United Galaxies Council.	Dictionary. File Under Repair.		United Galaxies Council.
This page is for those words which may be unfamiliar to readers. With the exception of Signal Flags (due to the length and detail necessry) they are listed alphabetically, and are indexed on this page. Some but not all are linked to this page or to the appropriate section of this page.
Air, Space, and Aerospace Craft Designators Astrocracy Casuistry Clariant Flag Chameleon Visible Wavelength Observation Limiting System Demonym Demonym DHARMA Drake's Equation Engineroom Box Extant "Field Kit" Force Majeure As Legal Term As Maritime Term Gendarmes Innocent Passage Kara Qalliph Diel'are Kah Yar Lettre De Cachet Massively Infected Persons		Minarchism Skinjob "Pax Galactica" "Persona Non Grata" "Reductive Fallacy" Phase Cloaking Planetry Oribit Technocide Time Measures "Traverse And Advance" T'sentraedi Varmint Veritech von Neumann probe Warp "WX" "The Reports of The Appropriations Sub-Committee Of the United Galaxies Council Investigative Commission On The Matter Of FBX 21555320" Signal Flags T'sentraedi Armor
Air, Space, and Aerospace Craft Designators: Air, space, and aerospace craft are given designators based on their status and mission and design. Status Prefix: These indicate craft not in normal service, or not in their normal service, and often indicate modifications; G: Permanently grounded J: Special test, temporary N: Special test, permanent X: Experimental Y: Prototype Z: Space/Air Variants (formerly "planning"); Aircraft converted for space use and spacecraft converted for atmospheric use. Mission Designators: A: Attack B: Bomber C: Cargo (i.e., transport) D: Drone director E: Electronic warfare F: Fighter H: Search and rescue, MEDEVAC K: Tanker L: Modified for cold weather operations M: Multi-mission (i.e., Special Operations) O: Observation P: Maritime patrol Q: Unmanned aerial vehicle R: Reconnaissance S: Anti-submarine warfare T: Trainer U: Utility V: VIP transport W: Weather reconnaissance
Astrocracy (a variant of thalassocracy) is a power source based on control of space lanes and trade; By definitions, an Astrocracy must also have a strong space naval power, which the UGC does (in the form of the Spacy, Spaceways Patrol And Enforcement Service, and Merchant Marine).
Casuistry ('kaeuistri/) is a method in applied ethics and jurisprudence, often characterized as a critique of principle- or rule-based reasoning. The word "casuistry" is derived from the Latin casus (meaning "case"). Casuistry is reasoning used to resolve moral problems by extracting or extending theoretical rules from particular instances and applying these rules to new instances, leading to unsound reasoning (laying the inconsistent or outright specious application of rule to instance), especially in relation to legal and moral questions. It forms a reasoning that is inherently unsound and deceptive; "Originally applied to a quibbling or evasive way of dealing with cases of duty."
Clariant Flag: The flag of the UGC. There are two version, the Gold-On-Blue Civil Flag, which is most commonly flown, and the Blac-On-Red Battle flag which is only flown when battle is about to commence. It is considered a minor dishonor to fly the battle flag without battle actually commencing, since unfurling the battle flag is a statement that blood will be shed this day (hence the red). As a result, even battle fleets rarely fly the battle flag unless operating under specific search and destroy orders. The only group usually seen to fly the battle flag is UGC Marines when operating on the ground. The emblem is really pretty simple; It's a Unicode dagger doubled up tip to tip, then turned 90 degree at the center. It was supposed to convey the idea that all would come together as one; In some cases this message reaches out, in others not so much.
		Clariant Civil Flag.	Clariant Battle Flag.
"Chameleon Visible Wavelength Observation Limiting System" (or more simply "Chameleon System" consists of hexagonal pleizio-ceramic tiles mounted to the skin of the craft that can be darkened or lightened as necessary to render the craft, for all intents and purposes, invisible. The further away the viewer is to the craft, the greater the distortion, making it harder and harder to see. At a range of only a half mile the craft becomes effectively invisible. The system only produces white light; Though coloring the lights IS possible, in practical use it proved to enhance to planes profile, making it easier to see, rather than harder. There are however exceptions to this norm (such as demonstration teams, certain combat deployed units such as ground attack missions, etc.). Colored lights are commonly used on ships to identify elements of the ship and to give the ship a flag (by coloring the lights to match the pattern of the flag in question; Most UGC warships in time of peace will fly the Clarion (yellow on blue), with a green stripe down her starboard side, a red strip down her port side, with perpendicular white stripes at regular intervals from amidships forward. A white light will run along her hull dorsal and aft, with green and red lights extending vertically from the white light on her dorsal side, and regularly spaced red and green lights parallel to the white lights on her ventral side. In time of war, warships run black, with individual red and green lights port and starboard, white lights ventral, and yellow lights dorsal. The ship will run a Red Clariont (the "blood flag") in the normal space.
