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"In 1977, it took about eight months for a slightly faster more refined mechanism to put punk in the window of Holt Renfrew. It's gotten faster ever since."
- William Gibson

Geodesic Inflexors  
  Propulsion provided not by pushing against matter, but against spacetime.  

The cage swept them upward, through the levels of the ship. Haldane glimpsed a dark hold, the trim polished cases of the geodesic inflexors, close-packed rows of power-tubes, a spotless galley...

The bellow of the launching rockets stopped, and that crushing pressure ceased. For an instant the Starbrand hung free, and Haldane felt a sudden illness in his middle. Then the inflexors hummed, replacing the launching rockets with their powerful drive. The steady thrust of acceleration restored his physical comfort, but mental unease still tortured him...

Abruptly the room spun, and fell with them... A smothering silence filled the ship. The hum of the inflexors had stopped.

Technovelgy from Star of Dreams, by Jack Williamson.
Published by Comet in 1941
Additional resources -

Compare to these propulsion systems: Light Pressure Propulsion (1867), apergy (1880), Beam-Powered Propulsion (1931), Granton motor (1933), Vibration-Propelled Cruiser (1928), geodynes (1936), ion drive (1947), Planetary Propulsion-Blasts (1934), stardrive (1953), solar sail (light sail) (1962), Lyle drive (1961), laser cannon (1966), Bussard ramjet (1976), asymptotic drive (1976), Interstellar Laser Propulsion System (1985).

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Additional resources:
  More Ideas and Technology from Star of Dreams
  More Ideas and Technology by Jack Williamson
  Tech news articles related to Star of Dreams
  Tech news articles related to works by Jack Williamson

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