Kitchen Inventions - New Theme

Andi 0:01

You can't drink dinner.

Sups 0:04

and Um, exploded Yes. Oh, marketing terrible. Yeah. For this invention, she was inducted into the US National. Inventor's Hall of Fame in the two

Andi 0:23

That's a thing that exists.

Tanner 0:26

So then we're way off. Sure. But I don't think so.

Andi 0:30

Hello and welcome to this episode of the I Should Have Known podcast, the trivia podcast that can't be trusted. Each week, our Quizmaster presents you with four big facts in a topic, but one of those facts is a lie, and we are starting out new year new. which is new. And our first quizmaster is soups.

Sups 0:47

Hello

Andi 0:48

soups is going to be presenting us with a timeline episode on kitchen appliances and their invention. So he will present us with four inventions. In chronological order, except one of them is not in the right place. So join me, Andy, and our other host Tanner in trying to figure out which one of his inventions is out of time.

Sups 1:11

So I'm going to give you very interesting facts about appliances There's nothing that I've made up. What I'm not going to share, of course, is when they were invented, But before we get going, here's the low hanging fruit of the week.

Andi 1:26

Yay.

Sups 1:26

Which Famous Soft drink was invented in 1892?

Tanner 1:31

Um, Coca-Cola,

Andi 1:33

yeah. Okay. 1892.

Sups 1:37

Yes.

Andi 1:37

Okay. I'm very interested in hearing about these

Sups 1:40

hearing.

Andi 1:40

And figuring out the order

Tanner 1:41

Yeah.

Sups 1:42

right, so let's start with our first appliance. Appliance number. Dishwasher

Tanner 1:48

Mm

Andi 1:49

Ooh. The automatic dishwasher. Right, because in my house the dishwasher is

Tanner 1:53

is tin. Yeah, that's me.

Sups 1:56

the person we have to thank for modern day mechanical dishwasher is this lady called Josephine Co. Her machine was basically a wooden box that used water pressure to splash water on dirty dishes, For this invention, she was inducted into the US National. Inventor's Hall of Fame in the two

Andi 2:21

That's a thing that exists. Wow. That's a thing.

Sups 2:24

And she was like a rich socialite. of course, they used to host many dinners, right? and all her household stuff. Like after the dinners, they used to wash these born China, which they would chip. So she was in very happy. So she said, okay, I'm gonna start doing the dish. but then she realized that um, sucks. Yeah, that sucks. And she was also breaking them. Oh no. So she hired a mechanic and in the shed they started working on ideas. They finally developed it applied for patent called the Patent, and there is a quote, Where she says, if nobody else is going to invent. Mechanical dish washing machine. I will do it

Tanner 3:05

myself. she took it into her own

Andi 3:07

hand. Necessity is the mother of invention.

Sups 3:10

Correct. And so this version of dishwasher they became very popular with restaurants and hospitality industries in general. Mm-hmm. it became an essential for households much later And today more than 75% of American households have a dishwasher.

Andi 3:26

Yeah, I would believe that. out. I have not had a dishwasher since my parents' house growing up,

Tanner 3:31

but we both had them growing up.

Andi 3:33

Yeah. So well this is the first one, so this is chronologically the first one. Right? So but it's fairly recent, I would say within the last certainly 200 years. Yeah. How recent, right, I guess is the question. obviously for this game, it's all relative. but like, where would you put this

Tanner 3:49

after the 1860s, that's when I would guess,

Andi 3:52

Yeah. Right. I feel like it's in the similar time period.

Tanner 3:55

Mm-hmm. Maybe even the 19

Andi 3:58

the later 19th century.

Tanner 3:59

yeah.

Andi 4:00

Coca-Cola baby. but I do think it's probably older than you think. I used to have to wash a lot of dishes as a child. That was like my chore in the house and I hated it. Which, so now I refuse to do them. So Tanner doesn't move in our, house.

Tanner 4:13

yes. I don't mind it so much.

Sups 4:14

It's not my favorite kitchen activity. I'm happy to cook.

Tanner 4:17

Mm-hmm.

Andi 4:18

That's maybe the trade off. Yeah. I

Sups 4:20

Okay.

Tanner 4:21

But if I had to hand crank a dish washing

Andi 4:24

is that easier than just washing of my hand?