Demonym: (dE-mohn-im), Name for a resident of a locality. Usually derived from the name of the locality; thus, the demonym for the people of England is English, and the demonym for the people of Italy is Italian, however this is not always the case, as the one used for the people of the Netherlands is Dutch. Also referred to as a gentilic. From the Hellenic word for "populace" and demos (Greek, "name"). Foreshadowed in demonymic, which the Oxford English Dictionary defines as the name of an Athenian citizen according to the deme to which he belonged, with first usage traced to 1893. Some places, particularly smaller cities and towns, may not have an established word for their residents; Toponymists have a particular challenge in researching these. In some countries, like Belgium and Luxembourg, there is strong tradition of "demonym-like nicknames," called blason populaire in French. In some cases, this blason populaire is frequently used as the name of the inhabitants. While many demonyms are derived from placenames, many countries are named for their inhabitants (Finland for the Finns, Germany for the Germans, Thailand for the Thais, Denmark for the Danes, France for the Franks, Slovakia for the Slovaks, and Slovenia for the Slovenes). Tribes and peoples generally have a longer continuous history than their countries; Tribal names often imply a descent from a single ancestor, such as Rus as the legendary ancestor of the Russians. In Bantu languages the name of the land and the name of the inhabitants will have a common root distinguished by different prefixes (e.g. Buganda, land, and Baganda, inhabitants). Some placenames originated as adjectives; In such cases the placename and the demonym are often the same word. This dual function is very common in French, where for example Lyonnais Lyonnais means either the region or an inhabitant of Lyon. Not all demonyms follow a strictly 1-1 path; For example, Terra is still commonly called "earth" and the inhabitants thereof Earthers, while those of genetic history are formally referred to as Terrans and informally as Humans. Inhabitants of and those of genetic history to Tirol are referred to as Tiresian in either case, unless one means to refine a specific case (for example, a Tiresian living on Terra might be referred to either way, depending on the the intent of of the reference). Some demonyms also imply species or race; For example, a Garudan is of a species native to Garuda, whether he lives there or not. In most such cases of "false demonyms," the species/race is first, the resident area second ("Gaurdan-Perytonian" being a Garudan who lives on Peryton). Additionally, while 'most' demonyms directly imply the locale (Terran, from "Terra"), some do not (a resident of Capitol Station is referred to as a Stater). Some demonyms also stated out as derogatory words; "Stater" (a resident of Capitol Station) was a reference to those who supported the "big state thinking" (an early claim of Terran anti-unificationists after the Invid Wars, back when "Capital Station" was in fact a rebuilt and modified T'sentraedi LIEWNEUATZS-Class Personnel Shuttle).
DHARMA: DHARMA is the ancyrnym for the Department of Heuristics And Research on Materials Application, a privately held publicly funded research group looking into the Valenzetti Equation, an equation which "predicts the exact number of years and months until humanity extinguishes itself," to allow humans to exist for longer by changing their doomsday. Though never fully explained, these factors were represented by the numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42; DHARMA members believed that by altering one of these six numbers in the equation they could prevent doomsday. The group was begun in 1970 by University of Michigan doctoral candidates Gerald and Karen DEGroot and initially funded by Alvar HANSO of the Hanso Foundation. In 1977 mathmetician Horace GOODSPEED was sent to an unnamed and unclaimed island to set up a "large-scale communal research compound", where scientists and free thinkers from around the globe could research meteorology, psychology, parapsychology, zoology, electromagnetism, and a sixth discipline that remains proprietary to this day. Many have alleged the group was involved in satanic rituals, deviate sexual acts, or other “nefarious” activities. During the construction of the site, workers drilled into a huge electromagnetic pocket, releasing a catastrophically dangerous amount of electromagnetic energy known as "the Incident". Nobody is exactly sure what happened, but monitors on the bore hole began transmitting the six numbers on a regular basis after that. In 1992, Benjamin LINUS, a DHARMA member, apparently went insane and killed many of his colleagues in an incident he reffered to as “a purge”, disposing of the bodies in a mass grave before dying of unknown causes himself. Twenty years later, Oceanic 815 crashed on the island, and the survivors of that crash discovered the remains of the site and attempted to shut it down, to no success. No one is entirely sure what DHARMA was doing nor why, in part because of “the purge” destroyed much of the facilities and eliminated anyone who might have testified to the groups intentions. However, it is believed the group accomplished their claimed goal of changing a critical Valenzetti Equation- a moot point, as The Visitor arrived hundreds of thousands of years before the equation would have resolved.
Engineroom Box: An Engineering Section Control Station ("Engineroom Box") is a compartment, usually small, partitioned off for the use of engineroom crew. These spaces are soundproofed to protect the crew from hearing loss, and as such are also called "Engineroom Soundproof Box," "Engineroom Soundproof Space," "Engineering Monitor Space" and variations thereof.
