Solar Decathlon Building Science Education - Module 1: Buildings and Energy

The Solar Decathlon Building Science Education series is designed to educate students and working professionals on building science principles that are paramount to the successful design of high-performance, energy-efficient buildings. Instructional content is presented in modules, covering specific topics. Altogether, this series aims to educate viewers on: 1) Where/how energy is used in buildings; 2) How to define zero energy buildings; 3) How to apply the fundamentals of thermodynamics to building envelope design; 4) How to explain the science of how/why buildings use energy; and 5) How to apply this knowledge to design comfortable energy efficient buildings. Students and working professionals can use this educational information at no cost to complement academic curriculum and continuing education activities. This is Module 1 which focuses on fundamental physics of power and energy are described, and we discuss how and where buildings use energy.