Ghosts

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Grandpa: Timmy, you’d better do your homework.

Timmy: I don’t have any homework grandpa, not since mom bought the neural inductance educator.

Grandpa: I don’t like you gallivanting about with those Bravaxians. Mark my words, they’re a bad influence.

Timmy: I don’t have to listen to you. You’ve been dead for almost a whole year now, and the service contract on your ghost is going to be up soon. You won’t be so bossy when your projector drone is packed up in the closet.

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The Eternal You Life Extension Group started offering services in the last decades of Era-0. Their most popular service was the Ghost System that would upload a complex simulation of the subject’s personality into an artificial intelligence system coupled to a holographic projection system. The Ghost System was installed in a drone or (less expensively) in a particular location, often a residence. The subject would buy an initial service contract (often for a year), with the option for extension going to the inheritors of the deceased’s estate.

A word about beads

Bead-making is possibly the widest-spread technology in the galaxy. It requires only the barest minimum of knowledge, and since most intelligent life-forms tend not to develop very sophisticated civilizations on their own, it is one technology that is accessible to nearly every intelligent species. They are made by species as diverse as the Vangalri, who lack the sense of sight, but use beads as part of their writing system, and Thanians, who make them underwater out of shells.

Bead-making was declared a “Galactic Heritage Technology” by the Planetary League in G.S.C. 435. All the major factions and nations have their own currencies, but the bead trade is the closest thing that exists to a universal currency. Even though the trade value of beads declines rapidly as technology improves, they remain at least somewhat relevant as a decorative item even on the most technically sophisticated worlds.

Numguinitiso paste

Numguinitiso paste  is a spicy condiment, light orange in color, that also acts as a mild numbing agent.  Slightly gritty in texture, it is a rare delicacy from the Empire of 1,000,000 Suns.  Humans generally enjoy numguinitiso paste on chicken or vegetables, mostly as a way to make relatively bland foods more interesting.  The numbing properties of numguinitiso paste make it a somewhat risky condiment, as many people have choked when their throats became too numb to swallow properly. 

Numguinitiso paste was invented around GC 1230 by the Vangalri chef Nalgax Blom.  The main ingredient in  numguinitiso paste is the same flying jellyfish-like creature that is also the base for the popular desert blovonde, but it is treated in a chemical bath that radically changes its properties. 

Personal Drone Swarms

Many of the galaxy's inhabitants, especially the well-to-do and those from technologically advanced worlds, are often attended by swarms of small robots.  These drones are typically coordinated via an app on the user's personal media device, or neural interface.

Often, a group of drones with related functions will be packaged and marketed together as a swarm.  One of the more popular swarms is the "Pixie Pals" by Pegasus Cybernetics, a group of personal security devices marketed primarily to young women.

Another common application of this technology is the personal constructor swarm, a group of robots designed to rapidly fabricate a wide variety of items.

Some personal drone swarms are purely ornamental, acting as a form of automated jewelry.

Flashlight Robot

The Flashlight Robot made by Pegasus Cybernetics, was originally designed as a gift by Barvik Muglow (one of Pegasus' lead engineers) for his son's birthday in GSC 65.  It was so popular among Muglow's coworkers that he later submitted an official prototype that was developed into the popular workshop assistant.

Standing a svelte 20cm high,(with the head extended), and weighing about half a kilogram, the Flashlight-bot was easily portable.  Later iterations of the design included additional features, such as a video projector.

Cargo Robots

Description

Cargo robots, commonly known as mules, are specialized in carrying around heavy loads.  They can often be seen making deliveries, accompanying explorers, and following armies into battle as logistics units.  Those who enjoy camping and other outdoor activities make frequent use of these robots to carry supplies. Mules are also a common accessory for those who don’t drive their own car as away to carry extra luggage. For any occasion where you’d like to have a robot to carry around your stuff, there’s a cargo bot ready for the job.

A common feature or modification is to equip a mule with an arm so it can even load and unload its self.

One common cargo robot is the PK-5 from Ares Systems, also known as the "Pack Mule".

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Another is the Mark-0, manufactured by Pegasus Cybernetics:

Plushite

Overview

Initially developed by engineers working for Comfort Systems, Inc. midway through Era-1, Plushite is a smart metamaterial used mainly in luxury furniture and clothing.  

Plushite conforms itself to the body of anyone who reclines on, or wears it.  More expensive grades also include bonus features such as temperature regulation, and even massage mode.  Even when inactive, Plushite is velvety-soft to the touch.

Plushite is difficult to fabricate, and accordingly expensive.  It is a luxury good primarily consumed by the wealthy, and its use is a status symbol.

In order to function as intended, a piece of Plushite needs to be connected to a base unit including a power supply and control circuitry.  Malicious parties with access to the control unit  have been able to subvert its programming to inconvenience, discomfort, and even assassinate users of Plushite.

Impact Ships

Description

Impact ships are designed to collect and launch asteroids or comets to impact with a planet.  Generally this is accomplished by landing thruster-drones on the object in order to dock it to a powerful railgun attached to the ship.

The technology was developed to terraform a planet by adding mass and desired chemicals (such as water and oxygen) to its environment.  This can boost a planet's gravity, improve its atmosphere, and even create oceans.

Unfortunately, the more cruel leaders and commanders also learned to use impact ships to rain destruction on whole planets.  The democratic societies of the galaxy see this later use of the technology as a crime, while the more despotic and Machiavellian see it as a means to an end.

During Era-2, the Holy Empire of Man included a large number of impact ships in its "Purification Fleet".