On the latest episode of the podcast with readings so interesting they put you to sleep, our thirteenth and final installment from the 1898 book “Philip’s Experiments, or, Physical Science at Home,” by John Trowbridge. Philip, now an advanced student, discusses electric car technology in 1898. In contrast to a reciprocating steam engine operating at 4 to 6 cycles per second, an electric car motor spinning at 1000 rpm needs gears to reduce the car’s speed from 60 miles an hour to a manag...