the connections. What about the home components?