It is easy to take air conditioning for granted when we live our lives
in the constant cool air it provides. However, it is good to remind ourselves
that people haven’t always been so lucky to be cooled down by cool
indoor air. If the history of air conditioning interests you, you should
consider reading Salvatore Basile’s book titled “
Cool: How Air Conditioning Changed Everything.” Basile’s book shares some interesting facts about how we
came to be cooled down by ice, fans, blowers, etc. For example, did you
know that an ice making machine was patented as early as 1851? Unfortunately,
this phenomenon did not catch on due to a network existing that stored
and transported lake ice from cold climate regions. Interestingly enough,
in 1940 an AC window unit retailed for $350. Today, that would be around $3,500!
