Heron of Alexandria is said to have invented the first vending machine in the 1st century AD. So, how did this contraption work, and what did it dispense?

Most often, vending machines occupy a nondescript status, quietly humming away in diverse spaces like schools, factories, and malls. Yet the often overlooked device carries significant prominence, ...

From hero of Alexandria to tutti-frutti of New York: the years to 1918 -- Robots can sell anything; robots will sell everything, 1918-1931 -- Cigarettes blaze the way, 1932-1939 -- The war on slugs ...