Megawatt to Kilocalories (th)/minute

In the US, roughly 750–1,000 homes (average consumption ~1.2 kW per home). In Europe, where usage is lower, 1 MW can serve 1,500–2,000 homes. But this is average — on a hot summer afternoon when everyone cranks AC, that number can drop to 300–400 homes. Grid planners must size for peak demand, not averages, which is why installed capacity far exceeds average load.

A small data center uses 1–5 MW; a large hyperscale facility (Google, AWS, Microsoft) draws 50–200 MW — some exceeding 300 MW. The entire US data center industry consumed about 17 GW in 2023, roughly 4% of national electricity. AI training clusters are pushing demand higher: a single large GPU cluster can draw 50–100 MW, and planned AI-focused campuses target 1 GW or more.

Onshore turbines typically rate 2–6 MW; the latest offshore monsters reach 14–16 MW per turbine. Vestas' V236-15.0 MW turbine has a rotor diameter of 236 meters — wider than two football fields. A single sweep of its blades can generate enough electricity for a UK household for two days. Capacity factors run 25–45% onshore and 40–55% offshore, so actual average output is roughly half the nameplate rating.

Most operating reactors produce 500–1,400 MW of electrical power. The world's largest, at France's Gravelines plant, has six reactors totalling 5,460 MW. Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) being developed target 50–300 MW each. Nuclear plants run at 85–95% capacity factor — far higher than wind (~35%) or solar (~25%) — meaning a 1,000 MW reactor actually delivers about 900 MW on average.

MW tells you the maximum instantaneous power the battery can deliver (how fast it can discharge), while MWh tells you total stored energy (how long it can sustain that output). A 100 MW / 400 MWh battery can deliver 100 MW for 4 hours, or 50 MW for 8 hours. Grid operators care about both: MW for handling sudden demand spikes, MWh for sustained backup during extended outages or evening solar fade.

A MET (Metabolic Equivalent of Task) is the ratio of activity metabolic rate to resting metabolic rate. Sitting = 1 MET; walking = 3.5 METs; running = 8–12 METs. Researchers prefer METs because they normalize for body weight — a 50 kg woman and a 100 kg man both register 8 METs while running at the same pace, even though their raw kcal/min differ by 2×. This makes METs portable across populations. To get kcal/min from METs: multiply METs × body weight in kg × 0.0175. The Compendium of Physical Activities lists METs for over 800 activities, from accordion playing (1.8) to wrestling (6.0).

Cross-country skiing uphill can hit 15–20 kcal/min (1,050–1,400 W metabolic), making it one of the highest sustained metabolic rates in sport. Rowing and swimming at race pace reach 12–18 kcal/min. Cycling at elite level sustains 15–25 kcal/min. But the absolute champion is sprint running: Usain Bolt's 100m final produced roughly 80–100 kcal/min of metabolic power for 9.58 seconds. Of course, no one sustains that for long.

VO₂ max (maximum oxygen consumption) converts to kcal/min via the caloric equivalent of oxygen: 1 liter of O₂ consumed ≈ 5 kcal. An elite endurance athlete with VO₂ max of 80 mL/kg/min (70 kg person = 5.6 L/min) can sustain roughly 28 kcal/min at maximum effort. An untrained person at VO₂ max of 35 mL/kg/min maxes out around 12 kcal/min. This is why fit people can sustain higher power outputs — they literally process more oxygen.

Because their energy accounting is in kilocalories: food energy in kcal, basal metabolism in kcal/day, exercise expenditure in kcal/min. If a client eats 2,000 kcal and you want them to "burn 500 kcal," it's immediately useful to say "run at 10 kcal/min for 50 minutes." Saying "exercise at 700 W" is technically correct but meaningless to most clients. The kcal/min rate connects directly to the dietary energy balance equation.

Yes — EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption) is measured as elevated kcal/min above resting rate after exercise. After intense interval training, your metabolic rate might stay 0.2–0.5 kcal/min above baseline for 12–24 hours. That sounds tiny, but over 24 hours it adds up to 200–700 extra kcal — a meaningful amount. However, the fitness industry wildly oversells this: moderate exercise barely budges EPOC. You need truly brutal intensity to get a significant afterburn.