BSG Units

[Capt. Ares]

Thought I would post this so everyone could get a good look at them(for those who don't know them already)

Time units
The time units were based on the decimal system. The mainstream interpretation is as follows:

A micron is roughly equivalent to one second.
A centon is 100 microns, or a little more than a minute.
A centar is 100 centons (stated in episode "Take the Celestra"), and is roughly equivalent to two hours.
A cycle is 10 centars, and roughly equivalent to a day.
It should be noted that some confusion was caused by the use of "micron" on Galactica, because there is a real world measurement micron which is one millionth of a metre (0.00003937 of an inch). In some instances it was used as an estimated time until contact, leading to statements such as "you are 10 microns from the Cylon fighters."


Calendar units
The weekly, monthly and yearly units may have been based on multiples of 4, 10 and 12, since the 12 planets of the colonies replicated the Zodiac, the cycle of four in nature, and the need for a digital space-faring time independent of planetary time. With twelve different planets in twelve star systems, none of the colonies could have measured their days and years the same way, therefore an independent system of measuring time was necessary for space travel and military use. (On Earth, a similar situation exists with Commercial Aviation and the NATO military alliance using a standard Zulu time synchronized with Greenwich Mean Time.)

A secton of 8 cycles (days) is roughly comparable to one week.
A quatron of 16 days is roughly comparable to a fortnight. The quatron is so called because it is four units of four days each.
A sectar of 32 days is roughly comparable to one month.
A yahren of 400 days is roughly comparable to one year. A yahren includes 12 sectars named for each of the colonies, and an additional 16 days (4 days per quarter) as interstitial holidays. The name is similar to the German Jahre or the Dutch jaren (meaning "years", singular Jahr, jaar).
A centuron of 100 yahren.
A millennium of 1000 yahren.

Distance units
A metron is roughly comparable to one metre.[1]
A maxon is roughly comparable to 1/100th of the width of the Battlestar Galactica. [2]
A solar unit, or "SU", has a similar meaning to that of our use of "AU" or "Astronomical Unit" which is the measurement of distance between the Sun and Earth, though not directly compareable. This is because the exact measurement of "SU" is unknown. The unit "SU" is mentioned in Battlestar Galactica when Captain Lee Adama states how far away the Battlestar Pegasus is from the source of a distress signal and two lost Raptors in the episode The Captain's Hand, bearing resemblance to our own use of "AU" in astronomy.

Volume units
A laxon is unit of volume mentioned in connection with grain, roughly comparable to a bushel.

Power units
A kilon is roughly comparable to one kilowatt.
A volton is roughly comparable to one volt.

Military Decorations
The Distinguished Service Medallion award was given to Commander Kronos in "Take the Celestra". It is a gold medal on a red ribbon.

The Gold Cluster is the "highest award for warriors" and was to be given to Apollo, Boomer & Starbuck for sweeping the minefield near Carillon in "Saga of a Star World".

The Star of Kobol was not awarded in a thousand yahrens, but is offered to Commander Adama in "Baltar's Escape" by the Council of the Twelve in seeming exchange for greater Council powers but is refused by Adama.


Military Ranks
While we never hear or see the ranks of Colonial Enlisted ranks, the Colonial Officer progression seem to follow a combination of land and sea grades: Cadet, Ensign, Lieutenant, Captain, Major, Colonel, Commander, Admiral. The sole exception being a computer screen stating that Omega is an "SGT" (presumably a Sergeant) in "The Long Patrol".


Currency
In the original 1978 television series, the currency among the colonies is a rectangle-shaped coin called a cubit (not to be confused with the real world unit of length the cubit). A cubit is about half the size of a business card but thicker and has engraved designs of uncertain origin and pattern. Cubits are often carried in small cloth bags on a belt. The monetary value of the cubit is uncertain, but they are made of "Auric" (gold, confirmed in Galactica 1980: "The Super Scouts, Part I" where Dillion attempts to exchange cubits with the markings lasered off for local currency at a bank.)