Tanner 4:27

It doesn't sound that much easier. I guess

Andi 4:29

Well, but the game is they're all relative to each other, so we can't even start really playing the game until we hear a Second. invention.

Sups 4:36

Okay. appliance number two. the blender.

Andi 4:40

I do not have abl. Oh, I, we do have a blend, don't We

Tanner 4:43

do have a blender. We just don't use it like

Andi 4:44

I don't using.

Sups 4:45

okay.

Andi 4:45

I do not get the appeal of smoothie. Smoothies are fake dinner and I don't like, You can't drink dinner. That's just not healthy and I don't get the appeal of that at all.

Sups 4:57

Okay? so in solar shops, powdered malt became an alternative to regular. So powdered malt is malted, B plus wheat flour with evaporated milk powder Mm-hmm.

Tanner 5:09

Mm-hmm.

Sups 5:10

in these years, ice cream was also growing in popularity. and people were looking for ideas to turn malt into something more delicious to enjoy during the. issue is, when malt gets colder, it becomes like a weird paste.

Andi 5:27

Mm-hmm. I hate it.

Sups 5:30

Stephen Poplawski. He was born in Warsaw, Poland, but immigrated to Racine in Wisconsin with his family when he was nine. Yes. So he solved this by wiring spinning blades to an electric. And attach the blades to a glass container. And the first electric lender was born. His design Resulted in the rise of

Tanner 5:55

milkshakes Yes,

Andi 5:56

Okay. So I definitely feel decently confident that we have moved forward in

Tanner 6:01

time.

Andi 6:02

Yeah. I think we're firmly in the 20th century

Tanner 6:05

Yeah. Malted, milkshakes and soda shops.

Andi 6:09

Yeah.

Tanner 6:09

This has gotta be the

Andi 6:11

1950s, It has a very fifties feel, but I think it's probably a bit older than that. I think a lot of times we take for granted how easily we can get cold things nowadays, there still are a lot of old style soda shops in Wisconsin where you can go and get malted milkshakes and the traditional style. Yeah. Like you used to do back in the day, they still exist cuz dairy is such an important part of the economy. the real issue is the time. When,

Tanner 6:36

It's such a simple concept, you know, spinning blades.

Andi 6:40

I mean you can obviously do it by hand Sure. But like not having to, it's pretty major invention.

Tanner 6:46

It's gotta be after the dishwasher.

Andi 6:48

Yeah. Right. that makes sense. but the dishwasher is very hard to pin

Tanner 6:52

down. yes. I think we have to keep moving forward in

Andi 6:55

Yeah. I have to hear more inventions

Sups 6:57

All right. appliance number three, the microwave.

Tanner 7:00

Mm.

Andi 7:01

Oh, I do now have a microwave. I've lived many years without a

Tanner 7:04

microwave

Sups 7:05

Okay.

Andi 7:06

I lived in East Asia.

Sups 7:07

Yes. Microwaves are not an Asian thing, but more than 90% of US households own a microwave. The patent was granted to Percy Spencer. he was testing a new vacuum tube for defense company called Raytheon and he suddenly realized that a chocolate bar in his pocket melted because of the heat. he decided to try another experiment. He placed some popcorn kernels near his vacuum tube and watched the kernels pop into popcorn He placed an egg, and the egg began to move and exploded Yes. Oh, And let's say the first microwave was born. Of course, as with most kitchen appliances, initially, they were all used by the restaurants and the industries. The first microwave and a half feet tall and weighed over 340 kgs. 750 pounds.

Andi 8:07

Oh my God. you could fit in there.

Sups 8:09

there. Yeah. They also carried a hefty $5,000 price tag. and only used in fancy restaurants that could afford one.

Andi 8:18

That's very funny. Yeah. Yeah. Right. Can you imagine?

Tanner 8:23

Yeah. I

Andi 8:23

like I've heard this story before. Yeah. Something like this with the chocolate bar. but obviously that's not suspect anyway.

Tanner 8:29

Right. So the

Andi 8:30

story, so The timing, does that

Tanner 8:31

that give you a range of time then?

Andi 8:33

I kind of think it does. Like we're talking about US significant spending on defense mm-hmm. and that, puts me right in the World War ii.

