The Microwave oven is an
invention that arrived almost entirely by accident. Its inventor, Percy Spencer (1894-1970) was
an electronics whizz working on designing radar equipment. He paused next to a ‘magnetron’, one of the
power components of the machinery and was amazed to discover that the chocolate
bar in his pocket has melted.
Understandably curious, he tried
placing other objects near the magnetron.
Some unpopped popcorn popped successfully (with Spencer standing further
away, so as not to start cooking himself) and the next morning an egg was
cooked, demonstrating for the first time that eggs in their shells explode if
cooked in the microwave.
Spencer realized the potential of
his discovery and set about designing a more efficient food-cooking
device. He filed for a patent in 1945.
And by late 1946 a prototype device was being tested in Boston, Massachusetts,
restaurant and soon commercial models became available. These early models were not received well by
the consumers, possible because they were over 6 feet (1.8m) tall, cost $5000
and required special plumbing to cool the magnetron apparatus. Gradually, however units became more
practical and affordable and became safe and reliable enough to be used by the
average consumer. By 1975, microwave
sales were exceeding those of gas cookers.
The microwave oven does have its
shortcomings, however Meat does not brown on the outside and the quick cooking
time means that food can end up cooked unevenly. Despite these issues, many people regard
their microwave as indispensable.
