The Accidental Inventions That We’re All Grateful For

Every summer, as temperatures climb into the triple digits, we all tell each other the same thing: “Could you imagine living back before they invented air conditioning?” We all owe an immense debt to Willis Carrier, the man who developed what is considered the first air conditioner. But he wasn’t trying to keep people comfortable with his invention.

Instead, it was a printing company in Brooklyn in 1902 that asked him for help keeping their printing equipment cool and dry, as the hot, humid weather was causing a lot of problems with their paper. The solution Willis came up with ended up having the effect of keeping the whole room cool, and now we are grateful for him every summer.