TUBES!

When I was young I remember that banks often had large drive-thrus with pneumatic tube systems at each car stall.

There would only be one teller but they could serve quite a few lanes.

If you wanted a cash withdrawal, you might put your ID and your withdrawal slip in the tube, and a few minutes later it would come back with cash in it.

It was pretty rad. But ATMs seem like a better bet overall.

That’s why:

As computers and credit cards started to become more prevalent in the 1980s, reducing paperwork significantly, the systems shifted to mostly carrying lab specimens, pharmaceuticals, and blood products. Today, lab specimens are roughly 60% of what hospital tube systems carry; pharmaceuticals account for 30%, and blood products for phlebotomy make up 5%.

I initially thought it’s because of IT-security and the hospital hacks.

I want more pneumatic tube systems. I don’t care what it’s used for. They are super satifying and analog.

The headline is a bit wrong: the tubes don’t seem to be returning, it’s mostly talking about an industry they never left: hospitals. They are fancier now, though.

The internet is a series of tubes!

The look on her face says “ah, shit. Here we go. Just another day with all these fuckin’ tubes”