Oskanna

Oskanna's only habitable planet, Chomsky, is a cold-to-temperate planet, with a breathable atmosphere and approximately 60% surface water. The actual geography is varied, but the planet is fairly young and hasn't suffered greatly from meteorologic erosion. There are three main landmasses — named Penfold, Kaku, and Islington. Hawking, the capital of Chomsky, is on a deep, equatorial bay of Islington. The planet is currently 30% urban with a significant number of semi-rural research and archival facilities distributed among the remaining 70% of open landmass. A handful of deep-sea outposts exist—centers for creating and developing spacefaring technology.

Before the Sleepwalkers showed up, the Chomskians were actually doing reasonably well for themselves. They'd managed to re-achieve intra-system space travel, along with most commensurate technologies, under a rigorous academic oligarchy. Originally a research outpost for the Republic, once the Manifolds fell, the people of Chomsky took it upon themselves to preserve as much knowledge and research as they possibly could — snippets of history dating back to the Manifold fall still exist scattered in journals and other first-hand accounts archived in libraries — and went about maintaining themselves as best they could in the fading hopes that the Manifolds would return and the Republic would reassert itself. When the Sleepwalkers helped buck Imperiu control, by the rules and regulations of Chomskian society, they were rightful rulers, and the natives willingly aligned themselves under Shelbyite governance. Chomsky is one of the few worlds to have maintained, in at least some form, all five Republican languages.

While Chomsky greatly benefits from its relatively advanced technological status, the Chomskians know that it is only a matter of time before they master the knowledge and know-how of their new Shelbyite ruling class; while there's no real unrest — yet — there is definitely a sense that the Shelbyites will benefit, and suffer, from the rules of the game they chose to play when claiming oligarchical command of the system.

Overview

Chomsky, the only habitable world, is the fourth planet from Oskanna, a yellow-to-white star with a total of 7 orbiting bodies. Before the Sleepwalkers arrived, the people of Chomsky had re-developed to the point of intra-system space travel, perhaps just one step away from reacquiring Manifold capability on their own.

Etymology

Oskanna was apparently the name of a well-known linguistics researcher in an early pre-sundering Republic. Once a research and development outpost for the Republic, it's no surprise that most, if not all, placenames have something to do with scientists or researchers.

Culture

Precisely the kind of culture one would expect to arise from an intellectually-centered society arose from the dust of the sundering. Knowledge and education were paramount, and due to a number of factors, Oskanna didn't suffer as much of a technological regression as other systems. Free exchange of information and ideas is of utmost importance, as is respect for the individual, and in particular one person's contributions to the whole of society. The arts thrive here as well — architecture, music, drama, and other forms of human expression have a safe haven on Chomsky. It was the ideal place for Sleepwalker philosophies to really take root and begin to throw off Imperium control. However, with that kind of intellectual freedom comes a slew of problems — dissatisfaction, protests, and problems keeping secrets. So far, the positives thoroughly outweigh the negatives.

Also, the ethnic and national composition of Chomsky was extremely varied; though some segregation did occur, it wasn't out of prejudice so much as cultural preservation. Hawking is a masterpiece of jumbled neighborhoods, each with their own flavors and feels, some with a distinct national feel, some with an engaging mix of personalities and histories. Again, an ideal place for the Sleepwalkers to call headquarters…

See also Culture of Chomsky.

Current Issues

The people of Chomsky have an uneasy relationship with the Sleepwalkers. While it was the Sleepwalker movement that managed to throw off the Imperium from its short-lived occupation of the planet, it's also continued Sleepwalker activity that's brought down the wrath of the Imperium on Chomsky proper. Couple that with the dominance of Sleepwalkers in local government (entirely by the rules established by Chomskian government prior to the Manifolds coming back online), in addition to the dominance of Sleepwalkers in federal government, and tensions, while not dangerous, are certainly there.

However, this is balanced with what appears to be a genuine openness from the Sleepwalkers towards the native Chomskians, manifesting in a sincere sense of gratitude coupled with quick and easy cooperation in sharing research, information, and know-how.

Economy

Technology drives the economy of the Oskanna system. Electronics of all kinds are produced in the cities of Chomsky, and while most of it is destined for domestic markets, international markets are beginning to open up. Heavy machinery production —including a small orbital drydock for constructing spaceships — benefits greatly from technological advances, and energy generation promises to be a growing and dynamic sector of Chomsky economy. It functions very much on a free-market basis, but cultural mores have so far prevented serious abuse of human and material assets.

See also Economy of Chomsky.

Geography

Chomsky is a temperate planet with a wide rage of habitable latitudes. There is a narrow band of tropics clustered around the equator, with two wider bands of temperate regions beyond that. There are seven major cities on Chomsky, with Hawking being the foremost of the seven. A few centuries ago, each city operated as a city-state, but after decades of negotiations and increased trade and technological research, a federal system of government gathered all seven city-states into a single nation.

See also Geography of Chomsky.

Government and Politics

Chomsky operates as an academic meritocracy. The population is low enough, and Sleepwalker philosophies new enough, that in general the meritocracy works, though there are certainly instances of corruption. Each former city-state is considered its own region, and sends delegates to the Chomsky Concordat, a legislative body that appoints a Prime Minister. The Concordat also appoints the system Presidius, who cannot be the same person as the Prime Minister. Traditionally, the PM is a Chomsky native and the Presidius is a Sleepwalker, but that tradition isn't even ten years old.

The Accord federal government has taken most, if not all, of its cues from Chomskian government—yet one more reason the Chomskians aren't as resentful or resistant to Sleepwalker leadership.

See also Government of Chomsky.

History

As said before, Chomsky was founded as a think-tank for Republican research interests. Though matters aren't entirely clear, it appears that each of Chomsky's seven main cities was a center for a particular kind of expertise, except Hawking which appeared to operate as a collator and clearinghouse for polished data, as well as an archive (underground data bunkers in and around Hawking have proven invaluable for Sleepwalker societal research, though bitrot and incompatible storage formats have been very serious issues).

See also History of Chomsky.

Military

Chomsky's military, before the arrival of the Imperium, had become more of an emergency services force, a glorified policing organization, with each city-state providing its own troops and assets for a pooled force. One of the main thrusts of Chomskian military might, however, was in its burgeoning space flight division; entire sectors of Hawking had been devoted to developing better and faster space flight before the Imperium arrived.

Demographics

Population total: 112,796,808 (3,285,770 former Imperium)

Age Structure:

0-14 years: 12%
15-64 years: 53%
65 years and over: 35%
Population Growth Rate: 4.5% (Sleepwalker immigration makes up between 0.1% and 2.2% population growth per year)

Sex Ratio

At birth: 1.1 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: .98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: .93 male(s)/female
Total Population: .95 male(s)/female

Life expectancy

Total Population: 135 years
Male: 133 years
Female: 137 years
Literacy Rate : 99%

Nationality

Singular Noun: Chomskian
Plural Noun: Chomskians
Adjective: Chomskian

Languages

Official: English, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Cantonese
Secondary: Lingallis, Yucatec Maya (closely guarded)

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