Tanner 8:40

Mm-hmm. that's

Andi 8:41

I would assume

Tanner 8:42

Testing radar and

Andi 8:44

yeah. Yeah. Yeah. it's kinda like computers. where like, they're much, much older than you think because what you're thinking of the personal style computer is, much newer Exactly. Than the old originals. So I have a feeling the microwave is probably similar, where it's much older than you think,

Tanner 9:00

right. Yeah. Something like that.

Andi 9:01

Yeah.

Tanner 9:01

The five and a half foot tall, $5,000 one is older. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Andi 9:05

And it also really fits with the vibe of the fifties and sixties in the US like worrying about radiation and all this,

Tanner 9:12

Yeah. Right. And then TV, dinners and all of that comes, From microwaves. Yeah. It's funny that he goes to popcorn cuz that's the first thing I think of when I think of microwaves now. Yeah. But if I didn't know what a microwave was, I don't know if I would grab popcorn kernels first, you

Andi 9:28

Or second. Yeah. Yeah. Honestly, I think a lot of Americans don't even know that you can pop popcorn any other

Tanner 9:33

way.

Sups 9:33

yeah. It

Tanner 9:34

It seems

Andi 9:34

you must use a microwave to pop popcorn.

Sups 9:36

you can Use a pressure cooker, like Yeah. Like how do you do in India where microwave is not a

Andi 9:43

Right. Design pressure cooker.

Tanner 9:46

But how long have people been using

Andi 9:48

Yeah. we're looking in the World War II era, so 1930s, forties. think that's where we are.

Tanner 9:54

Right. Which would put it before the blender if we're thinking the fifties for that.

Andi 9:59

Yeah. It depends on where we're putting the blender.

Tanner 10:01

That's iffy.

Andi 10:02

Yeah. So I'll wait to hear number four. to

Sups 10:04

All right. So appliance number four is garbage disposal.

Andi 10:09

Ooh, interesting. I've never had one. but I do know what they are. Okay. Yeah.

Sups 10:15

let's go back to Racine in Wisconsin. I

Andi 10:18

in Racine so much. It's

Sups 10:19

weird. Wisconsin is apparently really famous for kitchen appliance inventions.

Andi 10:24

Yeah,

Sups 10:25

so our inventor is John w Hams, now. His wife is tired of all the cleaning she needs to do in the kitchen. A good husband, John is determined to find a solution to make cleaning up easier Instead of just

Andi 10:42

helping I was, yeah, I was just about to say, I was like,

Sups 10:44

Cause you could just

Andi 10:46

just help with the clean.

Tanner 10:47

Yeah.

Andi 10:48

Oh, okay. Yeah.

Sups 10:48

so he then started figuring things out in his kitchen, making different designs, he came up with the first unit filed for patent, then was granted a patent after a couple of years around the same. general Electric also had a version of garbage disposal and file for a patent. So depending who you ask, who's the first inventor? It might be this guy or General Electric, but the timings are more or less the same. Okay. John named his invention as incinerator.

Tanner 11:22

awful.

Sups 11:23

The machine invented by General Electric was called Disposal. marketing terrible. Yeah. It took a while before it caught on with the public. from the last available data. More than 50% of US homes have a garbage disposal as compared to only 6% in the uk.

Andi 11:43

Yeah. I mean even like we said that I, I never had one growing up.

Tanner 11:46

We don't really have it so much in the Midwest, at least

Andi 11:48

no small And also like in a rural area, it wouldn't be super necessary because you can very easily just compost by throwing a pile outside.

Tanner 11:56

we have more space.

Andi 11:57

Yeah. I've never understood the purpose of a garbage disposal. W why, But then I guess, so now we have to talk about the time

Tanner 12:03

period. Right.

Andi 12:04

And this one does feel more firmly later,

Tanner 12:08

right? There's GE is involved, And

Andi 12:10

the whole housewife trope.

Tanner 12:12

Yeah. They're definitely using other appliances already. It's not like the first blender. This very,

Andi 12:17

yeah. much later. So it does feel later. But I don't have as much experience mm-hmm. so I don't have as much context with a garbage disposal. Mm-hmm. So it could be like way older. Yeah.

Tanner 12:27

But mechanically, it kind of sounds like a blender plus a dishwasher like the water and the blades together makes it a garbage disposal. So I'm thinking it has to be after fax one and two.

Andi 12:37

Oh, interesting. That's your way of

Tanner 12:39

mechanically. Yeah.

