Cornelius Drebbel Cold Machine
One of the aspects of the Nova: Absolute Zero video that had a large impact on the pursuit of cold air, was Cornelius Drebbel's cold machine. Despite Drebbel only having an elementary education, he was able to impress the King of England with his Engineering prowess. Drebbel was able to create things the world had never seen before; such as the first submarine, a perpetual motion machine, and the first likeness of an air conditioner. In the summer of 1620, King James I of England invited Drebbel to the Great Hall of Westminster Abbey to display his new invention, the “Cold Machine”. This machine was said to be able to reverse the seasons inside buildings, causing many people to deem it as blasphemy. Drebbel was able to prove that his did indeed work when he was able to make the largest room in the British Isles cool. Despite his success, Drebbel refused to reveal his secret to such an accomplishment. Drebbel had been convinced that if he revealed the secret to his work, the king would no longer favor him and he would lose his appeal. As time passed, scientists were able to delve into how exactly Drebbel was able to achieve the impossible. The consensus is that Drebbel had gotten glass containers full of ice, pored large amounts of table salt in the containers, and blew the cool air surrounding the contatiners into the room using a fan that he operated himself. By doing this, Drebbel was able to place the cool air where he wanted it to be. He was able to cool the air near the king by an estimated twenty degrees, despite never cooling the entire room.
http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/s/shachtman-zero.html?mcubz=3