Life's Little Questions

A stroke of genius?

Bethia: you know what's really cool? The way the light in the fridge comes on when you open the door
Bethia: but it goes off when you close it
Bethia: that was a stroke of genious
Jason: LOL
Jason: yes, it was in fact.
Jason: but what if the mechanism breaks?
Bethia: OMG.
Jason: what if when you close the door it's not really turning the light off?
Jason: you wouldn't be able to tell.
Bethia: the world would end!
Jason: LOL yes!
Jason: everybody would just run out of energy.
Jason: due to the hidden lit fridge bulbs.
Bethia: do the lights in fridges have Trade Unions?

Think about it. I mean, really think about it.

Wasn't it just pure genius? Where would you be without it? You spill milk in the fridge. Oops! Can't clean it up, there's no light! Can't find the ham? Tough! There's no light. Something gone mouldy? Can't tell! No light!

Obviously the real question here is whether the light in the oven was invented before the fridge light, or the other way around. Whichever came first, it obviously paved the way for the other kitchen appliances. I mean, would microwaves really have 'caught on' if it hadn't been for the fact that you can see the food turning around inside? No light, no turning.

Without those lights, there would be chaos!

And now for the history (be careful, I researched this REALLY well!).

The refridgerator was invented in 1876, and the first light bulb... around that time. If you search for the date that the bulb was invented, you get a really stupid answer, but it was around that time. So I figure, if it was just being patented at that time, Carl Paul Gottfried von Linde wouldn't have had one in his garage or wherever he invented the fridge... That makes me feel that someone, once owning Their First Refridgerator thought "Oh my, wouldn't it be simply delightful to have a light in this fridge!"

Either that or the inventor of the light bulb thought, "aha! if I could make sure that every one of THOSE had one of THESE, I'd sell millions!" Which is unlikely, I think he'd be more worried about partying like it was 1999 after getting that patent, or whatever science geeks do to celebrate.

Based on this evidence, I think the inventor should be given a Nobel Prize. I thought about emailing them (I even wrote out the email) but then I found on the comments page:



FREE comments you say? FREE? Are there more expensive ones you can get? First Class opinions? Tut. I'm not writing to them, those fascist bastards!

... And then I got completely bored with the idea and gave up.

My (free and therefore unworthy) opinion still stands. If anyone else wants to tell them, please do so <3.

Labels: fridges, inventions, light bulbs, nobel prizes

posted by eriu @ 8:38:00 PM