Why turbines matter to the dreadnought benchmark

The episode uses HMS Dreadnought as the benchmark because turbines formed part of the design system that delivered its speed and operational capability. Triple-expansion engines could remain efficient and produce sound battleships, but choosing them meant departing from that contemporary standard. By fitting turbines, North Dakota met the benchmark on the same technological terms. This definition separates capable American dreadnought-type ships from the first US ship the episode calls a true dreadnought. The distinction shows that naval categories can encode propulsion and performance as well as gun calibre.