Eulogy for the living

It's a stange thing, a eulogy for the living. Someone I know is planning to end her current clone and revert to one from long ago, effectively wiping her memories. It is a kind of suicide - albeit one specific to capsuleers. An ending not of the bodily life, but of memory. An ending, nonetheless.

Usually, and indeed strangely, one waits till someone is dead to say a lot of nice things about them, to recall what they meant. Why not before? Why not make it a habit, when a loved one becomes more fragile or older, to express what they meant to you and why they are/were important in your life, and then tell it to them while they are still alive. Somehow we don't do that, we always assume that the people we care about will just keep on living a bit longer. There's still tomorrow, and there's much to tell and it's complex. And then we're taken by surprise when they are gone. Only when they're gone we're able to summarize all this complexity and get to the core of things.

Here, as this friend is preparing her end, I was not taken by surprise. I could tell her what she meant to me, what memories I hold dear. And it feels good to do so. I learned from it, I learned to tell people what they meant to me while they are still alive. Also this is something I thank her for.

Top genres

I have prepared a most boring lecture for this conference. What can I say, there is not that much difference in book tastes between capsuleers and baseliners. 

More or less tacky romance novels are at the top of the list, good for almost 30% of loans. They're followed by a broad category of explanatory nonfiction - including self-help books, business books, educational books. Next come biographies/history/memoirs, followed by cook books and mystery novels.

Apparently, these genres are more or less in the same order across the cluster, with cultural differences as to the particular content, of a romance novel, for example. And political analysis seem to be a topic that sells in the Federation and the Republic, but there is much less interest for it in the Empire or the State.

Registration

As usual for conference participants, I registered and submitted my abstract just before the deadline.

Soon after I registered, I started receiving goodies from the Gallentean publishers who agreed to be sponsor of the conference. Free books are the most honest gifts - as you can assess them and write a review. But there are also restaurant visits, hotels, ladies, luxury goods. It is just appalling how they try to trick you! 

We do get warnings from the organizers about fake tourist agencies that try to get your money and make fake hotel bookings... even booking a room is compromised!

Luckily the Theology Council provides proper hotels and travel arrangements so we do not have to navigate all these fake agencies...

A new market

I have several expeditions in mind. A return to wormhole space, this time to look for Talocan related clues. A similar mission to the Araz constellation. And finally, a visit to a barbarian dukedom out in Feythabolis. It drew my attention by virtue of their name: the Talocan Star Empire. Perhaps they too found Talocan technology they could put to use, like the Takmahl.

However, these plans have to wait. I've been invited to a bibliothecography conference on Eclipticum in the Kor-Azor prime system. As diplomatic relations with the Federation are improving, publishers in the Federation are trying to get a better access to the huge market that is the Empire. 

This poses a problem, since the Theology Council's sacred congregation of the index cannot catch up with the influx of books. So, at least in these initial stages, it will be up to the individual librarian to pick and choose, and to screen out harmful works. 

That is the topic of the conference, organized jointly by the Kor-Azor family bureau and the Theology Council congregation of the index. There will be a bunch of workshops to train us, and parallel sessions with talks. I have been asked to give a talk about the specific problems relating to capsuleers and books. I have no idea yet what I am going to present...

Actually, for our own library there is the additional problem that I also should think of the sensitivities of our many Caldari friends, who would be abhorred to find Gallente propaganda books between their business manuals.

Takmahl downfall

A question quite separate from the Talocan influence on the Takmahl, is how the Takmahl empire ended. It is a particularly pertinent question as to the location of the relics that they stole from the Empire. They kept those in secret locations, that may have moved around at the collapse of their empire.

Very little is known about the end of the empire. The main theory was formulated by Valate, and relates to asteroid strikes on several main worlds, destabilizing central command. Takmahl emperors would not have their own centralized army, but work with a local lords who would contribute forces to an army in case of need; in turn they were allowed to rule and tax their own fiefdoms. It is a low-income low-spending way to rule an empire, putting the local lords in charge.

The downside is that these local lords start to fight and feud as soon as centralized rule is put into question. The Takmahl emperor, claiming to derive his power from the blood god, would have his legitimacy undermined by major disasters. When an increase in the number of sacrifices to the blood god could not turn the tide, the emperor would lose legitimacy and any local lord would have a claim to the throne as the one chosen to better represent the blood god. Infighting and splintering of the realm into many small fragments started the downfall which ended in a decimation of the population and a dark age where the survivors reverted to a barbarian state.

Whether this represents the true history, or whether these are folk tales, we do not know for sure. But it is clear that those who separate themselves from the empire are doomed - even if they enjoy a temporary reprieve by finding alien technology.

Talocan and shipcasters

There is not all that much known with certainty about the Talocan.