Field Kit (or "Field Kits") refer to any kits needed for field (non-developed, ie rural or wild land). However, it more specifically refers to kits need for XYZ operations; For example, a Veritech needs extensive repair equipment to operate over time, but only a few dozen or so tools to successfully return to base. A marked departure from this norm is certain craft designed from the outset to be able to carry essentially a small repair facility with them, most notably tanks (if equipped as field repair vehicles, such as the E-664 Badger Engineering Vehicle, M-611c "Charlotte" Perceval Repair Vehicle/M-613 Mobile Repair Facility), and very oddly the decedents of the AFZ-95 Headhunter (specifically the T-93 Theater Tactical Bomber, T-95 X-Wing Fighter, and the X-Ceptor). These carry full campsites of equipment, though in the case of the AFZ-95 and their decedents a hanger-sized tent was impractical, with a simple tarp and pole system that can be moved to the specific area being repaired being included (this is by no means a proper hanger; it's merely a rain cover, and more often than unused unless wx conditions demand it). A small VME is included in these craft, though why exactly is unclear.
Drake's Equation: A method used to estimate the number of intelligent civilizations in the Universe. R* times fp times ne times fl times fi times fc times L equals N; R* [the average rate of star formation in our Galaxy] times fp [the fraction of those stars that have planets] times ne [the average number of planets that can potentially support life per star that has planets] times fl [the fraction of planets that could support life that actually develop life at some point] times fi [the fraction of planets with life that actually go on to develop intelligent life (civilizations)] times fc [the fraction of civilizations that develop a technology that releases detectable signs of their existence into space] times L [the length of time for which such civilizations release detectable signals into space] times ] equals N [the number of civilizations in the Milky Way galaxy with which communication might be possible (i.e. which are on the current past light cone)]. After centuries of discovery, the UGC has determined that intelligent life develops in roughly 1% of all systems, with .002% of these developing multiple intelligent life bearing planets but around 75% of all planets with intelligent life developing multiple intelligent forms (for a global average of 3.331 species per planet).
"Force Majeure," French, lit. "superior force." It is used to describes uncontrollable (or unforeseeable) events (such as war, labor stoppages, or extreme weather) that are not the fault of any party (or any particular) party and that make it difficult or impossible to carry out normal business. As Legal Term: Companies routinely insert a force majeure clause into contracts to absolve themselves from liability in the event it cannot fulfill the terms of a contract (or if attempting to do so will result in loss or damage of goods) for reasons beyond their control. Likewise, stock markets routinely use force majeure to reverse stock purchase orders if either the buyer has insufficient funds to cover the purchase or if the seller has insufficient stocks to cover the sale (in such cases, the whole of the buy/sell order is reversed, regardless of any other conditions). As Maritime Term: Force Majeure is used by ships to allow passage through restricted territories, most specifically combatant or militry territories, when conditions beyond the ship's crew compel them to do so; The most common is fire aboard ship or mechanical breakdown that threatens the ship's safe navigation and sailing. When force majeure is applied, the vsl is permitted to anchor or dock (as necessary) to conduct the bare minimum repairs or other work necessary, thence immediately depart. A few parties have successfully (on occasion) used force majeure as a ruse to land for other clandestine efforts (mostly smuggling of various sorts), and to effect repairs necessary to economic viability rather than for mechanical and ship's safety (repairing damaged mining and smelting equipment, rather than engines or navigational arrays). When such deceptions are discovered ("bad faith force majeure" or "mal fidem fortia majeure"), a UGC flagged vsl will be impounded until the appropriate fine is paid; A non-UGC vsl is declared "persona non grata" and not permitted entry anywhere in the UGC, except by escort- And possible impoundment until the fine is paid. "Force Majeure" was also used as a 'ruse' to allow the landing of several Tininian ships in a half-dozen systems, who's crew and passengers them simply debarked and applied for asylum, allowing their vsls to be impounded on the spot; One particularly blunt captain "left the keys in the ignition" (to wit, she set the ship's voice lockout interface to default factory mode, allowing the first Patrol member into the bridge to reset the controls, thus making him the "new" captain- for about an hour).
Extant (ex-tant; 'ekstant, ek'stant/); Adjective: 1. intact; whole; complete. "the original manuscript is no longer extant, as several chapters were ripped away during the purge of the heretics." 2. (especially of a document) still in existence; existence; still existing; not destroyed or lost; surviving. The typical application is the former; This refers to billions of records, written, audio, and video, that are partially incomplete or nearly fully destroyed by history. Zor's records, for example, are far from extant; It's known that he recorded his discussions with the Regis, as he references those discussions elsewhere in his various records, but only one page of that record remains, which only logs minor details on the nature of the Flower Of Life itself, and is not particularly unknown. A document is considered "extant" when 95% remains, wherein no section of more than 0.2% is individually missing, and within a range of not more than 1% of the full document; For example, 1 paragraph in one section of one chapter and another paragraph in a another section of the same chapter of a book that is otherwise complete "might" be considered "lost" (the opposite of extant) if the chapter itself is too short, whereas a missing chapter of another document might still leave the document extant as it in total represents less than 4.9% of the full document. A codex that is missing a full volume can not be considered extant under any circumstances. In certain cases, the gravitas of the missing sections is weighed in as a consideration of the matter; For example, the loss of the Resrian Chronicles Of Lineage, while representing 50% of the overall Resrain Chronicles, was considered "not significantly important" to leave the chronicles "lost" as they only traced the history of the Resrians births, deaths, and domiciles, and while this did impact Resrian history, it's loss in no way changed the facts of events.
