L

ast week, heatwaves resulted in record-breaking temperatures across Europe. The United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands all experienced their highest temperatures since records began. Across the pond, the weather wasn't much better, with more than two-thirds of the United States being gripped by what the Washington Post described as a "potentially deadly heatwave."

With all that sweltering weather, it is worthwhile to take a moment and think about air-conditioning—the simple invention that provides us respite from the summer heat, enables humans to inhabit previously inhospitable places, increases our work productivity, and has saved millions of people from suffering heat-related deaths. It is used by hundreds of millions of people around the world and, thankfully, it is also becoming ever more affordable.