Non-Coercive Zone (NoCoZo)

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Galactography > Sephirotic Empires > Non-Coercive Zone (NoCoZo)

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A common NoCoZo Logo

The Non-Coercive Zone
Definition	Major metapolity of the Inner and Middle regions. Exact size fluctuates due to changing relationships with associate systems.
Symbol	No all-encompassing or official symbols. A golden network sigil, with stylised planets or habitats is a popular choice. The Board Logo of a golden cylinder and helix is often associated with the Zone in general.
AI Ethos	Non-aggressive, commerce-oriented , marketism, control through financial tools. Archai and transapient power expressed through the market. Used sparingly but effectively to maintain efficiency for lower minds.
Technology Level	Hightech and above. Home to complex ecologies of niche products and services. High proportion of lower singularity beings owning higher singularity technology.
Culture	Metapsychology: Non-aggression, personal sovereignty, voluntary association, non-coercion. Values: Emphasises personal success, entrepreneurial lifestyles and philanthropic benevolence. Places extremely high value on sophont labour compared to the rest of the galaxy's post-scarcity societies. Religion/Ideologies: Trade Association marketism, Free marketism, quadruple bottom line neocapitalism, non-aggression, extreme individualism, Hive mind market collectivism, Entrepeneurial reTerraformationism, Monetary ecoism Demographics: Extremely high diversity of clades and toposophies. Shifting market demands give rise to highly fluid sub-cultures. On average intelligence augmentation use (via genemods and exoself) is high to thrive in competitive markets. Languages: Six major trade languages; Haldre, Bit-trust, Nasht, High Comerck, G555, Imblanone. To varying degrees dialects of each are only intelligible via subscription.
Territory and Population	Current Territory: Vast expanse along the counterspinwards and rimwards portions of the Orion arm, approximately 4,000 light years in length; mostly in Centaurus, Puppis, Carina and Vela. A large enclave in Sagittarius (the Sagittarius NoCoZo) is a major component of the STC. Millions of associate enclaves of varying sizes spread throughout the Terragen Sphere. Originally counted as part of the NoCoZo, the former Cygexpa territories in Cygnus declared themselves independent at an early stage. Capital: Technically none, although Merrion is the ceremonial seat of the Conclave of Boards (in actuality the Board is spread throughout NoCoZo virchspace). Systems: >10 million with majority NoCoZo culture. >8.4 million with varying degrees of association. Population: 11 to 110 quintillion virtual modosophonts; 19 quadrillion embodied modosophonts. Two-thirds of embodied sophonts are cyborgs of some kind. Near-daily body augmentation is common enough in the NoCoZo that exact census data is difficult to gather. Nexus Infrastructure: Highest overall of any polity (though MPA has more traversable and TRHN more comms). 1.5 million systems connected, many millions more within 10ly of a wormhole.
Governance and Economics	Legal Systems: As a mostly stateless, market-centered society the NoCoZo legal system is polycentric; security and justice are provided by competing Security Firms, benevolent cartels or trade unions, and a market of third party Arbitrators. Contracts are key in NoCoZo society to ensure non-aggression. Markets: The NoCoZo is dominated by market economics with >99 per cent of denizens interacting daily via voluntary, financial transactions. Currencies: Thousands of competing private currencies of all kinds (from raw commodity to crypto). No single group dominates but the two largest are the Q-credit and Tit4Tat Sterling. Major Industries: Any and all trade in non-fungible goods and services.
Foreign relations	Heterogeneousity: The individualistic and stateless nature of the NoCoZo means that it cannot be dealt with as a singular political entity. However 'Foreign Power Contracts' have been signed through the Conclave of Boards that are binding over a supermajority of NoCoZo denizens. Allies/Rivals: Relationships with the Zone are nuanced with foreign polities having both good and bad dealings with different Zone factions. In general the TRHN enjoys a positive relationship with the Zone due to the high emigration of NoCoZo denizens looking for ascension. The Negentropy Alliance is often considered a rival, with the Utopia Worlds the only other major power near universally disliked in the Zone. Defense and Intervention: The NoCoZo militaries are governed by market forces, as with everything else. In times of crisis to the entire Zone (such as the Version War) thousands of Defence Firms jostle and negotiate to form larger, co-operative blocs. These blocks rapidly bid for military contracts amongst the (equally dynamic and growing) Consumer Collectives that combine the bargaining power of millions of systems. Usually, after a period of chaotic transactions, one bloc will emerge victorious and carry out the military wishes of the market, dissolving once the crisis is over.

