India, June 14 -- Adding ice to milky drinks used to be a bit of a nightmare. The temperature differences caused the fats to solidify and drift about unappetisingly. As the cubes melted, the beverage itself flattened in flavour to a weak, watery muddle.

Today, there is ice in our lattes and smoothies, our bobas and shakes. Except, it's shaved, chipped, tiny, and actually improves the texture of the drink. How did this happen?

Well, in 1937, health-food entrepreneur William Barnard built a mixer with blunt blades but higher speeds that didn't slice fruits and vegetables and discard the fibre but rather pulverised all of it to retain more nutrients. He called it the Vitamix.

By the 1970s, his machines had become popular with restaurants ...