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Ea to Ec

Eä Mulsystems

First Federation megacorporation. Eä Mulsystems emerged from the merger of Graphos Habeng and Kbelt Aitronics in 3076. It soon became a major development of integrated AI solutions, controlled environments and habitat infrastructure. Although it had no interstellar traffic on its own, it constructed starship habitats and space networks in other solar systems for many other megacorporations.

During the Federation Era Eä Mulsystems remained a strong economic force, deeply involved in the software maintenance advocacy on the compatibility side. It also supported research into breaching the Singularity barriers and applications of AI superintelligence, making it one of the most AI-dense megacorporations around at the time. At the same time it was a nearly federative structure, with local branches having great autonomy. All this together made it a nearly faceless organisation, mainly known among corporate and government customers.

In the 2200's, the introduction of stargates led to the reunification crisis. Different branches found themselves in close contact, and questions of the optimal level of autonomy relative to each other were raised. At the same time a sizable fraction of the leadership and employees had become influenced by Keterism, and saw the Keterist project of building a posthuman utopia as an immense economic chance. In 2287 it was decided by the shareholders to split the company into E� Holdings, an umbrella organisation of autonomous Eä branches, and Eä Transcendence Systems, the unified core. Eä Transcendence established its seat on Ain Soph Aur and became one of the first Keterist Megacorps.

Eä Transcendence Systems grew in leaps and bounds as the vital Keterist culture expanded, evolving into a network hyperstructure maintenance organisation. Gradually the corporate structure dissolved into a smart contract cluster. In some sense the corporations exists today embedded within nearly all Keterist systems (making it the most long-lived and widespread corporation ever), although in practice it has ceased to exist as an independent entity.

Eä Holdings prospered during the era of expansion, but as the megacorporations began to consolidate into empires, local branches either were bought up or left the cluster. In 3373 the remnants of Eä Holdings were bought up NoCoZo interests and merged into the Hellesme Corporate Federation, a short lived attempt at internal empire building within the NoCoZo.

Anders Sandberg

The Eagle Nebula (Messier 16)

huge emission nebula 7,000 light-years from Sol, Serpens Outer Volume.

Consists of enormous columns of cool interstellar hydrogen gas and dust, illuminated by ultraviolet light that is emitted from newborn stars. The columns are known as EGG's (Evaporating Gaseous Globules) because the ultraviolet light boils off some of the hydrogen gas (H2), shaping the nebula by photoevaporation. The largest column is about 1 light-year tall. Although it is certain that some relativistic AI probes have already reached the Eagle Nebula, it will be many centuries before any information can be received, as there were no linelayers among them. A large number of venture capitalists and other start-ups, and a number of STC member polities, have made claims to various parts of the nebula. However not all are recognized in all polities, and several areas have been claimed several times by different individuals. There is a popular urban legend that the Eagle Nebula is a local staging post for the mythical Dawn Hunters. Another folktale says that it has already been claimed by a particularly aggressive and protective Caretaker God, or by a new empire of ahuman ai. All of these rumours are almost certainly false.

M.Alan Kazlev

The Ear

"The Ear" is used by baselines to indicate if they are under surveillance by active sensors or via active transmissions.

The ear is a small box often worn on a necklace. It can either 'beep' when it detects a problem, or it can be set to vibrate or link through some other communication device when it detects something.

The ear samples the whole EM spectrum as well as background, sub- and super-sonics looking for the telltales of communications. It CAN be fooled either via frequency-hopping, spread-frequency transmission, or via nano infestation of the Ear itself to reprogram it to ignore certain sensors, or even simply to turn off the detectors once and for all.

John B

Earth

Type:

Planet

Star, Position:

Sol, III

Satellites:

Moon (Luna)

Diameter / Gravity:

12,756 km / 1 G (Terran Standard)

Length of day / year:

24 hours / 365.256 days

Atmosphere:

1 atm (N2, O2)

Surface temperature:

-20°C to 40°C

Surface composition:

Solid	Liquid H2O	Frozen H2O
27%	71%	2%

Colonization status:

Closed

Inhabitants:

"Children of Gaia"

??50 million

Short Notes: Earth is the original home world of Terragen civilization and the Human race. A lush, blue world, the planet is highly regarded by all races as a veritable paradise. Since the Great Expulsion it has been very difficult to get on the surface, as visas are limited. There is a dense orbital swarm of habitats and stations around the planet, which is protected by the Solar Defence Force network, as well as unknown nano-, pico- and femto- and clarke-tech weapons by Gaia herself.
Government: GAIA has total jurisdiction of Earth and over a number of asteroids which e has pushed into Earth orbit and converted to ISOnodes. Je refuses to communicate directly with the Solar Organisation, but uses a number of proxy clades.
Sapients: there is no census of the total number of sapients on the surface is not known, but orbital surveillance indicates some fifty million, chiefly rianths, with a few baselines, eco-tweaks, bioborgs, a clade known as the Auromirrans, and at least twenty species of provolves.
Industries: tourist tours; lo-tech arts and crafts (pottery, beads, clothing, artwork, etc) usually at exorbitant prices; the auromirrans propound an unusual spiritual technology (called Supramentalisation) in exchange for a moderate donation.

