The History of Refrigeration
A Moment of Science

The History of Refrigeration

B2Upper-intermediateOctober 19, 20262 min
  • Documentary
  • History

The History of Refrigeration

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Sentence 4 of 12 · 0:15

when it's hot out.

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desert where water freezes overnight.

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B2 · Upper-intermediate

Comfortable if you already follow TV news

A1 17%A2 44%B1 33%B2 6%C1 0%
  • 94% of the words are B1 or easier.
  • 146 words a minute: a natural pace.
  • 6 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.

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0:00

Have you ever wondered how people got ice before they had refrigerators? For thousands of years, people have been finding creative ways to collect and store ice, even when it's hot out. You can harvest it off mountains where it's frozen at high altitudes, or even in the

0:20

desert where water freezes overnight. People would take this ice, pack it together as densely as possible to insulate it from the heat, then store it in ice houses, subterranean structures that kept it dark and cool. In ancient Persia, ice was stored in a yak chal, a large underground storage chamber

0:40

with a tall conical roof that allowed warm air to rise and escape out the top. Back then, year-round ice was a luxury consumed by the wealthy. It was mostly used to make desserts and ice drinks. It wasn't until the 19th century that ice became an industry.

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