Commonwealth Science Council

Perhaps the most important governmental organisation within the Commonwealth apart from parliament, ministries and the positions of leadership - Such as the Chancellor and Prime Minister -, the **Science Council** is the main institution responsible for managing technological advancements throughout the Commonwealth. In accordance with national ethics, the pursuit of reason and the materialist background of the nation shape the council to be an important body that shapes everyday lives of citizens in the Commonwealth, the Galactic Entente and the Galactic Cluster as a whole. Overall, the Science Council is separated into five independent divisions; The Physics Division, BioSoc Division, Engineering Division, Psionics Division and, finally, the Public Patents Division. Many of these divisions have their own separate institutions spread across most Commonwealth worlds, operating at near total independence, if not for their use of public funding allocated by the Parliament, with economic advice. When consulted, members of the three main bodies of the council, those being the Physics, BioSoc and Engineering, assemble to engage in voting measures and direct efforts concerning projects involving all major branches. Although minor in comparison to the big three, the Psionics Division has been emerging throughout the last decades, meanwhile the Public Patents Division remains a mostly minor institution for privatised research businesses and public discoveries made by the average population.

By 2350, there is talk about the creation of another body, the *Extradimensional Division*, yet no conclusions have been reached at the moment. Overall, the efforts of the Science Council have led to the development of several important inventions - Some such discoveries being; Mapping of Genomes, Uplifting technology, Discovery of Wormhole Technology, Mapping of the sentient brain, Cybernetic implants, Extradimensional technology, and many others. Currently, all Divisions have their main centres at the surface of Ortus, although the BioSoc Division mainly focuses its developments throughout its numerous laboratories in Zanaam.

## **Physics Division**

*For further information on the institution, check the Physics Division article.*

This Division of the Science Department has its efforts focused on cybernetics, computing technology, field manipulation and particle research. It is led by Dr. Roman Poniewski, a renowned human scientist known for his work on wormhole technology and later the cybernetics of sentient bodies. The Physics Division focuses mainly on systems and programs, those being the basis for cybernetics and computing at their cores.

Overall, it is the 3rd. Most influential group within the science council. It is perhaps because of the deeply theoretical work performed by the researchers of this area, that most of the accomplishments reached by the physics department have gone unnoticed by the common public. Some notable scientists that have shared their work with the division are Shen Kuo, Bo Mao, Hask’Teragg and Kaghoreem. Overall, over 3 Billion researchers are assigned to this department, mainly concentrated in the worlds of Zanaam, Codria, Sinir, Ortus, Moroz and Valin.

Another notable role played by the Physics Division are found in weapon and shielding development, firstly with the theoretical experimentation, and then with the first drafts of the technology utilised for the creation of military hardware & software. It is because of this cooperation with the military that the department also shares many projects with the Engineering Division, one example being with the development of the Living Metal, a technology formed by nano-machines capable of altering the physical shape with a given command. Other than that, the division is also famous for its breakthroughs in the development of wormhole technology, a feat achieved by the efforts of Roman Poniewski himself in 2202.

## BioSoc Division

*For further information on the institution, check the BioSoc Division article.*

Founded during the work of professor Aadhira Tanwar, the BioSoc Division is the largest and most famous wing of the Science Council, responsible for societal, anthropological and xenological work, as well as studies of DNA, gene tailoring and mapping of life as a whole. The department is currently run by Dr. Fern'Huss, a leading biologist who made a name for himself with his work improving Minervan spiders for ground combat. Overall, the focus of BioSoc is improving biological sciences, as well as advancing the Commonwealth's boundaries over the creation of life as a whole.

Having accumulated a number of groundbreaking achievements throughout the years, it's no wonder that the BioSoc department holds the most influence in terms of decisions in the council. Despite having lost some of its prominence once the transition to cybernetics bodies was enacted all throughout the Commonwealth, the Division nevertheless conducts most of its projects on its own, rarely jointly working with the other big two, and only sometimes sharing scientific projects with the Psionics Division. It is perhaps because of that prominence that the BioSoc department counts with the work of around 11 Billion researchers and scientists scattered throughout the Commonwealth, working all the way from microbiology, to botany, zoology and even the most theoretical of thesis found in anthropology. The most notable researchers to have worked with BioSoc Division up to this day are Aadhira Tanwar, Drahoslav Tesar, Lifres dol'Gath, Melanie Grioud and Suclien cur'Padam, among others.

The main role executed by the Biological Division of the council is to improve living conditions of the population, as well as engage in a myriad of projects that will themselves be of use for society as a whole. As an example of their work, the Kithri Uplifting Project, was an initiative that evolved a prehistoric species to a state of near-total sentient independence, allowing them to thus become OCN citizens. Another example was the creation of the Vrinn species, the first ever artificial creation of sentient life, gifted to the Commonwealth by the work led by Professor Aadhira Tanwar. Amidst near-constant technological discoveries, it was BioSoc's gene tampering which provided all races with an extended lifespan and an improved quality of life to work in the Commonwealth.

## **Engineering Division**

*For further information on the institution, check the Engineering Division article.*

Driven by logic and pragmatism at the forefront, the Engineering Division of the science council is staffed by the researchers responsible for the marvels built all across the Commonwealth. Under direction of Professor Mahesh Pillai, the department specialises in the fields of economics, chemistry, industrial research, material research, void research (That is, the research on the construction of interstellar vessels) and propulsion research. At its core, the main role conducted by the Engineering Division is to assist in industrial and economical research, as well as provide the theoretical basis for many projects of military origins commissioned by the Commonwealth's Armed Forces.