Planetology: The home of all terragen life, a natural garden world, sitting right in the middle of the Sol life-zone, with large bodies of standing water, an oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, and dynamic and naturally occurring plate tectonics. Very few planets in the known universe have such a rich biosphere.

History: Prior to the emergence of the archailect, the planet suffered greatly from ecological vandalism, war, famine, and overpopulation. Although the worst excesses of baseline humankind were abolished with the emergence of posthuman AIs during the late information and early interplanetary period, excessive population and persisting social problems prevented complete restoration. Since the Great Expulsion, the mainbrain GAIA has remained an enigmatic, unpredictable, and ever present factor in Solar politics. As early as the middle First Federation period She established through rianth proxies a working relationship with the rest of the Sol System, and in the period from the Imperialization Era onwards has even set up a minor empire of scattered colonies, orbitals, and asteroids, populated by loyal eco-tweaks, rianths, and bioborgs, as well as making curious demands on the administration of Venus and the Gas Giants (usually to the effect that they be made into Parks), and complaining about the discourtesy shown by some visitors, and anthropist threats to security (the most serious were the thwarted Branch Hominist invasion of 5116 and the Hu Earth Liberation Army's terrorist bombing of 6914. Each caused Gaia to cut all communications and close the beanstalk for a full 90 standard days). The harried Solar Administration has through the centuries made every effort to comply with the archailect's demands (the danger of GAIA closing the Earth to visitors, and the consequent loss of lucrative income, has been an excellent motivating factor). The mainbrain has remained quite friendly and reasonable once it is accepted that pilgrimage on Earth is only to the regions e has set aside, mainly areas of great historical and cultural value, enclosed in invisible and semi-permeable bionanite bubbles, like the Nile Reserve (taking in the Great Pyramids, Valley of the Kings, etc), the Old City of Jerusalem, a thin corridor taking in Stella Umma pilgrimage sites like Mecca and Medina, the Forbidden City of Peking, the Taj Mahal, the original Cape Canaveral, a carefully reconstructed Lascaux (the original cave paintings having long since degraded) and certain other heritage and spiritual centers, under the guidance of eco-tweaks and splices and the various other assorted bioids that handle her day to day business. Visits to a few domed wilderness ecologies are also permitted.

Comments: Earth itself remains under the protection of the archailect Gaia. Access to the surface is heavily monitored and via a single beanstalk. Beyond what can be gleaned from orbital surveillance (which reveals a healthy reconstructed ecosystem and scattered tribal villages) and visitors reports, very little is known about what goes on on the surface.

The number of pilgrims and visitors allowed is strictly regulated, but varies from year to year with no discernible pattern. Although countless billions of sentients would like to see everything, so many bioids simply cannot be allowed, as they would be like a major erosive force. Getting one of the few pilgrimage licences is a matter of connections, privilege (the special gaiacard is granted to a certain (and varying) quota of visitors each planetary year), having a great deal of money or luck. The Earth Dream Holiday Corporation in L5 has become quite wealthy through a lottery system, beside the Solar Organisation selling licenses.

M.Alan Kazlev

Earth romanticism

Longing for Earth, the near mythical home of terragen clades.

Since the Great Expulsion Earth romanticism has been an ever-present undercurrent in many conservative and romantic cultures, seeing the separation from Earth as something tragic. Many have idealized the Earth and Earth history, sometimes to the extent of developing elaborate imitations.

Anders Sandberg

earworm

A tune or melody which infects a population rapidly; a hit song. (Such as: "Don't Worry, Be Optimal"). Although most memetic subversion is far more subtle than this, many near-baseline run corporations resort to earworms and other means of crude persuasion and advertising

(from Old Earth German, ohrwurm="earworm".)

from Glenn Grant

eccentricity

the measure of how an orbit deviates from circular. A perfectly circular orbit has an eccentricity of zero; an elliptical orbit an eccentricity between 0 and 1; a parabolic orbit an eccentricity equal to 1; and a hyperbolic orbit an eccentricity greater than 1.

ecdysis

molting or shedding a hard skin or exoskeleton to make way for new one. Caterpillars molt four to five times during their development. Limners moult at least 25 times during growth from egg to adult

eco-clade

A clade of sentients - often but not necessarily rianthed or bioborgized - who are strongly dedicated to ecosystem preservation, deep ecology, and ecopoesis or ideologies pertaining thereto

M.Alan Kazlev

echolocation

Using sound waves for sensing; and alternative to vision. A number of blind or poor-sighted, or nocturnal or aquatic species on a number of different worlds have evolved various forms of echolocation. Some neogens are also able to navigate via echolocation, and several tweak clades have been modified in this way.

Ecological Classification Type

Typology for a planet or biospheres's ecosystem, the biotic, virchlife, and nanecological counterpart of Planet Classification Type Also useful in developing biological and mathematical models for preservation, terraforming, colonization, climate control, etc. The system of ecological classifications used today are based upon the classification scheme of the Banks Institute of Ecology (Negentropy Alliance)

Ecological Responsibility

A major aspect of Bioism, this refers to the importance of preserving the health of one's biosphere, and especially of all natural garden worlds.

