Dive into the enigmatic world of John Worrell Keely, the 19th-century inventor who claimed to have unlocked the secrets of "etheric energy"—a force he said could defy gravity, disintegrate matter, and power machines with nothing but sound.

In this episode of the Cabinet of Science & Fiction, we unravel Keely’s bizarre legacy: his mesmerizing (and highly suspect) demonstrations, his connections to figures like Nikola Tesla and John Jacob Astor, and the enduring debate over whether he was a visionary, a fraud, or something stranger. Was his "vibrational technology" a glimpse into forgotten science, or an elaborate hoax propped up by hidden pipes and occult mysticism?

We’ll explore:

• The science (or pseudoscience) behind Keely’s "etheric force" and its ties to esoteric concepts like vril and astral light.
• The hidden mechanisms—did compressed air and trickery explain his machines, or was there more to the story?
• Keely’s shadowy influence on secret societies, techno-occultists, and fringe researchers who still chase his dreams today.

A tale of genius, deception, and the thin line between fringe science and magic...

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