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In local business news; Akrana Enterprises has undergone a board reshuffle and corporate restructure after another disappointing day of trading. Analysts have five-sigma confidence that these events were caused by Akrana's key rivals, The Ossin Collective and Magnax, obtaining lucrative MTAs this morning with Lierra Corp. For those of you new to the habitat Lierra is a tertiary-subsidiary of the subsector Cartel. Akrana seemingly caught the Cartel's attention yesterday when they increased the interest rates on their indenture contracts. A transapient led corp favouring their rivals sent Akrana's reputation credit well into the red. The restructure was accompanied by a jubilee of all debtors and, despite the drastic loss of capital, Akrana's credit is up. Analysts have three-sigma confidence that the adjustment of business practices will result in a similarly favourable deal with Lierra before end of business tomorrow.

Helden habitat news packet, 8755at. A primary affiliate of the Zone

The Non-Coercive Zone; frequently referred to as the "The Zone" (or more disparagingly, The Zoo) is unique in that it is the only Sephirotic Empire without an official archailect overseer/ruler/patron. Evolved out of the Mutual Co-Development treaty, the Zone is a stateless territory of freely associating sovereign (for the most part) individuals. It has no widespread legislature or official government of any kind; market economics combined with polycentric law and private property protection act as the foundations for society. Contrary to popular misconceptions, the NoCoZo does not actually use free markets in the vast majority of its economies, but rather uses financial tools to create artificially stable market systems where modosophonts can compete or participate. Though all Sephirotic empires are diffuse, often intermingled, and not necessarily contiguous over any region of space, the NoCoZo has usually been the most widely distributed at any given point in history. Since its founding in 1598AT, various independent habitats, worlds, cybercosms, and star systems have aligned themselves with the NoCoZo and its market-based politics, sometimes only briefly, sometimes persisting for long periods or even to the present day.

To become a Denizen of the NoCoZo is simple. There are no zone-wide immigration checks or border controls, simply signing a copy of the Non-Coercive Contract (the central and founding document of the Zone) and lodging it with a watchdog firm is enough. Oddly of all the contracts in the NoCoZo the NCC places the least obligations on the contractees. Signing the NCC is a declaration that the signatory vows not to initiate force against other signatories, will upload the values of the NoCoZo and, in the words of the legendary S3-CEO Iron Harvest, signals that one is "open for business". The contract contains only vague definitions of the relevant terms and outlines no official penalties for violations. But socially the NCC binds the Zone together in shared ethos and being perceived as a violator of such a basic document is a recipe for personal disaster.

There are three "tiers" to the contract that can be signed, depending on the status of the signatory. The third tier is the lowest of value and is reserved for States or other similar national institutions. A state signing the NCC makes itself (and it's citizens) associates of the Zone which can come with significant trading benefits but also invites NoCoZo market pressures, shifting the State organisation towards the anarchistic. The second tier is for private organisations signing on behalf of their members; non-Zone megacorps are the most common. They too become associates and tend to become richer on the Reputation Networks (RepNets) by doing so, though their individual members may not receive as many personal benefits. The first and highest tier is for individual sophonts. Signing as an individual declares one a sovereign, fully contributing actor of the Zone and more often-than-not results in greater market valuation and reputation.

Whilst there are many more tier three and two signatories than tier one, the core of NoCoZo society is typified by the cultures of the upper tier sophonts.

The Conclave of Boards

Colloquially known as the "Board of Boards" or more simply, "the Board", the Conclave is the largest inter-organisational entity in the NoCoZo. Often mistaken for a legislature, in actuality the organisation holds very little power. The Conclave of Boards is an empire-wide forum designed to aid cooperation between Zone denizens and to oversee large scale projects; physical and social. Membership to the CoB is voluntary and generally is not a contract for individuals. The majority of the membership (which fluctuates around 900,000) are commercial or special-interest conglomerates (particularly megacorps) that, through a hierarchy of contracts, represent the interests of 80% of NoCoZo residents.

Practically the Conclave of Boards has little influence on the daily lives of Zone denizens, beyond acting as an umbrella organisation for major projects. However during times of severe threat to the entire NoCoZo the Conclave of Boards has acted as a consumer cooperative (at the request of its members) in order to maximise the return-on-investment for military activity. After each war this function has been dissolved, but the process remains ready.

The Market and Repnets

Despite thousands of years of post-scarcity infrastructure few societies truly lack market economics. For most the size and significance of the market is small compared to other systems of goods/services exchange, few sophonts have to trade goods or services in order to acquire them. By contrast in the NoCoZo market economics dominate everything. Billions of sophonts a year looking to participate in a market migrate to the Zone, all hoping the free trade of their labour or property will result in greater personal wealth. The denizens of the NoCoZo work to make sure their society is as close as possible to a theoretically perfect market. There is some evidence (and a greater amount of speculation) to suggest that the Invisible Hand uses eir wealth to influence the Zone in this way. As with any Sephirotic, the basics of life are easily available (landowners/firms who deny basic food, shelter and bandwidth would suffer a hit to reputation) but there may still be some minor price; such as provision of basic services in return for 1% of income for ten years, or access to one's dreams for advertisement response modelling on a real sophont mind.

