Technological Epoch

A Technological Epoch is an unspecified length of sophontic time consisting of a generalized period of sequential, incremental technological development within an observed society or civilization.

• It is considered to consist of three Technology Levels or TLs.

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Please see the following AAB Library Data articles for more information:

• Technology
  • Technological Research
    • Ancients Foundation
    • Biotechnology
    • Imperial Research Station
    • Technology Incubator
  • Technological Systemics
    • Accelerating Tech Level
    • QREBS
    • Tech Age
    • Tech Eon
    • Tech Epoch
    • Tech Era
    • Tech Level Comparison Chart
    • Tech Period
    • Technology Level
    • Three Prime Technologies
    • Universal Technological Profile

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Description (Specifications)

Tech Epochs are very useful as the relationship between technological development and societal organization are considered roughly interdependent by most sophontologists.

Environmental mastery leads to urbanization and the development of more and more sophisticated devices and vehicles. As the environment is mastered, and scientific knowledge is fostered, more capable communication and energy management technologies are developed.

Increased mastery of the Three Prime Technologies leads to an interstellar society with time.

History & Background (Dossier)

In the highly diverse section of the galaxy known as Charted Space, a very wide variety of technological civilizations exist and often coexist, which means that metrics and protocols had to be developed not only for surveyors and scouts, but also for merchant princes, explorers, and sophontologists... among others. Rough guidelines exist for every TL, but alien civilizations have a way of exceeding or defying benchmarks, so the much rougher Technological Epoch designation was invented by the IISS. It encompasses three TLs spanning a very wide period of development making classification much easier, especially after a first contact scenario when little might be known about a new sophont society.

So, for instance, a very technology civilization containing technological benchmarks from TL-1, TL-2, and TL-3, would be known as a TL:1-3 society. The epochs are grouped into batches of three and when a society contains a higher benchmark than a set grouping, the higher default is defaulted to. For instance a society that might intitially be judged as a TL:1-3 society is observed to have TL-4 technologies, so it would then be reclassified as a TL:4-6 society, or simply a TL-4 society if higher technologies (...TL-5 or TL-6) were not judged to be present.

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 Far Future Enterprises or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Traveller Wiki Editorial Team
• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science