The far-reaching effects of air conditioning

Post by bryanrasmussen » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 9:35 AM UTC

_pmf_ wrote: post #44

TomK32 wrote: post #43

Why did no one mention the Romans yet? They came up with the frigidarium where you could literally cool down with your friends and some private houses even had water running inside their walls to cool it down (or hot air in the colder months). Temperature control in buildings is 100% architecture and technical add-ons like AC are a poor choice. Look at termites how they use architecture to cool their hives.

> Temperature control in buildings is 100% architecture and technical add-ons like AC are a poor choice. Look at termites how they use architecture to cool their hives. Clay for the win. Even using a very thin clay based upper layer does incredible things to the room climate.

Post by 6nf » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 9:42 AM UTC

hueving wrote: post #66

pavlov wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Japan is further ahead, as they have optimized this with a decade-old policy called "Cool Biz". To save energy and money by reducing AC, office workers are allowed to wear more casual clothing in the summer: https://qz.com/465327/ditch-the-tie-and-reduce-the-ac-japans...

Japan isn't really ahead of Singapore in this regard due to its position much further north. The heat in Singapore is unbearable inside a building without a/c during the day. Putting on a casual shirt will hardly help in that situation.

Post by tszymczyszyn » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 9:47 AM UTC

superasn wrote: post #31

Throughout the article I was waiting for the "But.." As in some how it also deteriorated the global weather, caused some unknown sort of pollution, etc. It was good to see that Air conditioning has only improved the world and has no side-effects.

Post by [deleted] » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 10:02 AM UTC

slackingoff2017 wrote: post #79

eBombzor wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Decreasing the AC doesn't mean people will start sweating themselves. 75 - 78 F is perfect but most buildings for some reason turn their ACs all the way down to the 60s. For athletic centers, of course it makes sense. But in big open libraries, lecture halls, places with little activity in general, it's awful. It's especially bad for your health if you live in a hot region like southern California since your body has…

It depends on the climate. I used to live up north and we kept our houses and buildings around 68-71. I live in a hot climate now and it's normal to keep inside temps 75-78. In both places inside temps feel normal. The body seems to adjust it's idea of a comfortable temperature after acclimating to a new climate. When I first moved down south I kept my thermostat at 70 but it felt too cold after a few months. My most…

Post by ZeroGravitas » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 10:04 AM UTC

eBombzor wrote: post #25

pitaj wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Better have it too cold and people where extra clothing than have people sweating themselves. You can always put more clothes on, you can't take off your skin.

Decreasing the AC doesn't mean people will start sweating themselves. 75 - 78 F is perfect but most buildings for some reason turn their ACs all the way down to the 60s. For athletic centers, of course it makes sense. But in big open libraries, lecture halls, places with little activity in general, it's awful. It's especially bad for your health if you live in a hot region like southern California since your body has…