I hadn't known that Einstein had invented a novel type of fridge in 1930, together with Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard. I was even more intrigued to read that engineers at Oxford are reviving their elegant design, because it has no moving parts and is ideal to run on solar power.
The physics fridge uses ammonia, butane and water, rather than freons, and exploits the fact that liquids boil at lower temperatures when the air pressure around them is lower.
The green Oxford physics fridge would be low maintenance and ideal for rural locations, but it's still at the prototype stage.
The news reminded me of another kitchen appliance invented by yet another Nobel physicist: the Aga cooker was the brainchild of Swedish physicist and inventor Gustaf Dalén in the early 1900s.
He set out to make an energy-efficient, multi-purpose cooker that could be used for baking, boiling, grilling and warming, and that would need little watching or attention. Aga, by the way, stands for Aktiebolaget Gas Accumulator
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