Interspecies Communication

The Series One Universal Gesture Set is a language whose only tools are two roughly horizontal manipulatory members - the human forearms for example. The position of these members relative to local gravity (or to an agreed-upon "up" direction in the absence of gravity, e.g. on board a starship) forms a set of symbols that can impart a wide range of simple meanings. Because Series 1 is not intended for general-purpose communication on a long-term basis, its "vocabulary" has a strongly mathematical, scientific, and space-borne bent. It is intended for races that wish to build up a more advanced mutual language.

There are perhaps a dozen other "universal communication protocols" in use throughout the galaxy; most of these have a mathematical or "first-contact" bent, and are designed to be very easy to teach to a newly-encountered species.

Emissaries are androids or artificial lifeforms designed to communicate with the widest possible range of sophonts. They are typically programmed with the cultural knowledge of their "hosts" and as many languages as are available. Further, all will have a working knowledge of one or more "galactic basic" languages, e.g. Series One. Emissaries can typically survive in most conceivable life-support environments and thus provide necessary translation services between widely-varied sophonts.