Historical Technology

Josef Ressel: the inventor of the propeller

Josef Ludwig Franz Ressel was born on June 29th, 1793 in the Bohemian town of Chundrum. His mother was Marija Ana Konvichkova, a Czech, and his father Anton Hermann Ressel, a German. He came from a poor family that couldn’t…

Steampunk Mass Communications

Much of Steampunk fiction takes place in the latter half of the 19th Century, with some crossover to the very early days of the 20th.  One element of storytelling that we find in prominent position, and especially for those stories…

The Steampunk Guide to Airships

Airships are a familiar technology in the steampunk genre. Aerostat (lighter-than-air) in design, they differ from the simple hot air balloon in their ability to be steered using propellers and rudders. Today, airships have lost out to the speed, manoeuvrability…