The Talocan were (or are?) a truly ancient race, perhaps even older than the Jove. They mastered the weaving of spacetime, and could create pocket universes and project wormholes to new places. They could create wormhole channels between stars of their choosing, building networks with travel hubs. They were not limited in their travels to our cluster, which some researchers say made them more advanced even than the Jove. 

They could travel through Anoikis with wormhole connections of their choosing - indeed many scholars believe that the randomly rewiring network of wormhole connections seen today is a malfunction in whatever is left of the Talocan network control. 

Today we do not see them around, but it does not mean they no longer exist. We do not find evidence of a collapse of their civilization as we do for the Takmahl empire. They may just have left the cluster, as they certainly had the ability to do so.

Indeed, most scholars agree that the Talocan harnessed the power of stars (in particular blue ones containing special isogen forms) in order to alter the very topology of spacetime. 

Sounds familiar, in the light of current news? To me it does: that's exactly what we try to recreate with the "shipcaster" technology. It requires a stellar transmuter to power the casters that create new paths to faraway systems... 

Are we, and the Triglavians as well, following in the footsteps of the Takmahl by exploiting the breadcrumbs left around by the Talocan as they left? Some speculate that the Triglavians are an offshoot of the Talocan - but I find it more likely that they are the inheritors of the Talocan technology.

Talocan link

It was a busy weekend taking care of baseliner worries at the Chapel, and of screening new book deliveries in the library.

Meanwhile, I have started digging into Talocan archeology. My focus was on the Takmahl, but they learned from the Talocan, and used their technology. I should go to the State to study them more, there are specific archeological sites there. 

I do hope the recent disagreements with the State will not hamper that...

Confession of impotence

I get these files from time to time. Forwarded from recruiting. About someone utterly broken. Like, captured by blood raiders at the age of three, and got free just a year ago, well into adulthood. All messed up.

They get referred to me. As if I can fix them. As if I have any power over all these years of abuse. I do not. All I can do is listen. I attempt to say things, things that get dismissed or get interpreted as wrongful interference from someone who does not understand. Who can not understand. And that's correct, I admit I can not.

So often, I feel completely powerless to help. It drains me, because I want to help but I am unable to, and perhaps my words have an adverse effect. Is this a common feeling amongst spiritual helpers? Is there a way to disconnect and feel neutral about it? If so, I pray God helps me find it.

Krusual library

Going to Faspera in Derelik I dropped by in our industrial stations in Gamis and Tanoo. And I also visited another structure in Tanoo, one often overlooked by our more industrious capsuleers. There is a a Krusual mobile library in Tanoo, that's a space library!

It has an interesting architecture, too. The different halls of the library are connected by walkways with tall glass walls that offer a nice view of surrounding space, and of the station itself. It is a bit discomforting, especially if you're used to the confines and bulkheads of a regular station. I find myself intuitively staying rather close to the center of the walkway, even though in case of a breach it won't matter.

Minmatar and Ammatar scholars mingle here, studying the history of their people. I did not particularly feel welcome, not surprisingly. However, once I could make clear that I am also a librarian, the mood relaxed, and I could get a tour. I enjoyed that a lot, and recommend a visit!

Evolving Scripture

The vast majority of religions in the cluster have a holy book, usually written by prophets or their disciples. That book contains immutable truths, dogma. Its contents cannot be changed, merely commented upon. Sometimes it is literally carved in stone, and put away in a tabernacle for eternity. Many outsiders think this is also how our religion works.

But that is not how Amarr Scripture works!

Firstly, the amount of Scripture is immense. It's not one book, or a collection of books that can be put on a shelf. Rather, it is a vast corpus, an immense library, both reflecting and guiding Amarr culture, recording it through the eye of religion and harmonizing us with God.

Secondly, and more importantly, Scripture evolves. Imperial decrees get added to it: the Pax Amarria is part of Scripture now. At times pieces get removed - be it stricken records or entire works such as during the Moral Reforms. As our society evolves, God's message to us evolves and adapts along with it. God did not speak once and then remained silent. No, God is in constant discourse with us through Scripture.

Within the Federation, some worry about the new 'entente' with the Empire. The detractors really do not like slavery, and believe it is a dogma that will never change. It is not! Slavery has waxed and waned in our history, and it is precisely in times of peace that it has historically been at its low point. Peace, dialogue, cultural exchanges, they are much more effective than war and Minmatar abduction raids. 

Sure, the process of change is slow, and can be frustrating. But that is a good thing, as you cannot build an empire by chasing the fashion of the day!

Similarly, there are some in the Empire that grumble about letting the 'corrupting' influence of the Federation in. To them I would tell to believe in their own strength. And to see how this also opens us a grand opportunity for peaceful reclaiming.