Other units
A megon is a measure of bomb yield, although not directly comparable to a megaton.

[GHOST]

Wow, thats a great run down of 'Colonialisms' there Capt. Ares!!

Theres also Feldercarb which is a measure of the truthfulness of something
ie. What a load of feldercarb!!

[Capt. Ares]

found it a few months back and I thought what a good place to put it

[Rhea]

I always thought a "centon" was closer to an hour and a "millicenton" was closer to a minute...?

[charybdis]

Thing is , they actually did use those terms at the beginning of the show but eventually they got straightened out and stopped using the millicenton..

[monolith21]

While I was writing my fan film script this became somewhat of a nightmare. I had the chance to speak with Terrence McDonnell about it. He said by the time he and Jim Carlson were brought on board it was a mess.

I also asked him about the more colorful words on Battlestar. He told me not to step in any Feldercarb, and always spell "Frack" with a "CK".

All of this was right before he nearly spit his beer out when someone came to the realization that "Imperious Leader" basically means "### hole" leader.

[Capt. Ares]

LOL oh wow how funny

[charybdis]

I have always been under the assumption that the proper spelling was "felgercarb" with a G....anyone know??? It seems that Starbuck is heard pretty clearly saying it with a g...

[Capt. Ares]

Felgercarb is a euphemism for "crap" in the Colonial vernacular. The appeal of the word "felgercarb" would seem to extend across the lines of culture and species, as Lucifer uses the term several times in "The Young Lords."

An alternate spelling is "feldergarb"

[Capt. Ares]

