Her recent book, titled Air Conditioning America, delves into the history of air conditioning and its evolution from 1900 to 1960, ending at the point when air conditioning finally gained mass acceptance. It may be hard to believe that the technology, originally thought of as artificial weather and created as an industrial tool to keep factories cool and dry, did not readily appeal to individual consumers for household use. Among the other issues the book addresses are the impact of air conditioning on architecture and building design and the technological evolution of the product, which included everything from perfumed systems to units that emitted simulated daylight. Put some snap back in your step If you are fed up with flip-flops or bored with your Birkenstocks, then an innovative sandal created by a group of Lehigh students might be just the thing to put some snap back into your step this summer. IPD, which stands for Integrated Product Development, challenges multi-disciplinary teams of juniors and seniors to design and build a product over the course of two semesters.
Teams typically consist of mechanical engineers, art and architecture students and business majors.
In developing the patented vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, which puts a new spin on the traditional helicopter, the Lehigh team has analyzed the potential success of the proposed toy from a technical, aesthetic and market perspective. Preliminary market feasibility studies indicate that the unique toy aircraft may be best positioned as a high-end adult toy like the items featured in the popular Sharper Image catalog. While most of us understand the economic benefits of tourism, it doesn t prevent our blood pressures from rising a point or too every time we are stuck in summertime traffic generated by vacationers. A study conducted by Lehigh professor of sociology and anthropology John Gatewood and his wife Catherine Cameron, an anthropology professor at Cedar Crest College in Allentown, PA, may soon help to shed some light on exactly why these well-intentioned tourists raise the ire of local residents. The researchers are analyzing the impact of annual festivals and other tourist attractions on the local community and how the culture of a particular place is impacted when officials look to tourism as an economic development tool.