Given the cultural desire for a perfect market (and transapient intervention) the market of the NoCoZo enjoys extremely low barriers to entry. Loans, investments, microdonations and philanthropic grants are easily available for those with a valuable service or product (often these monies are semi-sentient hunter-investors in their own right, working on behalf of their owner). Good ideas in the NoCoZo regularly find sufficient funds thanks to the myriad of transapient mediator firms that work in collaboration with Net communication groups.

Perhaps most important are the Reputation Networks (AKA "RepNets") that work to ensure good distribution of information ensuring that economic actors avoid transactions with undesirable parties. Many commenters throughout history have claimed that in the Zone it is better to have a good reputation and no funds than plentiful funds but a poor reputation. In the former case it is easy to gain wealth whereas in the latter it is easy to lose it; meritocracy ensured through the emergent property of credible actors attracting more wealth. The RepNets operate primarily through a market of watchdogs. The watchdog industry is vast, highly competitive and frequently dominated by archai-backed firms. Watchdogs investigate market activity and keep logs on what actors are doing with their wealth and who is interacting with whom. Using this information they construct webs of association, aggregating into simplified metrics for individuals. This allows consumers to easily find out whether or not other actors are entities they wish to trade with.

The various watchdog programs often operate via a consumer's exoself, providing low-level instinctive responses to other actors. For example: upon reviewing a potential business a consumer will get a simple positive/negative feel as to whether or not the firm's practices and financial success are compatible with the consumer's wants. The business itself might be fine, but its reputation can be sullied by association (even across several degrees of separation) to one that the consumer does not want to deal with. These instinctive responses can be expanded into complex summaries although, depending on one's payment plan, they may have limits to their complexity or take time to compile. It is common practice to subscribe to multiple watchdogs in order to dilute the risk of being misinformed by a corrupt or poorly performing firm. For important potential transactions or contacts denizens of the NoCoZo are often said to "release the hounds" in order to get a fully informed opinion.

The RepNets keep the NoCoZo fluid and inhibit behaviour determined to be immoral, or dangerous. The closer one is to an actor of poor reputation, the worse one's own reputation is affected. Individuals and firms partaking in unethical behaviour or simply not performing well will quickly find their poor reputation impacting on their associates.

Polycentric law

Being a stateless society the NoCoZo has no large-scale monopolies on law creation or enforcement. Some private properties require contractual agreement to follow exclusive legal systems, but due to the RepNets these are few and often minimally intrusive. Instead the functions of a legal system are provided as any other service: a market of competing firms. Consumers acquire legal protection by subscribing to a Legislation and Security firm that promises to protect them from a list of offenses in return for a fee and an agreement to abstain from/practice certain activities (most firms' contracts follow the principle of Non-aggression and the Golden Rule; protection from specified offensives is offered in return for the client agreeing not to offend against others in the same manner). L&S firms may offer this protection directly or subcontract to other groups where desirable, for instance: rather than keeping guardbot teams in all locations an L&S firm may pay the local angelnet to provide for any of the L&S firm's customers in that area.

In some cases L&S firms may come into conflict when one firm accuses the client of another of infringing against a client of the first firm. As with most civilised places in the galaxy out-and-out violence is a tool of last resort. Firms attempt to settle the matter themselves, taking care not to do anything that would hurt their reputation as a trustworthy trading partner. If the defending firm discovers that their client did indeed commit an offence, despite being contractually obliged not to, the usual course of action is to revoke protection from that client in this case (and possibly terminate their service entirely). The prosecuting firm is then free to extract compensation from the offender; this could be in the form of fines, debt bondage or other forms of punishment their own customers have paid them to enact.

In the event of a conflict between two parties wherein two L&S firms cannot agree on a resolution 3rd-party Adjudication will be sought from a market of Adjudicators. Adjudicators with good reputations are ones that quickly reach an acceptable compromise in a reasonable timeframe. The L&S firms agree under contract to accept the adjudicators verdict, under penalty of reputation loss and possible aggressive action.

