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largest chain of franchised dry-cleaning establishments in the United States. Martinizing was first registered with the U.S. Patent Trademark Office in 1950 by the Martin Equipment Corporation, a manufacturer of dry-cleaning machines.
    The equipment business and trademarks were later sold to the American Laundry Machinery Company of Cincinnati, Ohio, also a manufacturer of cleaning equipment. Although Martinizing was once part of the sales division of the American Laundry Machinery Company, it has spun off into a separate entity, still located in Cincinnati.
    Today if an aspiring dry cleaner wants the know-how and name recognition that a franchise can provide, he or she will likely choose Martin, since it is the best-known name in the dry-cleaning field, and start-up costs are relatively low.
    What’s special about One Hour Martinizing? As far as we can tell, nothing. They use the same chemicals, solvents, and cleaning methods as other dry cleaners, and can “Martinize” in one hour, just as most dry cleaners can handle a job in one hour.
    The folks are relying on the notion that if you patronize another establishment, you can say your clothes have been dry cleaned but you can’t brag that they’ve been Martinized.
     
Submitted by Dominic Orlando of Arlington, Texas. Thanks also to Peter B. Child of Seattle, Washington .
     
     

     
     
    What Flavor Is Bubble Gum Supposed to Be? Why Is Bubble Gum Usually Pink?
     
    Although in Imponderables we managed to ascertain the main flavors in Juicy Fruit gum, we have failed miserably at obtaining the constituents in bubble gum. Perhaps we are losing our powers of persuasion. The best we have been able to wangle from our sources is that “regular” pink bubble gum is a mixture of several natural and artificial fruit flavors.
    We thought that the pink color of bubble gum would provide clues to the identity of the flavors, but we were disappointed again. Bubble gum was invented in 1928 by a long entrepreneur, Walter Diemer, who was an accountant from Philadelphia. From the very beginning, Diemer artificially colored his gum pink. Why? “Because it was the only coloring I had handy at the time!” So much for the sanctity of pink bubble gum.
    Now, of course, with Bubble Yum coming in flavors like Bananaberry Split and Checkermint, pink bubble gum looks old hat. But not quite yet. Good old pink bubble gum is still the best seller by far.
     
Submitted by John Geesy of Phoenix, Arizona .
     
     
    Why Don’t Traffic Signal Light Bulbs Ever Seem to Burn Out? Can We Buy Them?
     
    To answer the second part of the Imponderable first: sure, you can buy the same bulbs that light our traffic signals. But you probably wouldn’t want to buy them.
    Yes, the bulbs found in traffic lights do last much longer than standard household bulbs. The traffic light bulbs are rated at eight thousand hours, compared to the standard one thousand hours. Incandescent lights can be manufactured to last any length of time. However, the longer life a bulb has, the less efficiently it burns. According to General Electric’s J. Robert Moody:
     
The incandescent light is like a candle. If you burn it dimly, the candle will last a long time. If you burn the candle on both ends, you get a lot of light but short life. The traffic signal light must use 100 watts to get 1,000 lumens [units of light]. To obtain the same 1,000 lumens a household lamp needs only 60 watts. At an electric rate of $0.10/Kwh, the electric cost for 100 watts is $10.00 per 1,000 hours. For the 60 watts the electric cost is $6.00 per 1,000 hours. Thus, the consumer saves $4.00 per 1,000 burning hours [or 40%] by using a household light bulb rather than a traffic signal light bulb.
     
    Traffic signal bulbs are also specially constructed and are filled with krypton gas rather than the less expensive argon gas used in standard bulbs. Municipalities obviously feel the added expense of the special bulbs is more than offset by the cost of labor