Andi 12:41

Hmm. Well, soups can you repeat the four inventions in your order and Tanner and I will try to guess which one is not in the right

Sups 12:49

I Okay, so appliance number one, dishwasher. Appliance number two, lender. Appliance number three, microwave and appliance number four, garbage disposal.

Andi 13:12

All right.

Tanner 13:12

that order sounds pretty good to me.

Sups 13:14

me.

Andi 13:14

Yeah, I know that sounds really good. Exactly. Yeah, I also wanted to say that in my house, Tanner is all of those things. of

Tanner 13:21

things.

Sups 13:22

to blend

Tanner 13:23

this. Okay.

Andi 13:25

Okay.

Tanner 13:26

Anyway, Hmm. So I have an idea of when the microwave is.

Andi 13:30

Yeah. That one I feel like is the most narrowly pinned

Tanner 13:35

Right. Kind of anchors that one there. Yeah. So then we're way off. Sure. But I don't think so. I think it solidly goes one, two, but then maybe the garbage disposal is before the microwave.

Andi 13:47

I feel like, my guess is that the garbage disposal is probably older. Okay. It's probably not the last one. Okay. there have been industrial usages for it that are way older than the household one. So he told us the story of the household garbage disposal, but there's actually have been industrial versions because the other three had industrial versions Yeah. That we talked about. maybe, you told it so well that I don't have a good sense of where the lie could be other than Maybe the dishwasher and the blender are switched, but I think they're all gonna be really close to one another. Yeah. And so I think the garbage disposal that one's in the wrong place. I would put the order. 1, 2, 4,

Tanner 14:26

Mm-hmm. I think. microwave is solidly in like the 1940s to fifties. And think the blender is also around that time, so I'm gonna say it's also the garbage disposal, but a different

Sups 14:39

Okay. Okay.

Tanner 14:40

I say it's 1 4 23.

Andi 14:42

Mm-hmm. ,or it could be 4 1 23. Oh, no,

Sups 14:46

Wow. one of you is correct.

Andi 14:48

Oh,

Sups 14:50

All right. So appliance number one. Dishwasher invented in 1850.

Andi 14:55

Okay. See? Much older than we thought though. Mm-hmm. That was even pre-civil war.

Tanner 15:00

Yeah. Wow.

Andi 15:01

Antebellum The

Sups 15:03

appliance number. Blender

Andi 15:05

Okay. invented

Sups 15:06

in 1922.

Andi 15:08

Ooh, Wow.

Sups 15:10

appliance number three. Garbage disposal.

Tanner 15:14

Ah-huh.

Sups 15:15

in 1927.

Andi 15:17

Oh, see, it's very close.

Tanner 15:19

They used that blender,

Andi 15:21

Yeah, .Yeah. Right, exactly. And both Wisconsin. Exactly. Well, yeah, we didn't point that out, but like if they're both from Racine, it's

Sups 15:27

Is

Andi 15:28

probably not unlikely that they knew

Tanner 15:30

each other

Andi 15:30

and knew about each other's technology and used

Sups 15:32

it. Exactly. John Yeah. talking each other, I

Tanner 15:35

got this thing.

Andi 15:36

Yeah.

Sups 15:36

And appliance number four. Microwave 1945.

Andi 15:40

See? World War ii. World

Tanner 15:42

War

Sups 15:43

ii. Correct. Wow.

Andi 15:44

they were very close to one another. It was tricky. Tricky. so. you said about the garbage disposal was true. That wasn't like an earlier. Okay.

Sups 15:51

yeah,

Andi 15:51

was just much earlier than we thought. it didn't pick up really until like Later. in the 20th century. Like the other ones, Stan, I mean it makes sense like cuz we're talking about kitchen appliances and we talk about in the US the 1950s You have this concept of housewife gets like this new idea and all these appliances and stuff. So I think we associate all of these appliances with that era, but they had to

Sups 16:14

come

Tanner 16:15

zone. Yeah, exactly sense.

Andi 16:17

it's fun to talk about with something that like, you use it every day if you have one and you don't really think about it. But yeah, I should have known.

Tanner 16:22

I should have known.

Andi 16:24

Thanks for listening to this episode of the I Should Have Known podcast. We'll be continuing with our new year new theme. So be on the lookout for that for the rest of January, and as always, thanks for listening. End of podcast. Bye. Thanks for coming folks.