The overriding principle of 3D printing is that hundreds of layers about 0.1mm thick are stuck on top of each other by a machine to eventually produce a solid, 3D object from a computer model or a replica of the mould. In essence it works in much the same way as a traditional inkjet printer, where the ink is printed in layers to form a image. Instaed of ink, however ,a 3D printer uses molten plastic, thick waxes and other materials to create the desired object.

There are several different methods of 3D printing that can vary somewhat in application. A binder 3D printer uses a fine dry powder with liquid glue to form layers and ultimately a solid object. Another method, photopolymerisation, fuses liquid plastic with a beam of ultraviolet light that solidifies the liquid. Selective laser sintering, meanwhile, uses a laser to melt a plastic powder that solidifies to form a particular layer.

This popular child’s toy works by encasing a clear glass or plastic screen within a plastic housing, that itself is filled with a large quantity of aluminium powder and tiny ball bearings. This powder sticks to the screen – evenly spaced by the ball bearings – and generates the greyed slate, upon which patterns can be drawn. The drawing mechanism is activated by two circular dials, positioned in the bottom-left and right corners of the plastic frame. These are attached to a stylus via a pair of orthogonal rails, which when turned cause the stylus to draw lines in the aluminum powder. This action, when viewed form outside the Etch A Sketch, appears as if black lines are being drawn on the grey slate. in fact, however, the stylus is merely exposing the darkened interior of the plastic casing to the human eye. Naturally, when the device is turned upside down or shaken, the aluminium powder re-coats the clear screen, destroying the previous carved lines and presenting a clean slate.

Interestingly, despite the historical clear-cut nature of the plot, many academics and historians believe that not all was as it is now chronicled, with Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury and spymaster to King James 1st, often been cited as instrumental to the plot’s progression. Indeed, many commentators argue that Cecil (a devout Protestant) was made aware of the plot early on its formation and let it develop in order to foil it later, with much publicity, allowing him to usher in a wave of new anti-Catholic laws. Cecil’s ability to undertake such a scheme, note academics, is supported by the fact that he was trained by the famous spymaster of Queen Elizabeth 1st, Sir Francis Walsingham, who had excelled in foiling numerous Catholic plots against her, as well as penetrating the upper echelons of Spanish society, who were at war with England at the time.

The Brown Bess musket was the weapon of choice for riflemen during the rise of the British Empire and was used in numerous incarnations for over a hundred years. The musket, which is a .75 caliber flintlock, weighs over 10 pounds and is almost a meter and a half in length. Due to the many stages required to fire, as well as its unwieldily proportions in comparison to modern firearms, firing the musket was a tricky task, with experienced shooters capable of only four shots per minute.

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