Gendarmes: A common slur for UGC law enforcement and the REF. From the Terran term "gendarmerie," a militry force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. Local law enforcement rarely is referred to by this term, unless it's UGC territorial possessions where the local government is under the direct control of Council ("collaborators with the invaders"). It's not clear how this particular term came into usage, but it has been in use since the Atorian War.
Innocent Passage: Innocent passage is an ancient Terran concept ensconced in UGC law that allows a non-UGC vessel to transit through UGC terror unhindered, so long as its passage is not prejudicial to the "peace, good order, or security of the UGC." The peace, good order, and security clauses require that the vsl does not engage in militry (or paramilitry), economic, or propaganda activities nor attempt to do so, nor that she prevent other vsls from transiting the territory, nor interfere with UGC vsls in any way. Non-UGC vsls pass through UGC territory all the time; In many cases it's unavoidable. The original laws held that a vsl engaged in innocent passage could not enter inland waters; since there is no "inland waters" analog for spaceways, the applicable sections were removed, however a non-UGC vsl that attempts to land on a planet, moon, asteroid, etc. in territory claimed by the UGC will find their "innocent passage" claims questioned very quickly. Very few empires before the UGC held any analog to innocent passage, and none with such breadth of freedom. Rare if ever are ships acting under this law even bothered, unless prior issues with this ship or the state claiming governance over her have arisen. At most the ship will be queried (typically an automated process) the determine her home port, current destination, and course, and in some cases to offer assistance in further passage. Indeed, ships from many non-UGC states wander around the UGC pretty freely, with rare issues arising.
Kara Qalliph Diel'are Kah Yar: The T'sentraedi "Rain Of Death." Literally translated, it's "dreaded death extinguishment attack" (though "dread" and "death" are reversed in order, per T'sentraedi linguistic encoding), but more intuitively it means simply "genocide."
Lettre De Cachet: An arrest warrant signed by an executive (such as a king) and delivered at the request of executive officials or family members. These letters, whose wax seal or cachet had to be broken in order to be read, allowed individuals to be incarcerated indefinitely and without legal recourse. Lettre De Cachet are not strictly illegal in the UGC, but since all such matters involve national security (and usually national defense), they must be processed through the Council itself. These extraordinary arrest powers have been abused, in some cases egregiously, in the past.
Massively Infected Persons: The technical term for any person who is infected with an agent that alters their nature of their character- This is the acceptable term used in place of Skinjob in medical and technical submissions.
Minarchism: Also called the "night watchman state," is a belief that the state exists solely to the protection of individual rights from aggression, theft, breach of contract, and fraud, and generally proposes that the only legitimate governmental institutions are the An Ancient "Minarchist" Flag. militry, fire and police, courts, and the bare essential services thereof requisite (prisons, etc.), with as little as possible interference from the state as practical. To advance the concept, the UGC has consistently imposed the most limited taxation rate possible; After a century of taxation, the Council began rebating to the people 75% of all over taxed amounts (in other words, monies NOT spent by the Council) to propel the economy. While prior monies were kept (this roughly equally a decade of Council bills), the rebates remain in place; The so-called "Rainy Days Fund" now totals a full century of services, and as a result the Council has debated annually raising the rebates level (these bills have consistently been shelved in committee, though a few have managed to move from one Hall of the Council to the other). This political theory is the basis for a number of UGC principles; For example, the right to keep and bear arms is TANTAMOUNT throughout the UGC's territories. Only certain narrowly defined restrictions on the ownership and possession of weapons, passed specifically by the Council ITSELF, are legal under UGC law (a matter which has been tested so many times, the UGC finally caved to the strain and imposed sanctions against those who were testing the law to end the daily battles). It is also why the UGC's social safety net is rather thin, designed to JUST keep her residents off the street and, to the greatest extent possible, gainfully employed. Several attempts have been made to shift the UGC to other political models; Volunteerism (the idea that one gives to the state on a willing basis), Feudalism (based on contractual obligations), and Service-State (where one pays exclusively based on services "actually rendered," therefore after the fact), were pushed by one side, while the opposition has consistently pushed for expanded state services and influences (commiserate with increased tax rates). These efforts have consistently proven fruitless, with only the most modest gains in any significant arena, and virtually NO gains in insignificant ones; The right of "freebooters" (unregistered starship crews and colonists) to live without any UGC or other state interference was a 'right' hard-won; It became a Pyrrhic victory when the UGC forbade "subordinate states" to come to the assistance of freebooters under any circumstances (even humanitarian or pure evacuation situations, though tests of the UGC's resolve of purely humanitarian, evacuation, and etc. have rarely come to any significant injury to those violating the ban). This order does not apply to "accidental colonists" (shipwreck survivors), who must by law be evacuated once discovered, or "non-nationally flagged vsls" (ships from empires -other than- the UGC, which are technically illegal but pragmatically very real and unavoidable).