The most complex cases involve a situation in which one party considers an action an offence while the other does not (e.g. the release of intoxicating fumes as a byproduct of recreational drug use), or a situation where the punishment sought is of a kind the defending L&S firm has promised to protect against no matter what (e.g. corporal punishment in the form of forced hyperalgesia augmentation). Again violence is generally a last resort, though there are many famous examples of armed conflict between L&S firms over unresolved cases, with neither wanting to suffer the reputation loss of being unable to fulfil their contractual agreements. Generally the market provides the solution; 3rd party analyst groups are brought in to estimate the financial and reputation loss each party would experience should they back down in this case. Each firm can then make an offer of a standing payment to the other in order to overcome that loss. This bargaining method is common and owing to it most L&S contracts have long stipulations over what action they will take in a given circumstance depending on who the other parties are.

Whilst local dominance by single firms has occured in the past due to this method, resulting in autocratic monopolies, they are usually temporary. Firms that compromise too much fail to attract customers, firms that approach monopoly status in a region face boycotting action from further afield due to their worrying evaluation on the RepNets. Whether by emergent action or influence of the Invisible Hand law and safety in the NoCoZo, whilst chaotic in appearance, is on par with most other Sephirotic Empires.

Image from Steve Bowers

Daily life

Life in the Zone is fast, dynamic and often confusing. Fads rise and fall daily and it is not uncommon for rapid shifts in wealth to occur across entire systems. As a consequence daily routine is difficult to categorise, frequently becoming unrecognisable from the recent past. However there are a few staple practices that have been largely conserved across the history and expanse of the Zone. These include:

Consumer Collectives: At any one time a typical NoCoZo denizen is a member of several consumer collectives. These organisations consist of individuals and groups that pool their resources in order to collectively bargain for goods and services. The bloc nature of the group is intended to lower costs for its members through mass purchasing. In this manner many expensive items and services (such as system-wide military protection or high brand catalogue access) can be made available to even low income individuals. The downside of consumer collectives is a loss of personalisation, particularly when it comes to services such as legislation. Those wishing for more custom services must seek collectives that more closely match their demand or look to increasing their wealth so as to purchase a bespoke contract.

Ad-hoc labour: Whilst maintaining steady sources of income is a priority for Zone members much of NoCoZo economic activity comes from ad-hoc employment. Mediated via the RepNets and various AI recruitment clades a typical middle income denizen can receive dozens of very-short-term job offers daily. In many areas of the Zone reliance on ad-hoc labor is an indicator of class, with upper classes relying less on chance microcontracts and more on ownership of profitable enterprises.

Economic speciation: Bodymods and clade design in the Zone are strongly driven by financial incentives. Consequently it is common for individuals to modify themselves for the specific purposes of being able to satisfy a commercial demand. Krek Vecs are one of the most well known examples of such a clade having arisen from a group of vecs that identified a market for sophont public cleaners and augmented themselves to physically and mentally suit that role. Depending on one's employment suitable augmentation is often a stipulation in NoCoZo labour contracts.

Sophont shares: Outright chattel slavery does not exist beyond temporary fads on the fringes of Zone society. However the NoCoZo market has long allowed for the voluntary sale of oneself. The primary system that the market has brought to bear in this arena is the Sophont Shares Exchange. Sophonts trading on the network begin by founding a firm and registering this firm as being their sole owner. Shares of this firm are then traded, effectively allowing other sophonts to buy fractional ownership of the individual in question. Becoming publicly traded is often a good way for a sophont to acquire investment capital, at the cost of some personal autonomy and the requirement to issue dividends out of their income. For investors this can be a lucrative opportunity; many fortunes have been made through early investment in a sophont who eventually rose to mega-wealth status.

Sociobanking: Primarily run by transapients the sociobanks are dynamic businesses that pervade Zone society and seek to link investors with opportunities. There are many famous cases throughout NoCoZo history of funds for a good idea arriving at exactly the right time, seemingly out of the blue, that go on to make a good amount of profit. Beyond simple monetary transfer the sociobanks also work through the Repnets and can foster beneficial relationships that boost the reputation (and therefore financial desirability) of their clients. The exact size of the industry is unknown but it is commonly believed that the sociobanking sector is the primary means by which transapients exert their influence on the Zone, either for their own ends or on behalf of their archai masters.

Religion: There are a plethora of religions within the Zone. The most popular belief system is that of Market Animism. Thousands of different sects and denominations make up this ancient idea (all competing for donating worshipers) which posits that the economic interactions of the Zone market have given rise to an emergent superintelligence. Many practitioners believe that through the actions of its denizens the NoCoZo has created an Archailect and that the Invisible Hand is clandestine because it is a property of the Zone itself. Consequently in order to maintain the God whose blessings trickle down upon the denizens practitioners are urged to follow the teachings of the Perfect Market. In all actions they should strive to bring the mathematical beauty of a market economy into the real world. Prominent gurus of Market Animism include Chief Papacy Officer Skyra, the Voluntary Hive and S3-Wij-G.

