China & a view of overpriced appliances that do what the sun does anyway

 Wash and Fly.... no need to dry: 

A demonstration of energy efficiency by 

the American field sparrow

This from author Sharon Astyks's science blog called  Casaubon's Book is a vignette I shall call-- Dryers and China

 "As increasingly affluent Chinese embrace all the accouterments of the modern, middle-class Western lifestyle -- big-screen televisions, automobiles, washing machines, double-door refrigerators with automatic icemakers -- one glaring exception stands out: the clothes dryer.
For reasons practical as well as cultural, most Chinese consumers simply don't like clothes dryers. Don't want them. Don't trust them. Won't buy them. And, even when they have them around, won't use them.

 According to a spokesman for the appliance store Best Buy, the Chinese market for dryers -- or even washer-dryer combinations -- "is by no means fully developed.'' In the chain's stores, dryers and washing machines with dryer functions make up just 10 percent of all washing machine sales.
Other businesses report similar experiences. Zhao Na, a saleswoman for Haier washing machines, a domestic brand, said, "Our factory stopped producing dryers since last year because they don't sell.'
It certainly isn't true that a couple of billion non-dryer users "can't" be wrong, but in this case, there's a real likelihood that they aren't".

 You may not agree with this choice in your life but it is always useful to consider the query:  

Are my time-saving appliances and methods (e.g., hair dryers and even clothes dryers) actually, or possibly, enslaving me?

 There follows a remarkably entertaining and civil discussion about dryers, line drying, the role of women and how to keep your clothes from getting stiff sans electric dryer (versus solar passive or "line" drying).   I just couldn't help adding the illustration of 'fly and dry' by the Field sparrow (Spizella Passerina). Enjoy!