The Social Impact of Air Conditioning

Air conditioners are often thought of as just a machine that conditions and cools the air that surrounds us. However, the effects of air conditioners are far reaching, even beyond atmospherics. They have an effect on the way homes are built, what area of the country we live in and how our time is spent. It can be said that air conditioners enable the modern American life style.

Before the invention of air conditioning, in a former (and more likely less comfortable!) era, people used all kinds of strategies for staying cool in the heat. People’s homes were designed keeping airflow in the forefront, meaning that they had higher ceilings and more windows. Porches were also very popular back in the day, and that’s where the whole family spent hot days trying to cool off. There were even sleeping porches with beds so that people could survive the hottest summer nights. A lot of homes were designed with solar developed principles in mind, even though that’s not what they called them.

Introduction of AC into the American Homes

The introduction of air conditioners to our daily life means that it has shaped our family life along with our homes. Houses are now not designed with ventilation in mind; they are now designed for central cooling systems. Very few new homes are built with porches, and families don’t use them anymore, at least not as much as they used to. Now, families gather inside, in the comfort of rooms cooled by an air conditioner and watch television. One might wonder if television would’ve gained its central place in our families life if the rooms we watch it on were not comfortably cool.
Air conditioning has had a significant economic and social impact on modern life, as well as revolutionized society. The invention of air conditioning has influenced nearly every aspect of life. Apart from architecture, it has also changed entertainment and scientific advancements. It could be safe to say that, besides the invention of the computer, air conditioning can be considered the other most significant invention of the 20th century.
Computers give off a lot of heat, and overheating can kill a laptop or PC. Therefore, the computer industry would not have made such significant advancements if it were not for the invention of the air conditioner. When the computer was first invented, they were the size of rooms and gave off a fair amount of heat. If air conditioning wasn’t around to cool down the machines, it’s possible that the computing industry may have never existed.
There are a lot of good things to say about the progress that has been made possible due to air conditioners. Air conditioning allows us to be more productive, and that might even be better for the environment than heating. The air quality we receive from air conditioners means that our health is better, and air conditioners may even save our lives. In Europe, where air conditioners are not as common, a heat wave in 2003 killed more than 70,000 people. Naysayers of air conditioning point out that it has a great electrical and environmental cost, which is true if you see it as an indulgence rather than a necessity.

AC has changed our Lives

As we are becoming more environmentally conscious, it could be tempting to keep our air conditioners off. However, it’s wise to remember that air conditioners have not only cooled the air around us, they’ve also reshaped our habits, entertainment, and infrastructure. Therefore, turn it off if you want to, but the progress and changes have already been made.

The post The Social Impact of Air Conditioning appeared first on Trophy AC.

from Trophy AC http://trophy-ac.com/2017/04/14/the-social-impact-of-air-conditioning/
via http://trophy-ac.com
http://trophy-ac.blogspot.com/2017/04/the-social-impact-of-air-conditioning.html