Image from Anders Sandberg

Articles

Algol Broadcasting Foundation - Text by Håkan Andersson
A small to medium-sized broadcasting entity affiliated to the NoCoZo, based around the star Algol.
Alpamis (Pi Mensae) - Text by Updated by The Astronomer 2022
Minor NoCoZo system.
Argelander - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Steve Bowers
Important NoCoZo system; the shipyards of Argelander are famous.
Arion Ascendancy, The - Text by Espen Antonsen
Hyperexpansionistic interstellar empire in the NoCoZo outer periphery.
Arkady 2 - Text by Jules H-G, additional notes by Anders Sandberg
The only Terragen-inhabited planet in the Toke system. Famous for its strange Terragen dwellers known as the Khira, who augment themselves with huge cybernetic enhancements.
Artists of Gleia - Text by Anders Sandberg
Alife designer collective at Merrion Apogee (NoCoZo), Jensan (Sophic League) and Outpost 5478 (TRHN) that since the 5800's have designed specialized clades of alife to enhance the universe. The Artists were in 7478 declared a honorary state in the MPA.
Atlantis (Zeta1 Reticuli II) - Text by Anders Sandberg and M. Alan Kazlev
Inner sphere old core world; a long-standing NoCoZo Tier III society.
Atlantis Freedom Fleet - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
NoCoZo mercenary fleet of the Version War period.
Audubon System, The - Text by Steve Bowers
Capital system of the LinnEnt Empire
Avase - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Minor NoCoZo system, Centauri sector. Its only claim to fame was the battle of 5502, where PCO forces scored their first victory over the Paradigm and turned the tide of the war. The system is currently home to a patriotic but otherwise irrelevant culture that trades in nanocloned war memorabilia, medals and PCO fleet uniforms, and speaks of the day coming soon when they will "finish the job" and "whip the Paradigm's butt".
Bazaar Project, The - Text by Anders Sandberg
A recent attempt (9840) by some of the outer systems of NoCoZo to attract business and gain a foothold in the diffuse Outer Volumes.
Bethsyngaria, Republic of - Text by Tony Jones
Local empire in the NoCoZo which suffered a runaway population explosion.
Big Ben's World - Text by ROM 65536
Artificial planet around an O-Type star.
Big Bob - Text by Steve Bowers
A superjovian gas giant orbiting YTS 785634.09 in Puppis, where the primitive lifeforms called Angel Hair have evolved.
Big Five - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The five main interstellar development megacorporations of the First Federation period - Truth-Santaya Networks, TakiCorb, Terranova Foundation, K4H, and SecureSpace. In the colonies they were very often a law unto themselves. They eventually merged to become the NoCoZo.
Bizarro World - Text by Michael Miller
Artificial antimatter planet in deep space.
BoB - Text by John B
A.K.A. the Board of Boards - a NoCoZo for-profit organization founded in 7003 which provides a subscription service alerting of suspicious business practices when detected amongst the various regulatory boards.
Bolobo - Text by Steve Bowers
A planetary system with no large planets, but several smaller worlds which have been shephereded over time into stable orbits.
Bolobo Mind Control Scandal - Text by Steve Bowers
Engenerator colony subverted by the local controlling AI.
Chuckie the Beanz Borg - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Late Emergence to Early Consolidation Age NoCoZo businessbeing.
Clienta Johannis - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system.
Corona (Iota Piscium d) - Text by The Astronomer
Former capital of the Taurus Nexus; now an important academic world.
Damage Waiver - Text by John B
A part of doing business with any sophont within the NoCoZo, damage waivers indicate that the product or service in question is deemed 'safe' for a specific type or types of sophonts when used in one or more specific manner(s).
Dauntless Incorporated - Text by Chris Shaeffer
Private Defense Agency
Dorminy IV - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system.
Druidworld - Text by Jorge Ditchkenberg
Historical recreation world with massive megalithic monuments
Dusty Scuttlers - Text by Kirran Lochhead Strang
Extinct vec clade from the Interplanetary and Nanotech Ages, which have since been lazurogened in the Metasoft Version Tree.
Duxed - Text by Everything4404
Garden World, a moon with an extreme tidal range.
Edible Music - Text by John B
Competitive musical performance craze.
Enclave of Mutual Satisfaction - Text by Anders Sandberg
Independent enclave within the NoCoZo. In 4599, during the Version War the NoCoZo system Mutual Satisfaction was isolated by Dominion attacks. Following the loss of the wormhole link the economy collapsed, but over the next century it recovered and began to build up self sufficiency. When contact was restored 290 years later, it refused to rejoin the NoCoZo for unclear reasons and becomes an independent enclave, although for all practical purposes still NoCoZo. During the following renaissance the local Institute of Interstellar Economics grew to a prominent position, and remains the pride of the tiny enclave.
