Collapson —(n) A cubic structure of eight neuble-mass black holes in sympathetic pseudozitterbewegung vibration. The most stable collapsons measure 2.3865791101 centimeters edge to edge.
Collapson node —(n) A neuble-mass black hole which is part of a collapson.
Converge (also reconverge) —(v) To combine two separate entities, or two copies of the same entity, using a fax machine. In practice, rarely applied except to humans.
Coriolis force —(n) An apparent force on the surface of a rotating body that causes apparent deflection of trajectories from the “expected” course in the rotating coordinate frame of the body. In meteorology, the force responsible for large-scale cyclonic weather systems.
Cross-range —(adj) Perpendicular to the direction of travel. Generally used to describe velocity and position state errors.
Cryoleum —(n) Any structure or facility where cryogenic goods (typically corpses) are on or available for display (e.g., for the purposes of ritual mourning).
Day, Barnardean —(n) A measure of time equal to the stellar (not sidereal) day of Sorrow, aka Planet Two. There are 23 pids, or 460 Barnardean hours, or 1,653,125 standard seconds in the Barnardean day.
Declarant —(n) The highest title accorded by the Queendom of Sol; descended from the Tongan award of Nopélé, or knighthood. Only twenty-nine Declarancies were ever issued.
De'sastres —(n) Calamities or misfortunes, normally used only in the plural. From the Tongan.
Deutrelium —(n) A mixture (generally frozen or slushy) of equal numbers of deuterium (2H) and trelium (3He) atoms, used preferentially in magnetic-confinement fusion reactors.
Dewar —(n) A container consisting of an inner and outer jacket separated by a vacuum space, typically used for the storage of cryogenic liquids. Also “Dewar flask.”
Di-clad —(adj) Sheathed in an outer layer of monocrystalline diamond or other allotropes of carbon.
Dinite —(n) Any detonating or deflagrating explosive consisting primarily of ethylene glycol dinitrate.
Doldrums, the —(n) Any region of space where ambient light is insufficient to drive a photosail. Colloquially, any period of listlessness, depression, or inactivity, as during an uneventful voyage.
Downrange —(adj) Along the direction of travel. Generally used to describe velocity and position state errors.
Drip line, the —(n) The pressure at which protons and electrons begin to condense into neutrons. As a practical consequence, the pressure at which atomic matter begins to condense into neutronium.
Droit du seigneur —(n) Privilege, especially inherited or undeserved.
Elementals, the —(n) Queendom-era cartel responsible for some 70% of the traffic in purified elements throughout the Queendom of Sol, with even higher percentages for certain key metals and rare earths.
Ertial —(adj) Antonym of inertial, applied to inertially shielded devices. Attributed to Bruno de Towaji.
Eukaryote —(n) Any member of a domain of single-celled organisms characterized by intracellular organelles, including mitochondria and an organized nucleus. All known multicellular organisms are eukaryotic, although single-celled eukaryotes are thought to be descended from archaea.
eV —(abbrev) Electron volt. A unit of energy sometimes employed as a measure of the electrical or optical resistivity of materials. One eV is equivalent to 1.6 ¥ 10-19 Joules.
Extrasolar —(adj) Existing outside of Sol system.
Fakaevaha —(n) A mistake or accident.
Fax —(n) Abbreviated form of “facsimile.” A device for reproducing physical objects from stored or transmitted data patterns. By the time of the Restoration, faxing of human beings had become possible, and with the advent of collapsiter-based telecommunications soon afterward, the reliable transmission of human patterns quickly became routine.
Faxation —(n) The act or process of using a fax machine.
Faxborn —(adj) Created artificially in a fax machine, with no natural counterpart. In practice, applied only to human and human-derived beings.
Faxel —(n) Facsimile element. One element of a fax machine print plate which is capable of producing and placing a stored atom with 100-picometer precision.
Faxware —(n) Anything produced by a fax machine. Colloquially, the control systems and filters employed by a fax machine or fax network.
Fetu'ula —(n) Any vehicle propelled or controlled by the pressure of light, including sunlight, starlight, and radiation from artificial sources. The term “solar sailcraft” is sometimes applied colloquially, but in fact sailcraft are a subset of fetu'ulae. From the Tongan fetu'u (“star”), and la (“sail”).
Fill-in —(n) A temporary or disposable component. Colloquially, a friend or lover of temporary convenience.
Flatspacer —(prop n) A member of the Flatspace Society, a Queendom-era lobbying organization dedicated to the prohibition of collapsium.
Fresnel condensate —(n) A coherent matter wave, approximately two-dimensional, which is capable of focusing high-frequency electromagnetic waves, including gravity.
Fuff —(v) A polite term for sexual intercourse, popular in the Queendom of Sol and its colonies.
Gaussian —(adj) Bounded and pseudorandom, having the shape of a Gaussian or “normal” distribution. The scatter of a shotgun is Gaussian in the cross-range directions.
Geriatry —(n) The condition of physical decrepitude which occurs in natural organisms over the course of their presumed life spans. Geriatry is characterized by high rates of apoptosis triggered by lipofuscin buildup, and cellular senescence triggered by telemere shortening.
Ghost —(n) Any electromagnetic trace preserved in rock or metal. Colloquially, a visual image of past events, especially involving deceased persons. The term may also refer to interactive messages, especially from distant or deceased persons.
Gigahertz —(n) A measure of frequency equal to one billion cycles per second. Many short-range radio broadcasts occur in the gigahertz frequency bands.
Gigaton —(n) One billion metric tons, or 1012 kilograms. Equal to the mass of a standard industrial neuble or collapson node (“black hole”).
Gigawatt —(n) One billion watts, a measure of power equivalent to the sustained output of a large terrestrial lightning bolt.
Gigayear —(n) One billion years, or one thousand megayears.
Graser —(n) A gravity projector whose emissions are coherent, i.e., monochromatic and phase-locked. Attributed to Bruno de Towaji.
Gravitic —(adj) Of or pertaining to gravity, either natural or artificial.
Halochondria —(n) Organelles occurring naturally in the native eukaryotic organisms of the Barnardean world of Sorrow, aka Planet Two. Halochondria metabolize molecular chlorine and bromine to produce chloride and bromide ions and energy-storing organophosphates.
Halogen —(n) Any group VIIB atom of the halogen family, or any molecule or gas composed of same. The halogens include fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, astatine, and several hundred presently known transuranic elements.