Burning the Midnight Oil, But No One's There

Leaving PCs on overnight costs billions of dollars and millions of tons of carbon emissions

According to a new study, almost half of American workers who use a PC at work do not shut it off at night. The report, by the software company 1E and the Alliance to Save Energy, found that 108 million unused computers are left on all night long at a cost of $2.8 billion every year.

The result on the environment is also staggering: 20 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions -- the same impact as about 4 million cars.

The press release states that "worldwide PC shut-down for just one night would save enough energy to light New York City’s Empire State Building -- inside and out -- for more than 30 years." Something to think about next time you call it day.

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image credit: Karl Gunnarsson