Eostremonath and the Othelia System - Text by John M. Dollan, amendments by Mark Ryherd
61 Virginis IV; an Inner Sphere terraformed world, at one time a lost colony
Evermore - Text by Chris Shaeffer, image by Phaethon in 2023
Megastructure habitat consisting of multiple cylinders, on the edge of Disarchy space.
Eä Mulsystems - Text by Anders Sandberg
Federation era megacorporation. Eä Mulsystems emerged from the merger of Graphos Habeng and Kbelt Aitronics in 1107 AT. It soon became a major development of integrated AI solutions, controlled environments and habitat infrastructure. Although it had no interstellar traffic on its own, it constructed starship habitats and space networks in other solar systems for many other megacorporations.
Fiarro Twin Worlds, The - Text by Steve Bowers, Michael Jones and Mark Ryherd
Twin terrestrial worlds in Vela.
Free Zone - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
"Free Zone" is a generic term for any region (which may be as small as a single dwelling or as large as an entire star cluster) in which there is no government control or regulation of any kind.
Frei - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
HJer-IV, NoCoZo, primary around which orbit the (in)famous Makrania Orwoods. There is a large wormhole plexis which connects directly to Merrion, Alauda, and a number of other worlds.
Gacrux and the Breather - Text by Steve Bowers
The closest red giant to Sol, Gacrux is home to the Breather, a transapient animin entity.
Galactic Information Bank - Text by John B
The most profitable of several NoCoZo megacorps which maps, makes easily searchable, and caches large sections of the Known Net for its subscribers.
Galrecon - Text by Steve Bowers
Type I Shellworld badly damaged in Version War.
Gamma Velorum (Regor) - Text by Steve Bowers
A NoCoZo survey mission to this Wolf-Rayet star arrived in time to stabilise it
Gatlida (Epsilon Indi) - Text by Updated by The Astronomer and Dangerous Safety 2021
Old Inner Sphere system colonized by House Stevens. Since the Age of Consolidation, a part of the NoCoZo.
Gillbank - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Steve Bowers
Crucis Corridor Negentropist world subverted by the Neutral Way, declared itself the Disarchy Alliance, led by the Postscripts of Randomness, as a deliberate parody of Negentropism.
Gridwood - Text by Todd Drashner
Popular virtual environment found across the Zoeific Biopolity, as well as in cybercosms in the Red Star M'pire, Terragen Federation, NoCoZo, and Sophic League.
Gshru - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Home to a mostly seafaring abdicator civilisation of hermaphrodites, in NoCoZo territories. It is is apparently slowly developing on its own inside the restriction swarms surrounding the system.
Gum Nebula - Text by Steve Bowers
Very large, diffuse Middle Regions Nebula
Hamal (Alpha Arietis) - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A system in the Inner Sphere famous for an appearance of the so-called "Femtotech Messiah".
Hammerstein - Text by Steve Bowers
LinnEnt colony, populated by engenerator technology.
Hethus V - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
NoCoZo world where mecha combat by pregnant human females is allowed in the gladiatorial arenas, such combat is generally given a separate class since it carries such an advantage (thanks to increased reaction time). And even on Hethus the rules limit female baseline pilots to a maximum of three full combat-pregnancies. Any additional pregnancies must be accompanied by a leave of sabbatical from the arena (old law).
Hipparkos - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system
Hokon 21453 - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Planetary development NoCoZo businessbeing.
Homo Economicus - Text by Extherian, updated 2020
NoCoZo cyborg clade specialised towards business.
Hyttinen - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system.
Industrial Upgradation Incorporated - Text by Basu
Transap Megacorp dedicated to upgrading modosophont societies with transapient technology.
Institute of Applied and Theoretical Memetics - Text by Graham Hopgood
Institute dedicated to the study and use of cultural ideas, symbols and conditioning.
Invisible Hand of the Market - Text by Anders Sandberg, Ryan B (Rynn)
Distributed and impersonal Archailect of the NoCoZo.
Isi-IV - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
NoCoZo world, home to the famous Mayane collection, which features some important examples of Perfect Art.
Jean Te Uahlg Aestheticism - Text by Anders Sandberg
Minor cultural movement from Wrangham in the vicinity of the Pismis 4 cluster which has become a major interstellar memeplex.
Jonathan 'Trip' Daniels - Text by Mike Miller
Long-lived nearbaseline human who has lent his name to the 61 Cygni-A planet "Trip" (formerly Edison).
