So why are they called turbolifts, anyway?

[Ithekro]

I would assume they used the British "lift" to sounds more advanced and sci-fi to an American audience. They liked picked that up while they were stationed in England during World War II. "Turbo" being the "better" version of engines and other things at the time as well without going "Super". So instead of "Super Elevator" you get "Turbo Lift".

 

[Christopher]

"Turbo" being the "better" version of engines and other things at the time as well without going "Super". So instead of "Super Elevator" you get "Turbo Lift".

That is not what "turbo-" means. At best, it's a slang usage derived from the use of turbochargers in engines. "Turbo-" simply means "using a turbine." As I already mentioned, The Making of Star Trek explicitly stated that the "turbo-elevators" were intended as a pneumatic system using turbines to generate the air pressure -- essentially a larger version of the pneumatic tube systems that used to be used to deliver papers or small objects in large buildings or urban areas, and that are still used today in bank drive-throughs.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

I dunno, did Turboman from Jingle All The Way incorporate turbines into his costume?

 

[Christopher]

I dunno, did Turboman from Jingle All The Way incorporate turbines into his costume?

As I said, the term has acquired a slang meaning derived from the use of turbochargers to soup up engines. But we know for a fact that that has nothing to do with why the term "turbo-lift" was coined, because The Making of Star Trek tells us it was based on the literal meaning of the prefix.

 

[somebuddyX]

Like the Jefferies Tubes they're named after a real dude, John Turbo, or something.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

But probably not Floyd R. Turbo.

 

[Mark_Nguyen]

There is only one man named Turbo. There's also the Guardian, but we don't talk about him much.

Perhaps "turbolift" is a term that comes into and out of vogue depending on the year. While the TNG and TOS eras had that nomenclature, I'm pretty sure that other shows rarely if ever mention it. No one in "Academy" literally says turbolift, holodeck, hypospray, or PADD, but they're all technology that exists or are seen in use (except MAYBE the holodeck). The "turbolifts" on the Athena also seem painfully slow, to the point that people have and use chairs for lengthy conversations. Other times show VERY long trips on the DS9 Defiant or TOS Enterprise, the latter of which once had a conversation-long ride from the bridge to deck two.

I wonder if the "turbolift" had its origins as a more pneumatic technology (borne out by the tube-shaped shafts and egg-shaped cars), but even if the technology has long-since evolved beyond the origins, everyone still calls them turbolifts even if it's not really "turbo" in the literal sense.

Mark

 

[Christopher]

While the TNG and TOS eras had that nomenclature, I'm pretty sure that other shows rarely if ever mention it.

No, according to the SearchTrek transcript-searching app, "turbolift" was used frequently throughout all the Berman-era shows, Discovery, Picard, and Lower Decks, as well as the latter two Kelvin movies, although it doesn't include transcripts for any of the other Secret Hideout shows. Surprisingly, it was only used twice in dialogue in TOS (in "The Naked Time" and "By Any Other Name," plus one use of "turbo-elevators" in "Space Seed"), and never in TAS. (The above search link doesn't include the "Naked Time" instance because the transcript has it written as two words. I found it by searching for "turbo.")

Which makes it odd that it caught on as the default term, given that The Making of Star Trek (which was generally the source of terms that became standard despite not being used much in TOS, such as "mind-meld") called them "turbo-elevators." But The Star Trek Concordance used "turbolift" in its lexicon, so that's probably why it caught on as standard.

 

[Nerys Myk]

I would assume they used the British "lift" to sounds more advanced and sci-fi to an American audience. They liked picked that up while they were stationed in England during World War II. "Turbo" being the "better" version of engines and other things at the time as well without going "Super". So instead of "Super Elevator" you get "Turbo Lift".

Which they is that? GR served in the Pacific. Did he coin the term or was it someone else. Jefferies? Justman? What episode did the term first appear in?

 

[korblborp]

There is only one man named Turbo. There's also the Guardian, but we don't talk about him much.


Mark

what about this other Guardian?

obviously something in them spins, because it's The Future, superficially resembling a turbine.

 

[B.J.]

No, according to the SearchTrek transcript-searching app, "turbolift" was used frequently throughout all the Berman-era shows, Discovery, Picard, and Lower Decks, as well as the latter two Kelvin movies, although it doesn't include transcripts for any of the other Secret Hideout shows. Surprisingly, it was only used twice in dialogue in TOS (in "The Naked Time" and "By Any Other Name," plus one use of "turbo-elevators" in "Space Seed"), and never in TAS. (The above search link doesn't include the "Naked Time" instance because the transcript has it written as two words. I found it by searching for "turbo.")

Which makes it odd that it caught on as the default term, given that The Making of Star Trek (which was generally the source of terms that became standard despite not being used much in TOS, such as "mind-meld") called them "turbo-elevators." But The Star Trek Concordance used "turbolift" in its lexicon, so that's probably why it caught on as standard.

If that SearchTrek site proves anything, it's that the terminology is all over the map. Which makes sense, to be honest. We can't even agree on terminology in one language here on this one small planet (lift/elevator, boot/trunk, .....ad nauseam). I did find it interesting that they just called it a "lift" in PIC.

And then there's Lwaxana, calling it a "turbo tube"!

 

[Toril Toran]

A “Lift” in England is just another name for an elevator.
Turbo just means fast

 

[Christopher]

What episode did the term first appear in?

It's first spoken in "The Naked Time," but it appears in the season 1 writers' guide, which Roddenberry wrote in early 1966 after the series was picked up. The guide uses "elevator," "turbo-lift," and "turbo-elevators" interchangeably, same as the revised season 2 edition.

A “Lift” in England is just another name for an elevator.

Yes, we know. The question is why an American show would have used it.

Turbo just means fast

Not this again. "Turbo" engines are fast because they use turbochargers, which are called that because they employ turbines. It is a derived vernacular usage, not the actual meaning of the prefix.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Between the options of:
- "Turbo Lift"
- "Turbo Elevator"

I'd gladly pick "Turbo Lift".
Clean & Simple naming, less vowels, sounds better IMO.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Quickervater?

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Quickervater?

That sounds like a product from the "As Seen on TV" era of TV Infomercials.

 

[Christopher]

Well, since Roddenberry evidently imagined them as a larger version of pneumatic office mail tubes, we should be grateful they weren't called "pneumovators."

 

[Nerys Myk]

Should have borrowed another Britishism and called it "The Tube."

 

[Mark_Nguyen]

Famously, it's McCoy who said, "Who's been holding up the damn elevator?" in TWOK. This was also a good example of someone emphatically stopping the lift in order to have a conversation, as if Saavik knew that the dialogue would actually be longer than the travel time involved. She's a Vulcan, all right.

Mark

 

[Mytran]

No, according to the SearchTrek transcript-searching app, "turbolift" was used frequently throughout all the Berman-era shows, Discovery, Picard, and Lower Decks, as well as the latter two Kelvin movies, although it doesn't include transcripts for any of the other Secret Hideout shows. Surprisingly, it was only used twice in dialogue in TOS (in "The Naked Time" and "By Any Other Name," plus one use of "turbo-elevators" in "Space Seed"), and never in TAS. (The above search link doesn't include the "Naked Time" instance because the transcript has it written as two words. I found it by searching for "turbo.")

Which makes it odd that it caught on as the default term, given that The Making of Star Trek (which was generally the source of terms that became standard despite not being used much in TOS, such as "mind-meld") called them "turbo-elevators." But The Star Trek Concordance used "turbolift" in its lexicon, so that's probably why it caught on as standard.

SearchTrek is back? That's awesome, it's been sorely missed!