Air-conditioning America: Engineers and the Controlled Environment, 1900-1960 (Johns Hopkins Studies in the History of Technology) [Hardcover]

Professor Gail Cooper (Author)

Book Description

Series: Johns Hopkins Studies in the History of Technology | Publication Date: April 3, 1998

In this groundbreaking study, Gail Cooper shows that, from the outset, air conditioning has been the focus of conflict and controversy--well predating today's concerns about fluorocarbons and global warming. While a technical elite of designers, inventors, and corporate pioneers made a comprehensive plans for the new technology, their ideas were challenged by workers, consumers, government regulators, business competitors, and rival professionals.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Americans now spend most of their summertime in air-conditioned buildings or cars. In Air-Conditioning America, historian Gail Cooper shows that this is not necessarily an inevitable consequence of technological progress. Although we think of it as a form of cooling, its name shows that air-conditioning was first aimed at "it isn't the heat, it's the humidity" problems. From its first use in cloth or gunpowder factories to the annual summer brownouts, the progress of a.c. has been a struggle between social groups and what Edward Tenner calls "the revenge of unintended consequences" in Why Things Bite Back. Rational, technocratic engineers have sought perfect artificial weather; managers and builders have wanted low construction costs; electric companies need income during the summer months; and the people who actually use the equipment have their own definitions of comfort that might not be a uniform room temperature of 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Cooper's style is medium-academic and may not be for everyone, but her book is full of insight into the forces shaping the way Americans live and use their technology. --Mary Ellen Curtin

Review

"It sounds like a technical history, and indeed it is, but along the way Cooper shows how ideology, social relations, and economics affect the technology, and how it affects them. In this way, we can learn much from such books -- 'cultural studies' seeming so much livelier when borne up by material culture than by the unsteady scaffold of abstract theory." -- Giles Foden, Times Literary Supplement

"Gail Cooper's study is a welcome addition to the history of technology and urban history. Its strength lies in mapping out fundamental engineering and marketing issues about a technology that has had a profound impact on the very nature of inside environments." -- Martin V. Melosi, American Historical Review

"A groundbreaking study in the early business development of a technology that many Americans now take for granted." -- APT Bulletin

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: The Johns Hopkins University Press (April 3, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801857163
• ISBN-13: 978-0801857164
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,339,234 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great writing and fresh view on the personal environment, October 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Air-conditioning America: Engineers and the Controlled Environment, 1900-1960 (Johns Hopkins Studies in the History of Technology) (Hardcover)

Ms Cooper has a great writing style which lends itself perfectly to the understanding of the uninitiated and untechnical layman of this topic. The unexpectedly fresh view into how to see the spaces in which we live made this book a special page-turner which can amuse and delight almost anybody. I highly recommend this book to those who onlt see the spaces we live and work in as shells and the unseen workings of the air-conditioning systems as only on or off.

5.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting look at a little known topic, November 16, 2008

By 

Lehigh History Student (Bethlehem, PA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Air-Conditioning America: Engineers and the Controlled Environment, 1900-1960 (Johns Hopkins Studies in the History of Technology) (Paperback)

Gail Coopers classical work on the history of air condition and why the United States choose to partake is a fascinating venture. The book looks at the not only the technology and companies involved in developing air condition but the battle between the pure air activists and man made climate control. The idea of the battle over humidity as opposed to air quality and the idea of air conditioning and heating as one and the same is an interesting historical perspective not seen today. The eventual victory of air conditioning in America came not through industry but through home builders making it a necessity rather than a luxury. The evolution of all these ideas is covered clearly and concisely for readers who are not well versed in technology. If want to read about a little know topic this is a great place to start.