Skinjob: A highly derogatory term for biologic forms of unnatural development; It encompasses, in one fell swoop, every derogatory term into one word. It should be noted that "skinjob" referres only an specifically to INTELLIGENT artificial biological forms (in other words, simulagents, replicants, and sometimes clones), or to naturally developed bioforms that are inverse developed- In other words, those infected with the "zombie virus." While such language is 'generally' discouraged, such hatred is extraordinarily common, especially of simulagents (which are exceedingly rare, even amongst the Invid, being supplanted entirely by the Stage 5 Invid), replicants (which are STRICTLY illegal, and even carries the death sentence for being or making of in the Kobolese Confederation), and is tacitly encouraged of those afflicted by the zombie virus. It should be noted that this term is considered EXTREMELY derogatory- So much so that it can not be said on broadcast networks (except cable) nor in news media (it must be bleeped out when used). The exact provenance of the term is shrouded in mystery, seemingly having multiple societies developing the same basic concept (though very often different terms, all of which implies a bag of skin filled with an unnatural body and/or corpse). In such cases "Skin" (or "Skins" in plural) is typically used, much like "feck" is used in place of "fuck." This word is considered so deroggatory that using it as an insult towards a person who is not massively infected HAS been suborned as a defense to misdemeanor assault and battery, and on rare occasions even felony battery, though not to a fully successful murder defense.
"Persona Non Grata" (plural: personae non gratae, Latin:"person not appreciated") is a person whose entering or remaining in a particular territory is unwelcome by that territory's government. Being so named is the most serious form of censure which an empire can apply to foreign diplomats, who are otherwise protected by diplomatic immunity from arrest and other normal kinds of prosecution. In diplomacy, it is a specific order to remove a member of a diplomatic corps and/or their staff, and is usually reserved for those who've committed specific crimes against the UGC or her citizens. In non-diplomatic usage, referring to someone as persona non grata is to say that he or she is banned from a region, but will not be prosecuted for whatever misconduct they committed therein; Such a person is shunned, so as to be effectively non-existent. The imposition of a persona non grata sanction against a UGC citizen requires a two-fold standard; They must not own or rent property within the jurisdiction and must not be employed there, even if their employer has business there. Corporate presidents can be declared persona non grata by a territory, but the business itself can remain- The president just can't set foot there. (This is often used by municipalities and counties to officially banish routine or habitual serious misdemeanants, and occasionally by regions or systems to officially condemn business practices of the largest corporations that have not committed any crime other than just "not being well liked.") Persona non grata status in no way effects force majeure cases UNLESS prior force majeure abuses have occurred with this same individual, in which case they may be taken into custody and their ships or vehicles impounded until a fine is paid, or until a higher legal authority intervenes.
"Phase Cloaking" is an extension on the more traditional cloaking technology designed to phase sequence the structure of matter and energy to such a rate that it was possible to allow any vessel utilizing such a device to pass through normal matter in the phased state. Phase cloaking technology was first started in 2298; A working prototype was built and tested in 2358. For reasons not clear to anyone, the UGC has elected not to move forward with this technology, although Chameleon Visible Wavelength Observation Limiting System serves a functionally identical purpose, without high levels of radiation or expenses thereof incurred.
"Planetry Orbit" is a legal term used by the UGC comprised of Orbital, Sub-Orbital, and Atmospheric ranges. Thier application is primarily to determine where space-born vsls have a right to be, where they are not permitted to go, and who would hold legal authority over them in the event of an issue. Orbital Space: The area in which a primary body's own gravity can effect another body of 1.5 tons or less or within the orbit of said body's natural satellites of 1 lbs. or more, "whichever is further." These were not an arbitrary measures, but rather based on the 3,000 lbs Terran American Mercury-Series Space Capsules or to the orbital rings of certain bodies (mostly gas giants), as the rings can present hazards to safe navigation. (The Mercury-Series is a nearly 1-1 analogy to every other independently space faring specie's first platforms in basic function and configuration for which extant data still existed, and as such was as the benchmark.) Sub-Orbital: Anywhere within a given planet's gravitational zone wherein a contact is certain unless measures otherwise are taken; In other words, if you're gonna land whether you like it or not. Atmospheric: Within the atmospheric envelop of a given body. Any body without an atmosphere can not have an "atmospheric" range by definition. (A body is considered to be "atmospheric" when the gasses around it are significant enough to form 1 foot-pounds pressure at lowest surface point; to use a lesser measure would place literally every natural body in the universe, less some rogue planets that have suffered catastrophic eviction from their native systems, within the "atmospheric" range.)