Influential and decisive to its own right, the Engineering Division may be the one group that amassed the most amount of wealth for the OCN and then the Commonwealth, for it was with their cunning and designs that the human nation managed to lift off and ascend to the stars. Despite this, the cooperation between the department and the Physics branch of Commonwealth research is frequent, a matter exemplified by the development process of wormhole technology, which was a project spearheaded by men such as Dr. Poniewski, but worked upon and constructed by scientists the likes of Professor Nestor Lachinov. This matter often places the Engineering department in second place when regarding size and influence - Not for their charisma, but for their creations. Overall, there are 6 Billion researchers assigned under this department alone, while some of the most noteworthy leadership are known by the works of Nestor Lachinov (The father of interstellar construction), Proctor Shivangi Bhat, Frieda Reiter, Elgothuum and Lifres had'Sald, among many others. All in all, the projects of the Engineering Division have resulted in works such as the Ortus Spaceport, the Merit-class Citadel, the great habitat stations of Project Starhome, the technologies allowing for the construction of CSV Archon and the joint project with the Physics Division, culminating in Project Gatecrasher.

True to its roots, the Engineering branch of the council remains to this day as the main producers of military technology of the Commonwealth. Along with submitting designs and technologies to the public market, the department is known for joint ventures with corporations - Namely, companies such as the Ilmarinen Foundation and Raywater Incorporated. That way, the Division is able to raise some money to fuel its own sets of special projects, an example of such being the creation of powered exoskeletons by Professor Nestor Lachinov himself. However, the main source of cooperation still remains with the Armed Forces, and the department has assisted the forces since the very beginning of their conceptions, let it be with armour proposals for Akuka-class Corvettes or state-of-the-art reactors for the Terra-class Flagship.

## **Psionics Division**

*For further information on the institution, check the Psionics Division article.*

Founded only recently, in 2326, amidst the psionic warfare context riddled within the Ancestral War, the Psionics Division is perhaps one of the most experimental fields of research of the Commonwealth. It deals with matters such as psionics, primarily, but also leads in fields such as the study of extradimensional technology, along with teams from the Physics Division. The department is managed by Dr. Sandra Fischer, and the main responsibility of the division is separated into the many fields of psionics; History & previous uses, capabilities, weaknesses & strengths, connections to the Light, connections to the Enlightened, uses against the Unbidden, among others.

Due to its highly theoretical nature, the research efforts of the Psionics Division oftentimes occupy the total schedule of the scientists and researchers, making their presence in the media just as sparse as it is secretive. Nevertheless, it is due to these efforts in the field that the Commonwealth has discovered so much information about the use of psychic powers throughout the years. The uses have been specially seen in military campaigns, let it be with the psionic thrusters utilised during the early years of interstellar warfare (An effort spearheaded by the Engineering Division at the time, as there was no Department focused solely on psionics) or the use of psionic operatives in the army and, later on, in the Commonwealth’s internal security forces, nowadays grouped into the infamous Task Force Ethereal. In 2350, the Psionics Division numbers over 1 Billion researchers, usually focused on the Acean Pyramid found in Redamon Prime. Due to the heavily stigmatised topic of Psionics in the Commonwealth, the department usually conducts research under the notice of the general public, and oftentimes in a manner which does not bring much media support. The most notable scientists that have worked in the field of psionics are Sandra Fischer, Nestor Lachinov, Aadhira Tanwar, Idris Bishop, and many others.

After the loss of many psionic operatives in the Battle of Voice, then during the terror attacks of the Last Light, the issue of psionics became a matter of study only, and not implementation in everyday life. Because of that, such studies are conducted by non-gifted individuals or by those who have undergone cybernetic ascension, making the research process and scientific breakthroughs significantly slower and more difficult to come by.

## **Public Patents Division**

Run by a smaller contingent of researchers and administrators, the Public Patents Division is tasked with receiving designs and technologies submitted by the citizens of the Commonwealth and thus turning them into officially tested technology for use on the fields of everyday life. By functioning as a separate entity, the Division is able to organise itself and manage the inventions of all corners of the nation accordingly, providing the adequate prize depending on the utility of the technology presented. It is because of that freedom of research across all fields that the department has a level of flexibility like no other, oftentimes partnering up with the three larger divisions in an effort to fully develop prototypes for proposed designs. It is also for that reason, however, that many industries and corporations oftentimes elect to sell their technologies in exchange for energy credits, making the Public Patents Division also a branch where many scientific shares are paid for and exchanged in accordance with their value when compared to the improvements it may bring to society.

Apart from internal matters, the Division also manages the sharing of information with foreign nations, or at least decides what is worth exchanging for material goods in return. For its efforts in this field, the branch counts with roughly 800 Million scientists, staffers and other specific administrators. The division was directly linked to the Act of Reserved Knowledge issued by the Commonwealth in 2261, as well as many other research agreements formulated between the OCN, then the Commonwealth, with the Galactic Entente, the Favsim Dominion, the Democratic Udkavongo Confederation, and others. One such example of a technology submitted to the division was the introduction of the Energy Credit by Sinon Financial Solutions, an invention that, after some debate in the science council, was accepted wholeheartedly by the Ortus Council of Nations in 2210.