A historical pi day

It will be an important date in history, pi day YC125. Relations between the core powers are being redrawn. 

I am happy for the ceasefire with the Federation - and hope that it will lead to better economic and cultural relations. This is also something that LUMEN through its embassy has been striving for. The road is long, there is a lot of mutual distrust, and there are aspects of our cultures that we find horrible in the other. Yet, this peace was the vision of Emperor Heideran VII and the Pax Amarria.

The peace between the State and the Republic, in a way, is also welcome. But it does put a lot of strain on our alliance with the State - probably this will revert to simply a non-agression pact too. 

One must keep in mind that there is no longer an all-out war between the empires for well over a decade. Concord has channeled that war into the arena of the designated constellations for faction warfare. It is there that the impact will be felt most strongly. Rather than an Amarr-Caldari bloc fighting the Gallente-Minmatar bloc, the two warzones will most likely split. In one theatre, Empire and Republic will fight, while in the other, Federation and State will wage war.

Concord will see to it that the battle does not spill out of the designated war zone.

Faspera

I went over to Faspera. It's a rather boring system. No temperate worlds, and only one station - testing grounds for the Ammatar fleet - orbiting the lava planet of Faspera I.

Scans of the anomalies revealed nothing special. The usual wormholes and some Sansha sites. No more trace of the Angel Cartel.

The archeological survey site is in a desolate part on the barren world of Faspera V. The folks from the archeological survey were very tight-lipped about what is going on there. I do not think they hide something. They are probably still in shock about the raid. 

Although, I did spot machinery that looked unfamiliar to me - and I have seen quite some archeological sites by now. Also, in the wake of the attack there is an investigative team from the Ammatar authorities on-site, and marines. Their presence is perhaps not conducive to having an open discussion with the researchers there.

I returned home none the wiser.

More worrying news

I was shocked by the news tonight, even if it was just a side-item:

Angel Cartel Carries Out Lightning Raid on Faspera V Archaeological Survey Base Evading Ammatar Fleet Response 

Criminal organisations attacking archeological surveys? Scandalous! And with all the news time spent on the (expected) entente between Amarr and the Federation, this appears like a footnote. Not so to the amateur archeologist!

Also, what is on Faspera V ? I haven't heard about this barren planet having archeological importance. If I find some time, I will go and poke around. It's close to our industrial stations in Gamis, that should help.

Theory of frustration in political networks

Century-old alliances appear to be shifting, or are at least under strain. That is especially worrying for LUMEN, as we have members loyal to two different allied blocs. Traditionally, Caldari and Amarr work together in LUMEN towards common goals. A Minmatar-Caldari rapprochement could change that.

Psychologists and political scientists have been investigating how networks of relations between entities evolve over time. These could be networks of individuals, or networks of corporations in an economic market, or even networks of relations between nations. They have come up with a general description called 'Structural Balance Theory' which is now a workhorse for modelling these relations. 

Like any widely applicable theory, it is a huge simplification of the real world, but which nonetheless captures a certain essential truth about it. So let's have a look.

The central object, the 'atom' of the theory, is the triad. These are groups of three interconnected nodes on the network. Depending on whether the connections are blue (good) or red (bad), there can be four cases:

When all are blue to each other, this is the best situation. Two allies fighting a common enemy is the next best one. All fighting all is a frustrating situation, but even more frustrating is when your two allies are fighting each other. Any network can be given a score based on the breakdown in triads. 

Let's look at possible scenario's between the four core powers:

There are four triads: ACF, AFM, CFM, ACM. In the situation up till now (top left) each triad is of the 'weak balanced' type, so the stability score of the network is +4. That is good, but there can always be a shock, there is always a certain probability that one of these links will flip. Structural balance theory predicts that, as a result, the effects will cascade through the network and change alliances all over, as the network tries to adapt to restore stability.

The shock that we may be heading towards is the Caldari-Minmatar relations turning to blue. This leads to the lower right network in the figure above. It's now become very unstable: the stability score drops precipitously to -4, due to two strongly frustrated triads.

This will lead to a strong pressure for the Caldari and the Minmatar to resolve the frustration of choosing between allies. The most likely outcome, according to structural balance theory, is to break one of their alliances, as this turns the strongly frustrated triads in weak frustrated triads (upper right). The score is raised from -4 to 0. Now, there will arise a new pressure, this time on the Amarr and Gallente. If they flip their relation to blue, then the better score of +4 is achieved (lower right). 

It is a very simple model - and there are many ways it can be made mode complete, for example by allowing also neutral standings rather than just blue and red. Yet even in this simplest version, it is clear that step by step the effects of the Caldari-Minmatar flip percolate through the network. We are indeed witnessing this theoretical model play out in today's realignments of the relations between the empires.