"PaxGalactica": Concept: The idea that control over the entire universe leads to peace since everyone obeys the same overall empire. This is the simplified (some say reductive fallacy) explanation of the UGC's "ban" on foreign empires, a movement that began with the Tiresian/Tśentrædi/Terran block and quickly joined by other factions during the Unification War.
"Reductive Fallacy": Concept: The fallacy of the single cause (also oversimplification or reduction fallacy) is a fallacy of questionable cause that occurs when it is assumes that there is a single, simple cause of an outcome when in reality it may have been caused by a number of only jointly sufficient causes. Black letter UGC LAW does not provide for reductive fallacies, however the same black letter laws (as the Federated Rules Of Courtroom Procedures, Volume I) does provide that "No Jurist shall allow to pass their bench any matter that is incomplete in context, scope, or full weighted or mitigating values unchecked," thus opening judges to independently object to evidence, testimony, and arguments presented before them. A fine example of reductive fallacy is the idea that FBX 21555320 was lost solely on Ascension Supremacy's betrayal of the RDF and REF during the seismic upheavals, when in fact the conflict had already been going badly for at least a year before Ascension Supremacy was even publicly known about.
Technocide: The disdain for technology of so many societies and species throughout the UGC is well documented- The most extreme case is The Landsraad League, and within them the The Fremen. However, certain technologies have evolved to a strange point in which they correctly claim certain rights- They are considered living creatures. Most of these are various robots, though there is at least one species of ship (the GOMTUU-Class). The term "technocide" was coined to address movement towards the destruction of these "species." Technocide is not a legal term in the UGC- The destruction of a technological species is still listed as genocide, and carries the same penalty (death by gravity assisted ligature strangulation in a 1G or equivalent environment).
Time Measures: The measure of time is a critical in any respect; Most time period used here are well-understood (second, minute, hour, day, year, century, millennium). However, a few are not. This list is by no means either extant nor meant to be; Only time periods used here that are not normally used are listed. For the fullest currently available set, go HERE Terms are listed in alphabetical, not period length, order. Myriaannum: 10,000 years.
"Traverse And Advance" Technical Term: As ships and aerospace craft attempt to change from a strictly forward motion, they don't simply "turn." They continue moving along a course relative to the original, "curving" into the new course. The degree of the curve is referred to collectively as "traverse and advance." The traverse is how far into the new course they can get, the advance is how far along the original course they must go; The higher the traverse to advance ratio is, the tighter the turn, hence a 3-to-1 T&E (such as a fighter would have) is a much tighter turn than say a 3-to-1 (more aligned to a ship or bomber). This is also referred to colloquially as the turn radius. Speed influences traverse and advance into the increasingly negative; With very few exceptions, the faster you go the higher your traverse to advance ratio is, and in most cases on a exponentive basis (going twice as fast will increase t&e more than twice as much). In many cases, the t&e can be influenced by vsl profile (yawing an F/A-18 8 degrees can reduce the t&e by up to 12%, since the air itself is assisting the turn by providing resistance against the fuselage and ailerons), while in other cases is required to make any turn (a C-130 must yaw as it makes a turn of any sort, or risk making her 5 degrees turn of several dozens of miles, rather than several dozens of feet).
T'sentraedi: Noun: (seh-en-TROH-Dee) The T'sentraedi are a breed of cloned, hyper-militarized race of quasi-giants created by the Robotech Masters. Physically most resemble humans with unique skin and hair colors. In order to better maintain control of the T'sentraedi, the Tiresian slavers trained them only in the limited mix of skills which were necessary for the soldier's particular role in the T'sentraedi military; The T'sentraedi were never trained in the repair and maintenance of their equipment, making them dependent on easily controlled supply stations and factory asteroids. The T'sentraedi were segregated by sex and trained to distrust the opposite sex (though this taboo was intermittently broken) outside of the battlefield. As is occasionally seen in languages of Terra (and others, such as the Garduans and some Carbonaran languages), the larger full body is normally referred to in masculine form, with exclusionary female body referred to in the feminine. As a result, T'sentraedi refers to all of the species, while Meltrandi refers strictly to female T'sentraedi. It is considered a minor slur to refer to a female as a T'sentraedi, though this 'slur' is usually taken in stride, and often given no notice at all, especially with mi'cronne. Until 2080, all T'sentraedi were engramed strictly for war, with no other concepts possible, or only under extreme circumstances. (In 2072, a project to re-engram all T'sentraedi had it's final full effect, and the last known 'wild' T'sentraedi surrendered to Terran-aligned forces.)