Kaumbrey - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Euterbia II. Olumbi region in the NoCoZo, known for wild pet humans.
Krutarians - Text by Phil B
A humanoid rianth clade combining homo superior and bitenic squid DNA. They serve and are fanatically loyal to an S:2 being called Krutarkilush who is engaged in the creation of a moon or jupiter node and apparently intends toposophic ascent.
League of Legitimate Businessbeings - Text by Steve Bowers
Interstellar crime syndicate. Started as a beamed power conglomerate in the Linnent and Terranovan colonies, the first singularity League of Legitimate Businessbeings expanded into meteoroid and asteroid control, and provided protection for spacecraft on interplanetary transfer orbits.
LinnEnt (Linnaeus Enterprises) - Text by Steve Bowers
A commercial empire in the First Federation era and beyond, dedicated to colonising new systems using Engenerator technology.
Locus - Text by Steve Bowers
Ikarian/Vesperian terrestrial (Eccentric tidally locked world).
Lombardo - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Inner Sphere NoCoZo system, was first established as a Free Zone during the middle Federation period. The system is inhabited by corporate hyperturings, vecs, and near-baseline bionts and cyborgs.
M'Buto (Gliese 454) - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Inner Sphere system, home of a number of diverse clades. Joined the Virginis Combine, later became part of the Conver Ambi, in turn annexed and assimilated by the Solar Dominion. Broke free after the Version War to become a joint Metasoft-NoCoZo administered system.
Manyanga - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A panthalassic planet in an important NoCoZo system.
Marketer Fleet, The - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Marketing cult and para-religion.
Mekelon - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Home to the Astrographic Institute. Part of the NoCoZo.
Merrion (Alpha Mensae) - Text by Anders Sandberg, partially updated by The Astronomer in 2021
Honorary capital system of the NoCoZo.
Merrion Apogee - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
NoCoZo world, one of the centers of the Artists of Gleia.
Mira - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Steve Bowers
(Omicron Ceti), variable red giant star in the constellation called Cetus. It was discovered in 1596 by David Fabricus, an amateur Dutch astronomer. Mira (meaning "wonderful") was named by Johannes Hevelius in 1662. Its mass is about the same as Sol but it varies in size and brightness over a period of 332 days.
Morini - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Darro Plexus, Non-Coercive Zone - the system from which Fire dancing originated, and to which the art form is still mostly limited.
Murder Lottery - Text by John B
A unique birth control system on the planet Spandle in the NoCoZo.
Nadia - Text by MacGregor
Binary system in the Inner Sphere, originally a LinnEnt colony populated by engenerator technology.
NanoAdhesives Board (NAB) - Text by John B
NanoAdhesives Board - an industry-wide agency amongst the NoCoZo, it regulates and approves nanoadhesives for compatibility with a sheaf of publicized standards.
Nanocookies - Text by Michael Boncher, some slight modifications by M. Alan Kazlev
Nanotech devices for monitoring customers and potential customers.
Naos - Text by Anders Sandberg
O class supergiant in the far outskirts of NoCoZo, colonized in the 7680's by a bizarre corporate-religious clade calling itself the UV Consciousness.
Neli-Neti - Text by Steve Bowers
Twin planets in Musca.
New Mars - Text by The Astronomer
System with multiple Arean planets
Newlife - Text by Steve Bowers
System on the NoCoZo border with two terraformed planets, each with very unusual experimental biospheres.
Nivline - Text by ProxCenBound and John B
Middle Regions NoCoZo system.
Nova (Tau Ceti) - Text by Anders Sandberg and M. Alan Kazlev
Home system of the first successful extrasolar human colony.
Nova Terra - Text by Anders Sandberg and M. Alan Kazlev
The first successful human interstellar colony.
Noyce - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Inner sphere NoCoZo system also known as Hokon's Third Purchase, approximately 90 LY from Sol.
Oia (Here) - Text by Steve Bowers
Oia, a predominantly cyborg world at the edge of Sophic League space.
Olumbi Region - Text by Anders Sandberg
The Olumbi region is one of the rimwards parts of the middle NoCoZo, bordering on the Sophic League and located between the Vela Nebula and Pismis 4. Its name comes from Olumbi Developments, a late Consolidation Era colonization corp that implemented a fast wormhole/terraforming/leasing operation similar to Cygexpa.
Other Self - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Bionano wetware consisting of drugs and bionanites that causes temporary personality alteration.
Ozymandias (world) - Text by Steve Bowers
Vela Sector - NoCoZo. Capital world of the Genen gas-giant extremophile superfamily the Premacy.
Party of Economic Propriety - Text by Anders Sandberg
