NewsTracker Answers for week of Mar. 28, 2011

Q: In the wake of Japan's nuclear crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended temporarily closing nation's oldest reactors and said her goal was "to reach the age of renewable energy as soon as possible." Where is Germany?

Circle the area on this map


Q: Both Germany and Japan get more than a quarter of their electricity from nuclear reactors. Which of these nations get most of its electricity from nuclear plants?

A. France

B. Belgium

C. Sweden

D. All of the above


D. France has the highest percentage of nuclear power use with 78 percent of its electricity coming from reactors. Belgium and Sweden get more than half their electricity from nuclear plants.


Q: Which nation produces the most nuclear power?

A. France

B. Russia

C. China

D. United States


D. The United States produces almost twice as much nuclear power than second-place France. But, only about 20 percent of all U.S. electricity comes from nuclear reactors.


Q: German officials say the country could derive all of its electricity from renewable energy sources by . . .

A. 2035

B. 2050

C. 2100

D. Never


B. "It's a very realistic target based on technology that already exists - it's not a pie-in-the-sky prediction," said Jochen Flasbarth, president of the Federal Environment Agency. Germany now gets 16 percent of of its electricity from wind, solar and other renewable sources.


Q: Energy powers Germany's economy which produces the world's third largest trade surplus. Which nation has the biggest trade deficit?

A. China

B. Russia

C. United States

D. Zimbabwe


C. With the world's largest economy, the U.S. has the largest current account deficit - $561 billion. Germany has a positive account balance of $162.3 billion. China, the world's second largest economy, has the largest trade surplus - $272.5 billion.