We need an object for our affections

We need an object for our affections, something identifiable on which to focus attention. But in a typical office building, to what can we attribute the all-pervasive comfort of 70ºF, 50% relative humidity? Most likely, we would simply take it all for granted. When thermal comfort is a constant condition, constant in both space and time, it becomes so abstract that it loses its potential to focus attention.

  1. ​It's cold outside, but this room is quite cozy​

"We are also unlikely to relate our thermal well-being to anything in particular unless there is an awareness at some level that an object or place does indeed have a thermal function. Radiant hot water pipes embedded in the ceiling may do an admirable job of keeping us warm and comfortable, but there is no way to sense directly that the ceiling has a thermal function. The lack of specific clues makes it hard to relate to the ceiling in the same way we relate to, say, the hearth."