In response to email messages and comments from visitors, PerotCharts.com has added a new section of energy charts to the website. With the price of oil climbing to record levels over the past year, it is important that Americans become more familiar with the issues surrounding the production and consumption of petroleum products. While developing and discovering alternative forms of energy should be one of our most important near term objectives, we cannot assume that some hoped-for, future breakthrough will provide a revolutionary new source of energy, particularly with respect to transportation. Whether or not we wish to acknowledge it, oil is critically important to our way of life and our economy.

To promote a better understanding of the situation in which the United States finds itself today, PerotCharts.com has developed an Energy I.Q. test to acquaint the public with some basic facts concerning the world's oil supply and its usage. We believe you will find the quiz to be enlightening.

Background Information for the test:
With the advent of oil supertankers, oil is no longer shipped in barrels. However, it remains the unit of measure in the petroleum industry. A barrel of oil contains 42 U.S. gallons. A barrel of oil is refined into approximately 25 gallons of gasoline, the remainder becoming other products such as jet fuel and heating oil. (Note: Although this test is presented in an interactive format, PerotCharts.com does not record the results or attempt in any way to determine the identity of the participant. Click the 'done' button at the bottom to check your results and to see the correct answers.)