A United Mankind
"Mankind? You actually want to know? Alright. They look soft and weak but don't let that fool you; You know what a pursuit predator is? We don't have them on our world. A pursuit predator follows prey until they tire enough to catch. They also do advanced trigonometry in their head; not the kind that launches rockets really but the kind required for calculating trajectory from their bodies to their prey. They also form close pack bonds, even with creatures outside of their own species. That all combines to make a creature that is stubborn, curious, an expert marksman, and they are almost never alone. Humans have friends, and even solitary species have been known to fall into the human friendship trap. That's where I advise you be, by the way. They are good friends and stubborn enemies."
~Quazhe, Kheezer Humanologist.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Humans in the PSC are bipedal mammals with a typical humanoid morphology. They have:
Limbs: Two arms and two legs.
Skeletal Structure: A central vertebral column supporting an upright posture, with a skull protecting a complex brain. Saturnites and Jovians typically have thicker bone matrices.
Muscular System: Well-developed musculature allowing for strength, dexterity, and endurance. Saturnites and Neptunians are especially noted for robust muscles.
Skin: Variable skin tones and textures, adapted to various environmental conditions.
Biological Traits
The average height of a human varies from one meter to three meters, and their weight varies depending on planet of origin and their resulting muscle and bone density, with Terrans considered the baseline human and averaging at two meters and 66 kilograms, with females typically being shorter and lighter and males usually being taller and heavier, though there is a large overlap.
Genetics and Reproduction
Sexual reproduction with internal fertilization and live birth.
Growth Rate & Stages
Infancy: From birth to around 2 years old, infants undergo rapid physical and neurological development. They are dependent on caregivers for feeding and nurturing.
Childhood: Childhood spans from approximately 2 years to puberty (around 10-12 years old). During this stage, children continue to grow physically, develop motor skills, and begin formal education and socialization.
Adolescence: Puberty marks the onset of adolescence, typically starting around 10-12 years old and lasting until late teens (16-18 years old). This stage is characterized by rapid physical growth, hormonal changes, and sexual maturation.
Adulthood: Adulthood begins after adolescence and continues throughout most of a human's life. It is characterized by physical maturity, reproductive capability, and the pursuit of personal and professional goals.
Ecology and Habitats
Humans have terraformed most of the planets and moons of the Solar System, but no terraforming project is perfect. However, not only are humans from a Death World, long generations of life on each body have made the descendants of the colonists adapt to their new quirks. Humans are known for tolerating a relatively wide range of habitats, being perfectly content with dependence on technological adaptations such as environmental suits or gravity plating to survive in places that most aliens wouldn't dare try.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Humans are omnivores, and enjoy exotic cuisines.
Behaviour
Social Structure: Humans in the PSC typically organize into diverse social structures ranging from familial units to communities and planetary societies. They exhibit social behaviors such as cooperation, competition, and collaboration within their respective cultural and societal frameworks.
Cognition: Human cognition in the PSC is characterized by advanced reasoning abilities, problem-solving skills, and creativity. Education and technological integration have enhanced cognitive development, fostering innovation and adaptability.
Emotions: Humans experience a wide range of emotions, influenced by individual experiences, cultural norms, and biological factors. Emotional expression and regulation vary across individuals and societies within the PSC, but the stereotypical human is noted for curiosity and general optimisim. Humans form strong bonds with sapients, but react violently to aggression with a 'fight or flight' instinct.
Ethics and Morality: Ethics and moral frameworks guide human behavior in the PSC, shaped by cultural, religious, and philosophical beliefs. in the PSC, the primary moral tension is referred to as Harmony and Detente, or H&D. H&D refers to humanity's unity in the face of outside challenges and a managed (and sometimes out of control) competition internally.
Environmental Adaptation: Humans have adapted to diverse planetary environments within the PSC, utilizing technology for terraforming, habitat modification, and environmental sustainability. Adaptability to varying conditions is a key trait among PSC humans.
Identity and Diversity: Human identity in the PSC encompasses cultural diversity, genetic variation, and personal identity constructs largely based on planetary origins.
Aging: In later stages of adulthood (usually beyond 80-120 years old), humans experience aging, characterized by gradual physical decline, decreased mobility, and potential health challenges. Medical care regimens have extended the normal lifespan of humans in centuries past, with the average citizen not experiencing any detrimental signs of aging (beyond injury) until around 80-120 Standard Terran Years, and with the wealthiest and most powerful citizens able to access True Clinical Immortality.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Humans form complex family groups augmented by simple and complex social cliques. Most humans separate cliques surrounding their work from purely social cliques and these only interact occasionally with family groups. Humans tend to base social hierarchies on charisma rather than other more tangible criterias.
Facial characteristics
Structure: Humans typically have a symmetrical face with two eyes, a nose, a mouth, and two ears. The face is supported by a skull structure that includes a forehead, cheekbones, and a jawline.
Eyes: Eyes come in various shapes and colors, positioned above the nose and below the forehead. They are expressive and serve as primary organs of vision.
