Radiation Cookery Book
Back in March I wrote an article for Smithsonian magazine about pseudo-scientific terms that have gone out of fashion. For instance, it used to be all the rage to affix "electro-" to everything, as in "electro-lumps" (one marketers inspired term for coal).
A term I definitely could have included in my article is "radiation." Once upon a time it didn't have the negative connotations it does today. Witness the "Radiation Cookery Book" from 1934. It didn't actually use radiation for the cooking (except in so far as heat itself is a form of radiation). Instead "Radiation" was the name of the company that made the gas cooker for which the recipes were designed.
A term I definitely could have included in my article is "radiation." Once upon a time it didn't have the negative connotations it does today. Witness the "Radiation Cookery Book" from 1934. It didn't actually use radiation for the cooking (except in so far as heat itself is a form of radiation). Instead "Radiation" was the name of the company that made the gas cooker for which the recipes were designed.
Comments
Dante--an honor to have you onboard!
Posted by Paul on 07/17/08 at 09:49 AM
Never too late for good comments, caio!
The irony is that his faux-radiation health spa was doubtless healthier than if it had been the real deal.
The irony is that his faux-radiation health spa was doubtless healthier than if it had been the real deal.
Posted by Alex on 07/27/08 at 01:50 AM
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Category: Fads | Food | Cookbooks | Science | Weird Names