First of all - Great Awesome Mod - it rekindled my interest in Civ4! Now since I noticed a lot of stub texts I have started to fill in the entries and then I stumbled upon this thread. If you don't mind I will post what I have here and update it when I find a new one:
TXT_KEY_TECH_LASGUN_WEAPONRY_PEDIA
Lasgun: continuous-wave laser projector. Its use as a weapon is limited in a field-generator-shield culture because of the explosive pyrotechnics (technically, subatomic fusion) created when its beam intersects a shield.
The weapon is available in a variety of sizes, ranging from hand-held to ship-mounted. Lasguns have enormous destructive potential; using an arc ray consisting of some sort of subatomic energy, the lasgun is capable of decimating large areas and structures.
If the ray from a lasgun meets a Holtzman shield, a pseudo-atomic explosion may occur due to the high energy levels disrupting the stability of the shield creating the Holtzman effect. This effect was predicted by Norma Cenva during the Butlerian Jihad, where the shield was first developed by Tio Holtzman; Norma, a woman possessing extraordinary mental abilities at the cost of a stunted growth, noticed it in Holtzman's calculations despite Holtzman's insistence against it. A test upon a shielded asteroid proved him wrong, and, ironically enough, the same effect ultimately caused his death when Aliid, a Zenshiite rebel leader, fired a lasgun at him while he was shielded during a slave uprising, destroying Holtzman's entire estate and much of the surrounding countryside and the city of Starda on Poritrin.
TXT_KEY_TECH_LASGUN_WEAPONRY_QUOTE
"The lasgun cannot make him fee; he turneth the stunners into stubble."
- Unknown
TXT_KEY_TECH_ATOMICS_PEDIA
Ecaz became the only planet ever to suffer a general atomic attack before the Jihad.
The "Slagging of Ecaz'' — an Imperial answer to a burgeoning rebellion — resulted in the complete destruction of all human artifacts. The weapons used were "diggers" intended to blast out deep strongpoints, causing radioactive byproducts so substantial as to render the entire planet uninhabitable.
But more important than the radiation was the breaching of the formerly sealed botanical research and development stations, releasing the mutagenic bacteria, viruses, and chemicals into the atmosphere. For centuries, only the taller mountain peaks and the polar ice caps could be safely visited. In the lowlands, and especially around the former population centers, the residual radiation was deadly and the planet was left uninhabited for thousands of years.
TXT_KEY_TECH_ATOMICS_QUOTE
"You do not beg the sun for mercy."
- Muad'dib's Travail from The Stilgar Commentary
TXT_KEY_TECH_ARRAKIS_HABITATION_PEDIA
A sandstorm is a meteorological feature of the planet Arrakis. Sandstorms were violent, consisting of electrically charged wind, sand and dust, flying at speeds of up to 500km/h.
Anyone cought in a sandstorm was almost guarranteed to die. The speeds at which the sand and dust were thrown would typically rip flesh from bone.
The Fremen of Arrakis typically did not traverse the desert when a sandstorm was approaching. However, they did possess some technology which could help them survive, if they found themselves in such a situation. This included stiltents, and the fremkit.
TXT_KEY_TECH_ARRAKIS_HABITATION_QUOTE
"Is it true, that the sand can blow at seven hundred kilometers per hour?"
- Paul Atreides
TXT_KEY_TECH_ARTIFICIAL_SPICE_PEDIA
Due to the monopoly of the spice, finding a viable alternative gradually became the focus of certain groups - most notably the Tleilaxu. Control of the spice during the Corrino Empire was later eclipsed in scope by the God-Emperor Leto Atreides II. This led to protracted attempts to synthesize the spice, which eventually yielded positive results for the Bene Tleilax, some 1500 years after Leto II's death. As a result, the Tleilaxu became spice merchants and funded many of their endeavours through sales revenue.
TXT_KEY_TECH_ARTIFICIAL_SPICE_QUOTE
"He who controls the Spice controls the universe."
- Baron Harkonnen
TXT_KEY_TECH_CLIMATE_CONTROLS_PEDIA
Climate classification systems organize Arrakis' climate on the basis of meteorological patterns. These patterns result from factors that drive atmospheric processes and can be distilled to six climate controls:
Latitude
Land vs. Sand
Geographic Position
Mountains
Sandstorms
Pressure and Winds
TXT_KEY_TECH_CLIMATE_CONTROLS_QUOTE
"The climate over most of the planet was best described as hot and dry."
- Unknown
TXT_KEY_TECH_COMBAT_ORNITHOPTERS_PEDIA
Ornithopter: The basic method of airborne travel in the Imperium. The common ornithopter was a very late development in the history of atmospheric flight.
The first ornithopters, that is, vehicles that fly like birds rather than powered gliders or helicopters, were built by a team of scientists being held as political prisoners (as a result of the abortive Thinkers' Rebellion of 7600 B.G.) by Emperor Neweh in 7585 B.G.
Their head was Jehane Golitle, who was placed in charge of an understaffed, underfunded, and discouraged team of scientists, and told to earn her team's continued well-being by inventing useful devices which would make a profit for the emperor.
TXT_KEY_TECH_COMBAT_ORNITHOPTERS_QUOTE
"The efficiency of the ornithopter's "engine" is difficult to surpass."
- Unknown