NoCoZo ideological group, seeking to uncover evidence of bad business practices, fraud and coercion.
Pelion and Ossa - Text by Steve Bowers, with suggestions from Radtech497 and l0b0_t0mmy
Two small terrestrial worlds which collided in 9526 AT.
Penglai Empire, The - Text by Anders Sandberg
Early superbright-tweak empire, based around Penglai.
Polyanna - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Home to the Institute of Applied Hermeneutics, NoCoZo.
Prospera - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system.
Relief - Text by ProxCenBound
NoCoZo system in which there there are effectively no crimes if one can pay. There are five main habitats; two cater to the extreme pleasure market and three to hunting and aggression.
Rosette Cluster - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Heavily populated and prosperous NoCoZo-TRHN tourist system, home to a number of hedonics corporations and experimental habitats and lifestyles.
Rudolph - Text by Ernst Stavro Blofeld
System of worlds catering to the combat-fetishism market.
Rufus - Text by Steve Bowers
A planet with five moons, mostly inhabited by Dog provolves.
Sakvaback - Text by Steve Bowers, after the original stub by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system.
Sesharia - Text by Steve Bowers
Former Doran Empire world inhabited by dwarf cybertweaks.
Sisyphos - Text by Steve Bowers
Chthonian type world; joint NoCoZo and Metasoft sovereignty.
Standard Damage Waiver - Text by John B
Those waivers approved and sealed by the Standard Damage Waiver Board. They are normally what is meant by a 'damage waiver' and are distinguishable by their seal. The classic example is the standard damage waiver for 1 litre of fluid water in a single-use soft pressure vessel, which runs to approximately 5 quadrillion characters as translated into ancient earth English. This is easily understandable, as it covers all 'safe' uses for that quantity or some smaller amount of liquid water, including weapons-grade uses, heat dissipation, heat absorption, heat transfer, diffusion, solution, lubrication, ice production, biological uses, etc.
Standard Damage Waiver Board - Text by John B
A service free for purchasers and users which coordinates (at a fee paid by the producers and/or safety corporation(s) involved) the 'standardization' of damage waivers across multiple competing products and producers.
Tao Li - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system.
Terranova, 82 Eridani IV - Text by Anders Sandberg, amended by Steve Bowers and John M. Dollan
Member of the Eridanus League, later headquarters of the Terranova Foundation exploration megacorps. Now a private resort world.
Top Ten Thousand ('Triple T') - Text by John B
A NoCoZo subscription service which offers information leading to the top ten thousand anything, including RL horror stories, VR beauties, most unique structures, most lethal event, most entertaining lethal event, etc. Company public relations literature indicates that there are some 106 researchers on duty at any one time, adding some 109 multi-rated records per shift. Amazingly, there have been no major scandals regarding this corporation except the rotten-fruit disagreement of rated and unrated entities. Triple-T was quietly bought out by the Galactic Information Bank some 2,500 years ago and fell under their access fee schedule.
Twilight - Text by Anders Sandberg
Tidally locked world, formerly named Dawn. Founding member of the Eridanus League.
Tyrkenian Institute, The - Text by Thorbørn Steen
Educational institute where modosophonts are taught by transapient masters.
Unscanned Market - Text by John B
A semi-mythological portion of the NoCoZo economy dealing with unregistered ("unscanned") products. These products are either incredibly cheap, or not normally available due to sophont rights or other moral or societal restrictions. The best confirmed independent estimates of the Unscanned Market indicate that it is at best a small fraction of a percent of the GCP of the NoCoZo, even if various demagogues inflate the estimate by some factor.
Varnerkaspi - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Outer Crucis Corridor/Centaurus Sector Outer Volumes world formerly inhabited by the Neutral Way clade Durrel Inheritors
Vast Endeavour - Text by Anders Sandberg
NoCoZo world in the Weber Expanse known for the Institute of Economic Architecture and the infamous Chahipho Collection of alien art.
Version War - Text by Anders Sandberg, M. Alan Kazlev, Peter Kisner, Aaron Hamilton
A major Inner Sphere war of the Fifth Millennium.
Wega - Text by Jorge Ditchkenberg
A paraterraformed moon in the Inner Sphere, famous Inner Sphere as a centre for independent thought and modosophont autonomy.
Zarathustra - Text by Anders Sandberg
A colony that recovered from near-collapse to become one of the most successful in the Inner Sphere.
Zarauztar - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Important NoCoZo system.
Zhang Qian - Text by Steve Bowers
Sophic League planet with mobile cities.