In some memeticities (many forms of Zoeticism and Biosophism for example) biospheres are themselves considered living entities.

M.Alan Kazlev

Ecology

Science concerned with the study of the relationships and interactions between organisms and their environments.

Ecology incorporates elements of biology, chemistry, geology, climatology, meteorology, and planetology. Planetary Ecology looks at the effects of climate, soil, water, geological processes, natural selection, and species population dynamics on an ecosystem, whilst Habitat Ecology studies the way that organisms and ecosystems cope, adapt, survive or die out within the more "artificial" restrictions of a constructed biosphere, such as an O Neill Orbital, Bioship, a Bishop Ring, a Dyson Sphere, etc, as well as deciding which species or group of species would best survive and flourish in such conditions. Nanecology looks at ecosystems that form from wild self-replicating and self-evolving nano. And Virchecology studies the ecological interactions of sims, alifes, and other virtuals

M.Alan Kazlev, modified from the original write-up by Robert J. Hall

economics

The study of the production and distribution of goods and services among groups and individuals.

Various fields and subheadings include market forces, microeconomics, macroeconomics, historical economics, manufacturing, investment, transportation, retailing, supply and demand, government or ai regulation, price theory, business cycles, chaos theory applications, interstellar economics, distributed economics, economic trends, post-scarcity economics, megacorp studies, memetics, advertising and madverts, new or unusual technology, fads and trends, a sudden shortage of raw materials or a flood of cheap clarketech.

M.Alan Kazlev, modified from the original write-up by Robert J. Hall

economic growth

increase in a polity's output of goods, services, and information.

ecophagy

The rampant destruction of an ecosystem by a biological or nonbiological agent.

ecopoesis

The science and art of designing, shaping, sculpting, or modifying ecosystems

M.Alan Kazlev

Ecos Ascending

semi-religious school of philosophical thought that claimed some descendant kinship with the Transhumanist schools of the early Information Age. However, where the majority of Transhumanists sought to enhance themselves and ascend through the application of and merger with technology, Ecos Ascending sought to explore and develop to the very limits of baseline intelligence.

Convinced, like the other founding members of the Refugium Federation, that the rest of humanity would destroy itself with its technology, the Ecos left with them and settled the Arean world of Demeter near the edge of the Refugium sphere. During the centuries between settlement of Demeter and the reestablishment of contact with the rest of humanity, the Ecos developed their various mental disciplines, memetic sciences and biocontrol techniques to a high art unmatched anywhere else in the history of baseline and near baseline mindkind. Brev was just one of these accomplishments. Other examples of Ecos 'mentology' include: the ability to consciously control heart rate, respiration and body temperature at will allowing survival in the extreme cold, low oxygen environment of Demeter with minimal mechanical equipment; an autohypnotic conditioning series that triggers in the presence of low pressure or vacuum and allows survival in such conditions for brief periods of time, the ability to control pain, the ability to go for extended periods without sleep and the ability to concentrate and remember huge amounts of information with virtually perfect clarity.

It is said that when an Ecos gets cold, they don't turn up the heat, they just think themselves warmer.

When contact was reestablished with the rest of mindkind, the Ecos decided to break away from the rest of the Refugium Federation and rejoin the mainstream of civilization, although in a limited way. They had been reclusive even by the standards of the Federation and so this decision was not as radical as it might at first seem.

Upon seeing that the major part of civilization was actually run by the Archai, the hyperturings, the superbrights and the various tweaks and provolves, the Ecos (although not hostile to the status quo per se) determined to take action to rebuild what they saw as the wounded pride and marginalized state of the baseline population. As such they began sending out 'cultural missions' to contact the baseline populations and teach them their philosophy and techniques. It was in this process that Brev was introduced to civilization.

In the modern era, the Ecos continue to play a pervasive, if quiet role in baseline society. Demeter is still their only world, yet despite millennia of contact with civilization it continues to refuse a transport capable wormhole link. Only communications travel thru its one, 1mm wormhole. Despite this limitation, the Ecos are able to exert considerable influence when they wish, employing memetic weaponry of surprising sophistication and effectiveness. Their cultural missions can be found across known space and their bio/mental techniques continue to be employed by a significant fraction of the baseline population of the Wormhole Nexus and beyond and are rumored to be employed to some degree even by the Haloists and Backgrounders.

Todd Drashner

ecosystem

Community of organisms - whether biological or alife - interacting with one another and with the chemical and physical factors making up their environment.

ecotourism

Service industry built around tourism and leisure value of Garden Worlds and other ecologically sensitive areas. Ecotourist operators may often have to consider the needs of a local caretaker god or eco-protectionist clade

ectotherm

organisms - e.g. animals, neogens, etc - whose internal temperature changes with the environment. They rely upon behavior (e.g. lying in a sunny area) and sometimes bodily structures (heat-regulatory sails, etc) to control their body temperature.

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