Technology

Technology is a series of inventions and adaptations that allow a sophont species to achieve mastery over themselves and their environment. Or, put another one way, technology is a developmental state when a sophont species uses tools to make other tools.

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Please refer to the following AAB library articles for related information:

• Technology
  • Technological Research
    • Ancients Foundation
    • Biotechnology
    • Imperial Research Station
    • Technology Incubator
  • Technological Systemics
    • Technology Level
    • Tech Level Comparison Chart
    • Universal Technological Profile

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Description (Specifications)

Some think of technology as only devices and gadgets created with advanced science, but it is much more than that. Technology is also a wide variety of non-biological adaptations to achieve mastery over a self-species in many forms: more efficient polities, more effective social organization, advanced language, insightful philosophies, and many other non-device oriented advancements.

Endotechnologies

No information yet available.

• Ideas (Memetic Thought AKA Extilligence AKA Culture)

Exotechnologies

No information yet available.

• Tools (Gadgets, devices, etc. AKA Engineering)

Socio-Technological Theory

No information yet available.

• Sophontium & Technium

History & Background (Dossier)

The first proto-sophonts are distinguished by their increasing use of technologies such as fire, advanced language, abstract concepts, and advancements in social organization. These many technologies give early sophonts a marked advantage over non-sophonts and allow such species to survive, proliferate, and achieve prosperity allowing more time to be dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge.

Appropriate Technology

The societies of most sophont species eventually discover that advanced technologies bring about a mix of cultural effects, both advantageous and disadvantageous. Technology affects culture and when culture is greatly changed by technology, a paradigmatic change may occur, often causing anarchy, revolution, and great unrest.

Major Race Change Adaptation

Some sophont species deal with change much more easily than others.

• The Hivers, for instance, have formed a society practically based on perpetual change. Hiver society is seemingly endlessly patient and adaptable. Few technologies have any chance of disrupting Hiver cultural mores and societal order.
• The Vargr, in another case, have practically made a fetish of paradigmatic change within the Vargr Extents. Their culture, society, and civilization are a whirlpool of anarchy, constant change, revolution, unrestrained chaos, a veritable recursive state of flux. The strength of the mindset is that Vargr society is an ever developing laboratory of experiment and progress. As opposed to the inflapable Hivers, technology constantly disrupts Vargr society, but they wouldn't have it any other way. Like any other social mechanism, it too has pros and cons.

Imperial Interstellar Trade & Indigenous Societies

Increasingly, Imperial society is realizing that unrestricted interstellar trade can often destabilize indigenous communities of NIL's and is increasingly restricting trade with these worlds to appropriate technologies determined by the IISS. The scout service uses the Travel Zone designation system to help protect indigenous societies from destabilizing outside influences. The system is also intended to protect travellers from dangerous and violent societies.

Some Terrans like to refer to this holistic idea of cultural relativism and principle of noninterference as a hypothetical prime directive, but that simply sounds ridiculous to Vilani intelligentsia. After all, every Vilani knows that idealism only goes so far, and cold hard realism and pragmatics are the foundation of the Vilani Theory of Science. Some Terrans have even proposed of a world without currency and sound economics. They clearly live in the world of niikiik-luur.

Detextualized Paradigmatic Problem

A Detextualized Paradigmatic Problem is a quandary that occurs when a less advanced sophont species must confront the more advanced technologies of another sophont species.

• Also called a DP Squared problem or a DP-2 error.
• Example: Recognizing Ancients artifacts as technological devices. They often look like nothing technological that TL-15 science might produce.

Clarkian Postulates

No information yet available.

Beyond Technology?

Technology is clearly a foundation of sophonce. To exceed the limitations of original biology, a sophont species must develop technology. But what about life after technology? How about life before life, so called A-life? Was the first life artificial or simply exotic? Was it life as we know it? What does one call that? Do sophonts exist who have transcended technology? Would we even recognize them if they did exist? What is the Post-Technological Period?

• Please see the AAB article at Singularity.

References & Contributors (Sources)

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• TBD
• TBD
• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science