Welcome to the Galactic Commons Technological Zeitgeist Research Department. Here, researchers from across the galaxy, volunteer their time and work to improve our understanding of the universe, creating and maintaining vast compendiums and system reference documents for all of the wonders of the galaxy.
- Introduction video which autoplays on the ZRD Infosite.
The Zeitgeist Research Department is a wing of the Galactic Cooperation devoted to researching and documenting the wonders of the galaxy. Though the Cooperation is generally incapable of paying vast sums to its researchers, the free access to all to to the Zeitgeist's resources has, miraculously, resulted in a highly extensive and generally reliable encyclopedic reference for galactic occurrences.
Despite being a part of the Cooperation, the ZRD lacks formal structure or hierarchy. Rather, it relies on the good will of its members to contribute reliable information and peer review it accordingly. Often this can mean finding information is clunky - or that the quality or detail of information varies wildly - but ultimately the free access and the vastness of the catalogue of data means that the ZRD is a must for most scientists and explorers.
Of particular note is the ZRD Bestiary and Environmental Survey, which are frequently compiled and updated for borderland systems as more life and varieties of lifeforms are discovered, as well as the after-effects of mass terraforming operations.