Such a mesmerizing animation, huh? Be sure to visit the demo page to study the code created by Mike Bostock.
This set of pages addresses one small section of a released APES FRQ about the reduction in gasoline consumption by a country IF a certain fraction of average MPG combustion engine cars are replaced with a certain capacity electric car.
Here is a resource to explore your options for current-year model EVS (pun-intended). Here is a resource to learn about hybrid and other types of efficient vehicles. There is increasing innovation, much to learn about and hopefully the options for consumers will increase with time.
However, the portion of the FRQ included in this webpage does not address the sticky question of whether driving an electric car is really more sustainable given the fuel and associated extraction and emissions burden required for the manufacture and charging of the car. Here are two data visualizations that help to explore the complexity of that conundrum:
Shrinkthatfootprint.com and The New York Times
When there is a reliable source of renewable, emission free electricity at home (less expensive solar panels) or via a nearby charging station — that will be the day! Tesla’s Powerwall is one big step in that direction.
March 14, 2016 UPDATE!
Here is a link to the newly formatted version of this activity using Angularjs.