 

OOC source attributions:
Structural balance theory is not fictional, it has been around for a long time. The main sources are
Heider, F. (1946). Attitudes and cognitive organization. Journal of Psychology, 21:107–122.
Cartwright, D. and Harary, F. (1956). Structural balance: A generalization of heider’s theory. Psychological Review, 63(5):277– 293.
Harary, F. (1959). On the measurement of structural balance. Behavioral Science, 4(4):306–323.

No advice

So, I gathered my courage and asked around on the Summit today about good architects for musea. I would think that capsuleers who travel all over the cluster have an opinion about good musea.

They don't.

I've been left none the wiser.

Ghosts from the past

One of the new corp members used to be held by lady Ithiria D. She was the Duchess of Fekhoya before the Khanid King decided differently and had her deposed.

I've worked with the duchess, and acted as her confessor even. But there was always this vague sense that something was very wrong in her estate. That her slaves were used for pleasure, perhaps, rather than guided along a straight path to God. They were wearing very little clothing, and some of them looked quite troubled, saying things like "I've been a bad girl, daddy" while I am a Brother (and not a Father) as anyone trained in the faith should know.

However, I always kept in mind that I am not a Holder, so I should keep my own judgment to myself and trust the decisions of a Holder for their slaves. So, I did not intervene and dismissed my doubts.

But then, after not too long, duchess D. fell from grace and vanished. The estate was abandoned.

And now (is it already almost two years later?) I meet one of her former slaves, who became a capsuleer, and is still looking for God. It feels like an assignment, to rectify a mistake...

design competition

Awaiting further news from Kaztropol, I am starting with the museum. I need to find a good architect, or architectural bureau in order to create a modern museum. With an interplay between the light and the exhibit.

I'm hesitant to ask on the IGS, in the hopes of finding perhaps a renowned Gallente museum architect...

Kaztropol visum

Come ot think of it, I will probably also need some sort of visum or permission to enter from Kaztropol itself. I can imagine they are not to keen to let Amarr clergy on their land. To avoid their more demon-possessed citizens bursting into flames and such.

The problem is that these arch-heretics of course do not have any embassy or consulate where to get such a visum. I may have obtained the MIO's permission and thought that was hard, but it was the easy part...

I've sent a mail to professor Valate to ask her advise on these matters:

<< Dear professor Valate,

Good news! After a procedure that required remarkably little paperwork, I have obtained permission from my local MIO officer for a scholarly visit to Kaztropol and its university, and to you. When would it be suitable for you to receive a visiting scholar?

I can imagine such travel also requires me to get a visum from Kaztropol. But I cannot find any consulate or embassy here. Also, its precise location is not clear to me, I hear it is in Delve? The local tourism office in Mehatoor 24th Imperial Crusade station is unable to provide flight+hotel arrangements so I am planning to come over in my own ship. I do need some advise on what travel documents I need. Does my Anathema need a concord low-emission zone green sticker to land?

Respectfully,
Brother Theodosius >>

The barbarians beyond

Perhaps more than the mud, the journey worries me. Kaztropol is outside the sphere of influence of the Empire. This means I'll have to travel though barbarian systems again. If I am not mistakes, it lies in Delve, where the Blood Raiders took refuge after the good Emperor Doriam chased them from the Bleak Lands. 

The few constellations they control are surrounded by those under the influence of the barbarian kingdom of the Goon's Swarm. I have no idea yet how they can be swayed to offer me safe passage through their lands. But, this could be an opportunity to bring the light of faith to them - through gifts of nuclear reactors and copies of chosen books of Scripture. 

Every little effort that contributes to wrest them from the influence of the Sabik is worthwhile.

Kaztropolitan certified non-toxic safety sports mud

I am reading up on academia in Katztropol - the home of professor Valate, Takmahl expert. 

Apparently, it is not uncommon to settle arguments through mud wrestling. They've even perfected a type of mud for such occasions: Kaztropolitan certified non-toxic safety sports mud. 

The diversity of cultures in our cluster never ceases to amaze me.

Sadly, a cultural faux-pas can be quick to make, unknowingly. Sometimes even top diplomats have a hair-trigger temper when this happens (as I learned today on the IGS). I'm worried I will unwittingly say something offensive to the Katztropolians and be challenged to a mud wrestling fight. 

The stress caused me a sleepless night: I do not know how to wrestle, let alone mud wrestle. I'm too old for this kind of sport. But perhaps I should be training, just in case? The Societas' gym has a capsuleer trainer. I should ask him for advice.

Also, I wonder if the wrestling rules are different for capsuleers. We're all supposed to be heavily augmented, so it would make sense to have special rules. I could not find anything on this topic in the library's documentation on Katztropol...