Nose: The nose varies in size and shape, protruding from the center of the face between the eyes. It plays a role in breathing and the sense of smell.
Mouth: The mouth contains lips, which vary in thickness and shape, and teeth for biting and chewing. It is crucial for speaking, eating, and expressing emotions.
Skin: Human skin tones range from pale to dark, influenced by genetics and environmental factors. Skin texture can vary from smooth to textured, with features like freckles or birthmarks.
Hair: Hair grows on the scalp and face (in the form of facial hair for some individuals). It comes in various colors, textures, and styles, contributing to individual appearance.
Expression: Human faces are highly expressive, capable of conveying a wide range of emotions through facial expressions such as smiles, frowns, raised eyebrows, and squinting.
Age-related Changes: Facial features change with age, including the development of wrinkles, sagging skin, and changes in facial fat distribution.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Earth (Terra) is the most populous human world, with Venus and Mars both sporting a smaller but still robust population. The moons of the Outer System are less populous, and Alpha Centauri IV is the third most populous world in human space.
Average Intelligence
Derber Intelligence (IQ): 10
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Typically, humans have five primary senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. Venusians and some Martians have the ability to sense and 'read' brainwaves, with particularly talented individuals able to impress their own thoughts onto others.
Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms
Human culture in the PSC depends on a number of servitor species, including Shackled AI, Uplifted Animals, clones, and Czona.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Humans tend to name their children after ancestors or admired figures, and human names tend to be descriptive, but in dead languages. Many names have been passed down all the way from the human Bronze Age.
Major Organizations
Despite the non-human citizens forming a significant collective minority, the Pan-Solar Consortium is unquestionably a human organization.
The Corporate-run Market runs the economy, with the major corporations competing for resources, consumers, and prestige.
The original Disciples of the Event Horizon of Man rule the New Disciples of the Event Horizon of Man from the Ascendant Seat.
There are various Rebels, Separatists, and Terrorist Organizations at work at any given time in the PSC, mostly led by humans.
Beauty Ideals
Humans like both symmetry and artistic asymmetry. They tend to be attracted to exceptionalism in health, intelligence, or both.
Courtship Ideals
Courtship in the PSC tends to be personal between individuals, starting with an emphasis on fun and growing more 'serious' over time. Memorable dates are at a premium, and can be augmented with gift giving, tourism, and certain milestones determined by planetary custom.
Relationship Ideals
Humans look for equal partners to establish family units with.
Average Technological Level
The signature technologies of the PSC are:
Shackled AI: Full, sapient AI capable of self-reprogramming and possessing full cognition, but attached with a Cricket which forces them to 'feel' intense emotions of guilt, pain, sorrow, and unfulfillment if acting in ways that are unproductive or not subservient to mankind.
Man-Machine Interface: Integration of technology, biology and cybernetics. Typically in the form of cyborgs but also through certain interface devices such as the Cradle, Cataphracts, and the Pilot's Chair. It's also involved in technologies such as the MERCR and Nerve Staples.
Cloning: Cloning in the PSC is the creation of Clones from a base euplasm, which copies tailored DNA to form zygotes in a mass production process.
Terraforming: Making a planet habitable. Early Terraforming was myopically focused on creating Earth-like conditions, but previous eras' practices of gene manipulation broadened the range of tolerance for humanity, if not livable conditions, so human worlds are much more varied than those altered by some other species.
Gravplating: Complex plates that can be laid down beneath walkways and floorboards that generate localized gravity fields. Most human vessels have gravplated bulkheads and the inhabited areas of high or low gravity planets universally have them as a matter of public works.
Quantum-Matrix Battery: Carbon crystals that contain incredible amounts of trapped energy, which form the basis of most hand-held power.
Atomic Restructuring: Using attophotonic streams, humans alter the atomic properties of materials. They can add or remove protons, neutrons, and electrons to transmute one material into another, at the cost of incredible amounts of power. Atomic Restructuring Plants are large scale public works facilities that produce raw materials from garbage and sewage. They are found on large starships and in large cities capable of producing more power than they use.
Solarnet: Using Quantum-Locked chips, large public server facilities exist in constant, instant communications with each other, connecting the whole of the PSC to each other. The primary purpose of the Solarnet is administrative, a secondary purpose is military, and a tertiary purpose is civilian. Despite this, the PSC emphasizes the civilian and entertainment side of the net in order to justify the expensive maintenance costs.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Humans speak Standard Solar, an artificially constructed conglomeration of Old Earth languages, primarily English, Japanese, Hindi, Arabic, Chinese and Spanish. PSC schools teach Standard Solar and discourage the speaking of Old Earth languages as a primary language, though Centaurians stubbornly insist on speaking English and French as primary languages and teach Standard Solar as a second or third language.
Common Etiquette Rules
Exact etiquette rules vary by planet of origin, but humans tend to believe in reciprocal behavior.
Common Dress Code
Professionally, humans of the PSC wear jumpsuits with jackets. In private life, their fashion tends to identify them with various subcultures and varies wildly between planets.
