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 Linda Thomas
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Linda is the morning news anchor and features reporter for KIRO Radio. This is her local news blog, with an emphasis on social media, technology, Northwest companies, education, parenting, and anything else that grabs her attention.

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Steampunk in Seattle, what's that?

November 19, 2010 @ 2:30 am (Updated: 3:46 pm - 3/28/11 )

After spending a couple of decades in the news business, it's rare that a story comes along that I've never heard before and can't even guess what it's about.

Here's a new one for me - Steampunk.

Are you familiar with that term? Of course, Wikipedia is: Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, alternate history that came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s. Specifically, Steampunk involves an era or world where steam power is still widely used, so that would be the 19th century and often Victorian era Britain.

There's a Steampunk convention in Seattle this weekend, Steamcon II, Weird Weird West. From looking at their website, it's clear that historical, science fiction fashion is part of the culture.

Steamcno2

Steamcon3

Steamcon4

Photos courtesy SteamCon

It's a bit intriguing. But, why? What's the fascination with the "steam" era? And if it's a throwback to a different time, why are there so many iPhone apps for people who are into this?

Time Magazine answers those questions with a story they reported last year on the Steampunk movement.

Author Scott Westerfeld says Steampunk is like a snapshot from the last moment in human history when technology was intelligible to the layman. The Internet is global and seemingly omniscient. Westerfield describes iPods and phones as "microscopic workings encased in plastic blobjects."

"Compare that to a steam engine, where you can watch the pistons move and feel the heat of its boilers. I think we miss that visceral appeal of the machine. Plus, those Victorians dressed a lot better than we do," he says.

Wait, a friend below suggested I look for a "steampunked iPhone." Maybe I could get into this. Very cool.

steampunkiphone

More from Linda Thomas

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Comments (9)


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  • dcnilsen wrote...
    steampunk
    November 19, 2010 5:00 am
    i think another aspect that is appealing is the extreme attention to detail. you just don't get that level anymore with the sub-genres these days.
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  • TheNewsChick wrote...
    Interesting point
    November 19, 2010 5:56 am
    I do admire the attention to detail!
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  • Answer42 wrote...
    steampunk and iphones
    November 19, 2010 6:12 am
    just go to google images and type "steampunk iphone" and all your questions will be answered.
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  • Chuck Gould wrote...
    Steam technology not so green....
    November 19, 2010 7:44 am
    There are a number of hobbiests in the Pacific NW who operate small, steam-powered launches. (Think something similar to the African Queen).

    When fired with wood or coal, it takes a surprising volume of fuel to bring the boiler up to an adequate temperature, and a whole lot more fuel to actually travel any distance. A huge armful of wood will run one of these steam launches about 1-2 miles.

    The old time steam paddlewheelers, famous on the Mississippi and used as well on some Alaskan and Pacific NW waters, could churn through an entire cord of firewood in 15 minutes! Entire forests were consumed in a couple of years, and of course there were no pollution controls at all on the huge volumes of wood smoke.

    Reminiscing about steam is fun, but it wasn't really ever a green technology or suitable for modern transportation requirements.

    I think the efficiency goes way up with an enormous boiler, and one of the better historical uses of steam was in ocean going cargo and passenger ships.

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  • artimus wrote...
    Chuck Gould
    November 19, 2010 8:45 am
    As long as you don't try to tell me that Superman can't really fly...
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  • Chuck Gould wrote...
    Artimus: The steam powered Superman
    November 19, 2010 8:53 am
    never got off the ground, in a very literal sense.

    At 8 pounds per gallon, (plus the weight of the furnace, the boiler, and the fuel), even Superman couldn't lug enough water to leap a tall building in a single bound. :-)

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  • It's me! Ha ha! wrote...
    Wellllll! I could be doin some SteamPunkin
    November 19, 2010 10:28 am
    with that chic in the second piture! Oh, yea!
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  • roomtemp wrote...
    @Chuck...
    November 19, 2010 11:58 am
    "Steam technology not so green..."

    Statements that broad are rarely true. That one wasn't. It totally depends on your input power source. Modern solar farms (non pv type) are 'steam engines'. Nuclear reactors are 'steam engines' (could be green if not for the waste problem). There are many examples of dish mounted steam engines and Stirling engines that are very green and have good power density. I would also argue (a little) about the amount of fuel needed for one of those launches. I rode on one that putted along nicely all day on a few buckets of coal. Not exactly a rocketship though heheh. Old as it is, steam power still has a place in our future.

    Steampunk ain't about power or tech though. It's a nostalgic art thing. A rebellion against smooth plastic sides, rounded corners, and hidden mechanisms that you can't see working. Personally, being a 'machine person', I love it. Bring on the glass, brass, gears, gauges, knobs, levers, and dials!

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  • Chuck Gould wrote...
    room temp is right, my comments were directed to "nostalgic" steam
    November 19, 2010 12:45 pm
    Yes, to the degree that steam is still used in some specific applications that are relatively green my comment was not 100% accurate.

    Steam ships, steam locomotives, steam shovels, etc from 100 years or more ago aren't in the least bit green.

    As far as fuel for a steam launch goes, some of the hobbiests now use propane to fire the boilers. You would go farther on coal than on wood because there are more BTU's in a ton of coal than in a ton of wood. The locomotives and steam ships of yesteryear used coal rather than wood when available. Problem with coal, especially when burned in a low-tech device like a 19th century firebox, is that it is one sooty and dirty fuel.

    That said, I sort of like the smell of coal smoke. When visiting London years ago, you could still smell a lot of coal smoke in semi-enclosed areas. It's been a few years now since I have been to London, and a few more since I was there in the winter. Next time I go back, I hope the coal smell (dirty as it is) remains. Maybe there's a little steampunk in us all. :-)

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