Swiss Re Tower is a typical example of green architecture in
London, and what is most remarkable about this building is its
energy-efficiency. Thanks to its artful design and some fancy technology, it is
expected to consume up to 50% less energy than a comparable conventional office
building. Green architecture is changing the way building are designed, built
and run. Green architecture, a term which only came into use in
the 1990s, has its origins in the energy crisis of the 1970s, when architects
began to question the wisdom of building enclosed glass-and-steel boxes that
required massive heating and cooling systems. The
forward-looking architects began to explore designs that focused on the
long-term environmental impact of maintaining and operating a building. This
approach has since been formalized in a number of assessment and rating systems,
such as the BREEAM standard introduced in Britain in 1990, and the LEED standard
developed by the United States Green Building Council starting in
2000. Going green saves money by reducing long-term energy
costs; a survey of 99 green buildings in America found that on average, they use
30% less energy than comparably conventional buildings. Green
buildings can also have other benefits. The use of natural daylight in office
buildings, for example, as well as reducing energy costs, also seems to make
workers more productive. Lockheed Martin, an aerospace(航空宇宙) firm, found that
absenteeism(旷工) fell by 15% after it moved 2500 employees into a new green
building in Sunnyvale, California. Besides the benefit of saving money, green buildings can also bring______.