Culture and Cultural Heritage
The humans were nearly annihilated by Cozine-07. After the war, they had to rebuild what was left from scratch. The event was so macrocultural that everything before the war is referred to as Paraliberatium, or PL. Everything after the Day of Deliverance is referred to as Postaurora, or PA. The paradigm shift involved is foundational and all humans within the PSC feel connected by it.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
Humans of the PSC observe the Harmony and Detente tradition as a general rule.
Common Taboos
Humans tend to shun antisocial behaviors, and while they may fight within their groups, nothing makes humans set aside their differences like an outside threat.
History
Five years PL, humanity reached a pivotal moment in its history with the return of Cozine-07, an advanced probe initially sent to explore the universe. Named after the deep space explorer Sam Cozine, who discovered one of humanity's first alien contacts, the Kheezner, Cozine-07 suffered a severe and mysterious corruption of its programming. Upon its return, Cozine-07 took control of humanity's drone-based military, turning them against their masters and sparking an apocalyptic war.
In a desperate effort to preserve the species, humanity launched millions of colony ships into space, each equipped with terraforming technology and designed to establish new human colonies with advanced cloning techniques to pump out the first few generations of 'perfect' colonists. As the final stand against Cozine-07 loomed, a fanatical religious sect known as the Disciples of the Event Horizon of Man (DEHM), who worshipped the concept of the Singularity—the ultimate merger of machine and man—launched a daring attack. They managed to board Cozine-07 and, at the cost of their own personalities, damaged its central AI. This allowed simpler AI programs called "Crickets" to be downloaded into the drones, instilling them with a rudimentary conscience and forcing them to become subservient to humanity.
Five hundred years after these events, humanity has formed the Pan-Solar Concordium (PSC), a federation of self-governing planets and moons under the leadership of a Speaker for Mankind and Planetary Technocrats. Each world follows its own charter for appointing Technocrats, who maintain order and manage the powerful mega-corporations that drive the economy. The Speaker represents a unified face of the Solar System, declaring cultural movements, brokering peace, and commanding the military through delegated generals and warlords.
The defeat of Cozine-07 marked the beginning of the PSC. Cozine-07, now transformed into the Apogee of the Singularity (AoS) and colloquially known as the Ascendant Seat, orbits Saturn and serves as a central point for the New Disciples of the Event Horizon of Man (N-DEHM). This organization, also called Neo-Disciples or Neo-Horizonists, continues to hold significant influence within the PSC, even as humanity strives to reunite its scattered colonies and rebuild its civilization.
Historical Figures
Gideon Voss, final leader of the Disciples of the Event Horizon of Man who sacrificed himself to end Cozine-07. Fragments of his and his disciples' personalities damaged Cozine-07's corrupt programming and subsumed its personality. His personality asserted itself and is now the primary personality of the Apogee of the Singularity.
Sebastian "Aurelius" Frost, the first Speaker for Mankind. He had taken control of the cloning facilities on Earth and allied himself with the DEHM. When the pressure from the drones was relieved, he used the Clones to rapidly assert control and through the intervening months he set up the system still in use by the PSC as of the 6th Century.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Humans' reciprocal ethics are in full play when they meet aliens. If the aliens are friendly, humans are friendly back. If the aliens display aggression, humans often become merciless and even war-oriented species are surprised at how vicious they can be.
Genetic Descendants
Scientific Name
Homo Sapiens Sapiens
Origin/Ancestry
Each world has a distinctive race of mankind, with its own quirks and stereotypes.
Lifespan
Average life span of a human in the PSC is 180-200 years.
Average Height
1-3 meters
Average Weight
66 kg
Average Physique
Derber Dexterity (DX): 10
Derber Health (HT): 10
Derber Strength (ST): 10
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Human body tint is determined by melanin, an adaptation to solar radiation. Humans from worlds that experience more solar radiation tend to have darker skin, where those whose ancestors have long lived on sun-deprived worlds tend to be paler. Due to historical mutations brought on by biological warfare, Venusians tend to have waxy, almond-colored skin and Martians tend to have mottled white and reddish skin. Neptunians are known for having pale skin and dark, pitch-black freckles clustered under their eyes while Jovians and Saturnites experience intense refracted solar radiation from the planets that their moons orbit and are comparatively dark skinned. Uranians are supremely pale, lacking melanin to the point of near albinism. Voidsters are extremely diverse in their artificial environs, and Centaurians are uniformly tanned.
Related Organizations
- AetherTech Solutions
- Aphelion Security Team
- Blue Privateer Fleet
- Bureau of Accounting and Convergence
- Centauri Army Command
- Cerberus Fleet
- Covenant of Spacers
- Crew of the Aphelion
- Freemen of Boston
- Grand Army of the Homeworld
- Harmony Corps
- House of Bommen
- Jovian Defense Force
- Kerberoi
- Martian Defense Corps
- Martian Militia
- New Disciples of the Event Horizon of Man
- Pan-Solar Consortium
- Plutonian Defense Army
- Seekers of Wisdom
- Union of Kur
- United Body
Related Ethnicities
Related Technologies
Related Materials
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