New ask Hacker News story: Ask HN: How did free people in USA thrive in high heat before air-conditioning?
Ask HN: How did free people in USA thrive in high heat before air-conditioning?
3 by reactspa | 6 comments on Hacker News.
I live in Mid-West USA. It's been hitting 95°F the past few days. I experimented with trying to go without air-conditioning. Couldn't do it. Couldn't work on my computer despite being indoors and having a fan on my desk. Had terrible sleep (despite having a powerful ceiling fan). Air-conditioning is not even a hundred years old and was originally not even invented to keep people cool (it was invented to keep machines from overheating). How did free people stay thriving and productive during summer in places like Florida, and certain other parts of America where there's not only extreme heat but also extreme humidity? Is it a case of: - temps have gotten hotter more recently? - if I had continued my experiment, I would have eventually gotten used to the heat and learned to thrive in it? When it gets extremely hot around here, I think a lot about the Bedouin with all their layers of clothes in unimaginable heat. I also think about photos of Americans from around a hundred years ago when all men seemed to be dressed in suits and a hat. Such a mystery to me. (And yes, I realize the Bedouin wear all those layers to protect themselves from hot wind. But still, it must feel like an oven in there.)
3 by reactspa | 6 comments on Hacker News.
I live in Mid-West USA. It's been hitting 95°F the past few days. I experimented with trying to go without air-conditioning. Couldn't do it. Couldn't work on my computer despite being indoors and having a fan on my desk. Had terrible sleep (despite having a powerful ceiling fan). Air-conditioning is not even a hundred years old and was originally not even invented to keep people cool (it was invented to keep machines from overheating). How did free people stay thriving and productive during summer in places like Florida, and certain other parts of America where there's not only extreme heat but also extreme humidity? Is it a case of: - temps have gotten hotter more recently? - if I had continued my experiment, I would have eventually gotten used to the heat and learned to thrive in it? When it gets extremely hot around here, I think a lot about the Bedouin with all their layers of clothes in unimaginable heat. I also think about photos of Americans from around a hundred years ago when all men seemed to be dressed in suits and a hat. Such a mystery to me. (And yes, I realize the Bedouin wear all those layers to protect themselves from hot wind. But still, it must feel like an oven in there.)
Comments
Post a Comment