From the outside, the upscale look of this suburban Maryland home is typical for the Washington, D.C., area. But the inside reveals something very different. The virtual “family” inside the house is made up of state-of-the-art sensors, and the house aims to achieve net zero annual energy consumption.

Built by the U.S. government, the $2.5 million Net Zero Residential Test Facility is really an elaborate laboratory, reports Reuters. The house, which was unveiled last week, sits on the grounds of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

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The “Nisters,” an imaginary family including two working parents, and children ages 8 and 14, are controlled by researchers camped out in a