Strange connections

So the country teeters on the brink of what, exactly?  In the meantime ordinary Americans get up, go to work and pay their bills more or less on time.  As someone in this house likes to say, we get what we vote for in Washington. Well, the sneaky low politics of  gerrymandering tips the scales. People should be outraged! (OK, I'm jumping off the soapbox now.)

Here's an interesting connection and a story from MOHAI that makes you proud of American smarts and ingenuity.  What does soft ice cream and kidney dialysis have in common?  It turns out, plenty.

The self-educated inventor of the milk shake machine at Sweden Freezer Company went on to partner with the University of Washington to develop and manufacture the portable kidney dialysis machine. In the 1960's, they discovered the requirements for both machines are remarkably similar, namely sanitary metal components and the ability to freeze liquids precisely.  For the complete story, a click on this link should take you to our latest finding aid, just posted yesterday.