Varmint: Noun: An objectionable or undesirable animal, usually predatory, as a coyote or bobcat, or destructive to crops and land, as a crow or insects, or disease carrying, as rats or cockroaches; Middle English vermyne, Middle French vermin, vermine, Vulgar Latin erminum, vermina, Latin vermin (worm). The UGC's "Vermin Standard" is a law within the UGC allowing certain species, including sentient ones, to be killed on sight, and without provocations. This includes Orcs, Magog, and certain other dangerous and intractable species. The Beorge are also included on this list, as they have continued to refuse to surrender in any way, shape, or form.
Veritech: Any variety of transforming air, space, land, and undersea combat craft. Abbreviation for Variable Engineering and Robotic Integration TECHnology. Abbreviated "VT." The nomenclature for Veritechs generally follow that established in the 20th century by the US Armed Forces. Most Veritechs have three forms (called "Modes"), a robot ("Battloid"), vehicle, and half-and-half form (called "Guardian" in all aircraft Varitechs, and is ussually applied in other types as well). Occasionally misspelled as Varitech. Significantly, the VF-06 Super Alpha Veritech and Logan Fighter do NOT have a Guardian Mode, nor do 'most' ships that possess Veritechnology. Should not be confused with "GERWALK" (Ground Effective Reinforcement of Winged Armament with Locomotive Knee-Joint), which really just gobbledygook but is generally applied to Guardian-only mode Aero-Space Mecha.
Von Neumann Probe: Named for the Hungarian/American Terran John von NEUMANN (28 December 1903 to 08 February 1957), a mathematician, physicist, inventor, computer scientist, and polymath, an "von Neumann probe" is any sort of machine that is capable of reproducing itself autonomously using raw materials found in the environment, thus exhibiting self-replication in a way analogous to that found in nature. The concept had applications in terms of lunar and extra-planetary development, and limited versions of these machines are often used by the UGC in preparatory colonization (these having no extra-planetary flight capabilities [they can't leave once they've landed] and automated or sensory-directed program termination routines [once they've met their objectives, they begin shutting down, with more advanced systems actually beginning the process of dismantling and recycling their components for future use]).
"Warp Factor" is the primary means of measuring warp speed. The term is often shortened to warp when followed by its value, as in "warp six." Faster-than-light travel began at warp one, whereas lower fractional values are sometimes used to measure sublight speeds. Spacecraft ordinarily travel at a warp factor until entering the gravity well of a planet or other body the ship intends to enter into the orbit of (excluding stars). Each factor of Warp is one full light-year per hour; Thus Warp 1 is 6,213,711,922,400 MPH (33Qfps). Warp speeds are NOT adequate for intergalactic travel, but more than adequate for inter-stellar and inter-planetary travel.
"WX": Abbreviation; "Weather," typically inclement or extreme weather.
"The Reports of The Appropriations Sub-Committee Of the United Galaxies Council Investigative Commission On The Matter Of FBX 21555320"
There is no denying that FBX 21555320 was a debacle. Period. Everything that could go wrong, DID. Within a month of the last UGC troops being pulled off-planet, the first calls for a full investigation into FBX 21555320 were made; Within days, the first bill was presented before the Hall of Councilors, which passed with 75% Yea votes. It then went to the Hall of Senators, where it passed with 95% Yea votes. It was formally signed the next morning into law by the Chairman Nene HAYES-BUNTCURE (T'sentraedi-Terran). (She had actually signed the bill the week before, expecting it to pass; it was discovered 50 years later by a "typographical error" in the final page of the bill, the page her handwritten signature went on, from a change in verbiage between Councilors and Senators.) Because of the scope of the investigation, it was broken down into several parts: Testimonial Committee: The Testimonial Committee's only job was to call forth witnesses (willing and not so willing) and to hear out volunteer witnesses on what happened. They were given subpoena powers (including potential prison time, if the committee so decided), immunity powers, and "every power usual, common, or appropriate to a justice in any legal proceedings." Over 100,000 thousand witness were called; The last witness was released after only two years, and within 2 weeks the last transcript of witness testimony was signed, a remarkable response overall. Evidence Committee: The evidence committee's only job was to review and, as appropriate, accept evidence, both physical and documentry, of what happened. Once such evidence was accepted, it was placed into the Evidence Locker, which meant the QUEADOL MAGDOMILLA-Class QM 214773771a. Debate Committee: The Debate Committee's job was to discuss the witness's testimony and the evidence and reach a conclusion. The Debate Committee consisted of several sub-committees; In the end, the most important became the Appropriations Sub-Committee. The