Sci-fi has a rich tradition regarding Victorian Era England, whether it’s novels like The Time Machine that were actually written during that time, novels of yet-to-come Victorian Eras like The Diamond Age, or what-might-have-been speculations like The Difference Engine. As always, however, truth is stranger than fiction, especially when they are well mixed. The excellent British website Lateral Science catalogs actual (and imaginary?) Victorian science and technology in a way that is truly mind bending. Were the laser, C-60 fullerines and liquid rocket engines all first developed in the 19th Century? Lateral Science’s crown jewel, so to speak, is a $25 CD-ROM of that classic 1854 book that’s always been a favorite of yours and mine, The Young Man’s Book of Amusement with everybody’s favorite chapter, Galvanic Experiments on the Dead Body of a Criminal. Science Fair season is coming soon, get your copy today!!!