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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Albert Einstein Invented A Kitchen Appliance. Here's Why It No Longer Exists
Modern-day refrigeration fixes usually take the form of Dollar Tree organization hacks or in-fridge thermometers that prevent food waste, but what if this common appliance was also a known lethal threat? The 1920s were the early days of refrigeration, one of the most important inventions in food and drink, but early versions of these appliances compressed toxic and flammable gases to cool the air inside. Refrigerator gas leaks, fires, and even explosions were major problems that German scientist Albert Einstein and his Hungarian colleague, Leo Szilard, sought to solve with their own invention. In 1926, they created a unique pump system meant to replace the faulty valves responsible for refrigerators' poisonous gas leaks. Instead of relying on moving parts that were prone to malfunction, Einstein and Szilard's pump compressed refrigerant gases using an electromagnetic field. Additionally, it didn't require electricity to function — only a heat source. The pair had a U.S. patent pending by 1927. The following decade, however, was shaped by significant turmoil. Economic disaster rocked the world, and the rise of fascism threatened the Jewish inventors' very lives. But it wasn't just world-moving forces of history that derailed the so-called Einstein fridge. Market forces were also at play: Someone else invented something better. Read more: 14 Condiments That Don't Need To Be Refrigerated Depression, Prejudice, And Competition Albert Einstein and Leo Szilard successfully sold their pending patent to the Swedish company Electrolux in 1927, but two years later the Great Depression crushed economies all over the world. With businesses, governments, and consumers all feeling the pressure, the pair's pump design didn't see much enthusiasm. The early 1930s were especially hard on the inventors' home country of Germany, which already faced significant economic difficulty throughout the 1920s. The Great Depression helped accelerate the rise of the Nazis who, driven by a violent hatred of Judaism, scapegoated Jewish people for the country's woes. Rising antisemitic violence and discrimination made Germany unsafe for men like Einstein and Szilard, both of whom fled continental Europe by 1933. Technology, however, had already advanced beyond their pump design. The American company General Motors invested in Thomas Midgely, who in 1928 invented Freon, a brand name for several chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) which were a safer alternative to poisonous and explosive gases. They were also more efficient than the electromagnetic pump. By the time Einstein moved to America in 1933 and Szilard followed five years later, Freon was already making refrigerators a standard kitchen appliance as the U.S. economy slowly recovered. What Happened To The Einstein Refrigerator? Their refrigeration dreams dashed, Albert Einstein and Leo Szilard moved on to other projects, including the frontiers of nuclear energy. This resulted in their 1939 letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, warning him that Nazi Germany was likely to invent a nuclear weapon. Roosevelt took action, and what historians know as the Einstein-Szilard letter led to the Manhattan Project, the atomic bombing of Japan, and the post-war age of nuclear weapons. In the world of refrigeration, the popular Freon formula known as R22 eventually became known as a major culprit of ozone layer depletion. Its gradual phase-out in favor of less harmful gases, including some that still go by the brand name Freon, is nearly complete. The decline of the original Freon, however, did not mean the rise of the Einstein fridge. Its electricity-free design briefly showed promise for delivering refrigeration to areas without reliable power, but this revival has not yet come to fruition. The Einstein refrigerator mostly remains a historical footnote, like the lifelong digestive issues that briefly made Einstein a vegetarian before his death. Hungry for more? Sign up for the free Daily Meal newsletter for delicious recipes, cooking tips, kitchen hacks, and more, delivered straight to your inbox. Read the original article on The Daily Meal. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
NASA's Perseverance rover captures image on Mars that resembles a helmet
NASA's Perseverance rover has added to its trove of curious finds, as the space agency published a photo of a rock on the surface of Mars that looks like a centuries-old helmet. The rock has a pointed peak, a flared "brim," and textures that could lead reasonable observers to compare it to a witch's hat or a tent. The texture is formed by spherules on the rock. Similar formations found on Earth are created through chemical weathering, mineral precipitation or volcanic processes, according to The image, taken Aug. 5 by the rover's Left Mastcam-Z camera, was chosen as the photo of the week for week 234 of its mission on Mars. "This rock's target name is Horneflya and it's distinctive less because of its hat shape (which looks to me to be generally consistent with the pyramid shape we often see in of wind-eroded float blocks on the surface of Mars) and more because it's made almost entirely of spherules," David Agle, a spokesperson for the Perseverance team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told the space news outlet. It is not the first time the rover has found a spherule-covered rock, having sent back a photo of a studded rock in March. Camera key to Mars discoveries The Left Mastcam-Z camera on the Perseverance can capture panoramic color and 3D images of the planet's surface, according to NASA, allowing scientists and observers to see Martian features more clearly. The rover is searching for signs of ancient microbial life as a part of a larger undertaking to understand the habitability of Mars. The helmet rock provides scientist a clue on what Mar's environmental history, according to Perseverance was sent to survey Jezero Crater to study the "wet history" of the Red Planet. The rover completed the climb to the summit of the crater in December 2024, three years after landing. "Conceivably, microbial life could have lived in Jezero during one or more of these wet times," NASA says on the home page for the mission. "If so, signs of their remains might be found in lakebed or shoreline sediments." Perseverance's research is intended to pave the way for humans to reach Mars in the years ahead under NASA's Artemis program, which will begin with astronauts returning to the moon to establish a base of operations. SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk has also expressed his vision of launching uncrewed trips to the Red Planet before humans reach it ‒ perhaps as early as 2028. Contributing: Eric Lagatta – USA TODAY This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NASA's Perseverance rover makes another strange finding: See photo
Digital Trends
2 hours ago
- Digital Trends
Enjoy a freaky flight through multiple modules on the ISS
Microgravity aboard the International Space Station (ISS) makes life there dramatically different to how it is back on terra firma. Astronauts secure themselves with straps when they sleep, use a special suction cup when using the bathroom, and float from module to module rather than walk. Indeed, NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick has just shared a video that he made of himself drifting through several modules, captured by a camera that floated hands-free just in front of him. This took a few takes to capture . . . Initially held onto the camera mounting bracket and pushed off (you can hear the bracket clinking). Then carefully let it go so the camera floats with you through space station. Flew from the aft end of the lab to the forward end of Node 2. — Matthew Dominick (@dominickmatthew) August 12, 2025 Dominick, who recorded the footage during his stay aboard the orbital outpost last year, said the footage 'took a few takes to capture.' Recommended Videos The NASA astronaut explained that he started by pushing the camera out just in front of him. He can be seen making one adjustment to the camera in the first few seconds to steady it as it starts to spin. 'Initially held onto the camera mounting bracket and pushed off (you can hear the bracket clinking),' Dominick wrote in a post on X that included the video. 'Then carefully let it go so the camera floats with you through space station.' Dominick said he flew from the aft end of 'the lab' to the forward end of Node 2, also known as the Harmony module. By 'the lab,' we think he means the Destiny module. That means he flew a total distance of about 50 feet (about 15 meters) in around 20 seconds — covering the entire distance without banging his head of getting snagged on wires. Dominick's video offers a rare perspective of what daily life and movement look like inside the space station, highlighting the unique conditions that astronauts live and work in. During his time aboard the ISS, Dominick earned a reputation for his photography skills, sharing a range of impressive photos and videos showing both the inside and outside of the orbital facility.