Appropriations Sub-Committee's job was to take the conclusions of the Debate Committee and recommend funding. They did so in several dozen reports: Appropriation 21 (said "Appropriation Two One"), formally "The Twenty First Report of The Appropriations Sub-Committee Of the United Galaxies Council Investigative Commission On The Matter Of FBX 21555320" and commonly referred to as "App Two One" was the report issued in 2481. The Debate Committee found that the lack of flexibility in UGC equipment, specifically aero-space equipment, was a contributing factor. The Appropriations Sub-Committee therefore recommended that all UGC aero-space equipment be upgraded in any way possible to increase flexibility, especially in the development of seaplane and ice operations capability. Based on this report, all UCG aerospace craft are now equipped with artic operation ski-gear. Essentially, the original landing gear well hatch was removed and replaced with a set of skis that the wheel can pass through, with a smaller hatch inside the ski for the wheel itself. Appropriation 43 (said "Appropriation Four Three"), formally "The Fourty Third Report of The Appropriations Sub-Committee Of the United Galaxies Council Investigative Commission On The Matter Of FBX 21555320" and commonly referred to as "App Four Three" was issued in 2482 SLEP. The Debate Committee agreed with virtually all the witnesses that anti-grav pod mines had been a critical factor in the defeat on FBX 21555320. This lead to the development of retractable wheels for all UGC ground vehicles that used grav pods and the development of equipment that could hopefully detect such mines in time to prevent them from working, or at very least cause them to detonate before the main force reached it. Amongst other things to come of this, the M-615 M.U.L.E. was fitted with grav pods, MRI-based mine detection equipment, and magnetic clamps. Appropriation 93 (said "Appropriation Nine Three"), formally "The Ninety Third Report of The Appropriations Sub-Committee Of the United Galaxies Council Investigative Commission On The Matter Of FBX 21555320" and commonly referred to as "App Nine Three" was the report issued in 2488. The Debate Committee found that the lack of "adequate equipment for self-defense on militry support vehicles, i.e. self-defense guns" was a contributing factor. The Appropriations Sub-Committee recommended emergency retrofits to existing UGC equipment that previously hadn't been armed.
Signal Flags
Flags remain a critical signaling method in the UGC, even in space; Ships equipped with "Chameleon System" can actually arrange their diodes to "paint" the ship in the desired flag, though in some cases (such as the bravo flag) the flag "rotates" around the hull. Letter Word Image Meaning Letter Word Image Meaning A Alpha "I have a diver below/EVA; Keep clear at slow speed." S Sierra "Operating astern." B Bravo " I am taking on or discharging explosives" (or other dangerous materials). T Tango "Keep clear; engaged in trawling."q C Charlie "Yes"/"Affirmative" U Uniform "You are standing into danger." D Delta "I am maneuvering with difficulty; Deep clear." V Victor "I require assistance." E Echo "I am directing my course to starboard."q W Whiskey "I require medical assistance." F Foxtrot "I am disabled; communicate with me." Can also mean "Launching/Recovering Shuttles (fighters)." X X-Ray "Stop carrying out your intentions and watch for my signals." G Golf " I require a pilot." Y Yankee "I am dragging anchor." H Hotel "I have a pilot on board." Z Zulu "I require a tug." I India "I am directing my course to port."q 1 One "Numeral one." J Juliet "I am on fire and have dangerous cargo; Keep clear." 2 Two "Numeral two." K Kilo "I wish to communicate with you." 3 Three "Numeral three." L Lima "You should stop your vessel immediately." 4 Four "Numeral four." M Mike "My vessel is stopped; making no way." 5 Five "Numeral five." N November "No or negative." 6 Six "Numeral six." O Oscar "Man overboard." 7 Seven "Numeral seven." P Papa "All personnel return to ship; Proceeding to sea (Inport)." 8 Eight "Numeral eight" Q Quebec "Ship meets health regs; Request clearance into port."q 9 Niner "Numeral nine" R Romeo "Preparing to replenish (At sea). Ready duty ship (Inport)." 0 Zero "Numeral zero" q; These codes are 'largely' obsolete by current standards; As such, the codes were altered in 2215 as follows: Echo/India: The meaning remains the same, but the signal only has to show in the direction you intend to turn (i.e. you only show the India Flag on your port side, Echo on starboard). Quebec: ""I Have Cleared Inspection" (usually meaning local customs, sometimes SPAES as well). Tango: "Keep Clear; Towing Astern" (usually meaning asteroids, comets, or other unpowered objects).
T'sentraedi Armor
There were two basic types of T'sentraedi Armor, the Gluu-Ger Light Body Armor and Serau-Ger Heavy Battle Armor. The Gluu-Ger was intended mainly for those entering battle in mecha; The Serau-Ger was intended mainly for those entering battle without, or in Nousjadel-Ger Power Armor (or Queadluun-Rau for Meltraedi, though the basic flight suit was typically worn by females in all cases).
T'sentraedi Gluu-Ger Light Body Armor.		T'sentraedi Serau-Ger Heavy Battle Armor.