CONTAMINANTES
Taking the 'lug' out of luggage changed everything: Think of the icons of American culture that were utterly unknown three decades ago: The cell phone. The CD. Britney Spears.
Squeak. Squeak. Squeak.
Add another to the list: the rollerboard.
The what? That's luggage industry jargon for the carry-on black-bag-on-wheels that has taken over our airports - if not our planet.
"It's as big an invention as the home delivery of pizza," says Joanne Hayes-Rines, editor of Inventors' Digest.
But the familiar, 22-inch rolling black bag wasn't the brainstorm of a big luggage maker. It was concocted just 15 years ago by then-Northwest Airlines pilot Robert Plath for himself.