Prothean

The Protheans are an ancient alien race which mysteriously vanished over 50,000 years ago. The Protheans arose from a single planet and developed an immense galaxy-wide empire encompassing many other spacefaring species. Not much is known about them, but many of their artifacts, ruins and technology have apparently survived the ages.
The Protheans have been credited with creating the Citadel and the mass relays, feats of engineering that have never been equaled and whose core mass effect field technology forms the basis of contemporary civilization. Prothean artifacts, therefore, have immense scientific value and are seen as belonging to the entire galactic community.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Protheans are an anthropoidal race. They have two pairs of eyes with each eye possessing dual pupils, and three pairs of nostrils. Much like turians, Protheans have a similar flanging effect in their voices. Their eyes have some ability to see through cloaked objects or entities. Their heads are covered in a thick, layered carapace that gives them a distinctive shape. The skin surrounding this carapace can be a pale blue-gray or brown color mottled with muted yellow spots. Their hands each have three fingers, and their feet each have two widely-spaced toes. Prothean blood is red. A unique attribute of Prothean physiology is an experiential exchange system based on physical touch. By touching something or someone, a Prothean could recall its experiences. This system can transfer complex ideas, with a Prothean being capable of learning a new skill or foreign language with a single touch. This sensory mechanism arose because the Protheans evolved as hunters and needed to be thoroughly aware of their environment. This is similar to the idea of psychometry.
From the few specimens of Prothean genetic material that have been found, modern scientists have learned that Protheans have a unique "quad-strand" DNA structure. It has also been hypothesized that Protheans were resistant to low levels of radiation because of the discovery that Prothean comm towers produced small but significant amounts of ionizing radiation, enough to damage the DNA of Earth creatures such as fruit flies and bees.