Here is a little more

Acronyms
CORA: Computer, Oral Response Activated; an artificial intelligence capable of operating a Viper (The Long Patrol)
[edit] Military jargon
"flash inspection": an inspection of military assets that is performed without prior notice by a superior officer (Saga of a Star World)
"four-point peel off": a maneuver performed with a group of four Vipers (War of the Gods, Part I)
"free flight jump": an infantry parachute landing, having jumped out of a shuttle (The Living Legend, Part II)
"life station relief": sick call (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II)
"maximum G-climb": a maneuver done near a celestial body, which may cause the pilot to blackout; Starbuck orders C.O.R.A. to perform this maeuver, which causes the pursuing Raider to crash into the loading docks on Proteus (The Lost Warrior)
"stand alert": Colonial term for "attention" (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
"stripped and moduled": a consequence of severe infractues in military law, likely similar to being stripped of one's rank and thrown in hack; Greenbean expresses a fear of this happening as Giles asks where he got the alcohol from (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
Warrior: an all purpose term for Colonial soldier and Viper pilot
[edit] Sayings
"By your command": a typical Cylons response to an order (Saga of a Star World, et al.)
"By your leave": a Colonial response to an order (Saga of a Star World, et al.)
"clear as the Nubian sun": a saying, similar to "as clear as day"; Cain uses this saying when referencing to the non-existent Raiders he allegedly pursued when he made his attack on the Cylon fuel tankers (The Living Legend, Part I).
"daggit drivel": a term used to describe someone's lies, similar to "garbage" or "bullshit"; Lucifer uses this term when asking if Baltar believes Specter's false reports (The Young Lords).
"For the glory of Caprica": saying used by the Colonials, particularly those from Caprica (Gun on Ice Planet Zero, Part II).
"Go rust yourself": Colonial equivalent to "go frak yourself", typically used towards Cylons; Cadet Cree says this to Vulpa while the Cylons interrogate him (The Gun on Ice Planet Zero, Part I).
"laser in their side": analogue to "thorn in their side", Starbuck uses this term to describe how the actions of Megan's surviving children have kept their father alive at Cylon hands (The Young Lords).
"like a daggit on a sunspot": fidgety; Apollo points out that Starbuck acts this way during his pre-flight meeting on destroying the mines in the Straits of Madagon (Saga of a Star World).
[edit] Other colloquialisms
astrum: buttocks (The Living Legend, Part I)
Barge Lice: a "term of endearment" for prisoners on the Prison Barge
felgercarb: expletive, similar to "crap"
frack: expletive, similar to "felgercarb"
galmonging: an expletive, possibly similiar to "blackhole" or "God damned"
Hades hole: hell hole, used to describe the Red planet (War of the Gods, Part I)
mong-raking: an expletive; after thwarting their attack on Galactica, Cain comments that "those mong-raking Cylons are in a state of shock right now" due to the apperances of Pegasus (The Living Legend, Part II)
plant vapors: a psychoactive drug familiar to the Colonials; Boomer comments that the Blonde Taurus woman on Carillon was probably "smoking plant vapors" (Saga of a Star World)
pogees: expletive, similar to "felgercarb" (The Living Legend, Part II)
socialator: a sex worker, escort, prostitute (Saga of a Star World)
[edit] Battlestar Galactica specific terms
agro: products related to agriculture (The Magnificent Warriors)
ambrosa: an expensive alcoholic intoxicant
auto-control: auto-pilot; Brie is instructed by Starbuck to activate this after having problems on her first launch from Galactica (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I")
bio-pulse line: an unspecified body function, possibly an emotional state; Starbuck attempts to use this as an excuse to not join Apollo's mission to clear the Cylon minefield (Saga of a Star World)
boraton: a liquid that extinguishes fires (Fire in Space)
breather: term for a breathing mask, or a life support system supplying air (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
bureautician: bureaucrat, politician (Saga of a Star World)
carbide: a likely term for carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
centura: possibly an expression related to percentages. "If we just let him lie in that life pod he doesn't have a chance in a centura" (Fire in Space).
chronometers: a time keeping device, basically a watch (Saga of a Star World)
computape: a video recording; Sire Solon watched computapes of the triad match between Ortega and Starbuck (Murder on the Rising Star)
crawlon: a spider (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
comline: a communication channel between ships
cubit: a form of coined currency
daggit: a dog
death stone: tombstone (The Long Patrol)
drone: a term for a robot, such as Muffit II (Saga of a Star World)
ducket: a type of prepaid voucher used on the shuttle Canaris, typically collected at the end of the shuttle trip (The Man with Nine Lives)
flight slumber: unintentionally sleeping while flying a craft, like a Viper; Apollo attempts to write off John and his second visit to the Ship of Lights as being a dream from a flight slumber (Experiment in Terra)
fumarello: a small cigar that Starbuck typically smokes
furlon: a furlough, or short leave of absence for Warriors in the Colonial Military service (The Man with Nine Lives)
geogram: a diagram; Ravashol shows Apollo a geogram of the pulsar with instructions on how to destroy it (The Gun on Ice Planet Zero, Part II)
glaiders: coined currency on Equellus (The Lost Warrior)
grog: an intoxicating beverage, likely similar to beer
gyroball: a spherical toy larger than a marble (I Have Seen Earth)
Homemade Buzzer: a version of "moonshine" on Equellus (The Lost Warrior)
hovermobile: apparently a form of ground transportation, that can be hotwired (Fire in Space)
ion field: a stellar phenomenon, which can cause scanner echoes (The Living Legend, Part I)
ion vapors: likely term referring to the trail of a turbo engine (The Long Patrol)
isoldin: a type of intravenous fluid given to patients (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
leisuron: a vacation or leave of absence, similar to a furlon (deleted scene, "Saga of a Star World")
lextrium III: a type of fuel used by the Eastern Alliance destroyer (Experiment in Terra)
life pod: a life support bed used in the life center aboard Galactica (Fire in Space)
lupus: a wolf-like animal
mega star: a star; in a deleted scene, Omega reports of the "mega star" they detect as they leave the magnetic void (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part II)
mega sun: a star; the Nomen come from the "land of the mega sun" (The Man with Nine Lives)
med tech: a medical technician, such as a nurse or orderly
modocker: an unknown term, likely of endearment; Cain asks Apollo how Adama is by asking, "Well, how is he? How is that old modocker?" (The Living Legend, Part I)
mushies: a food
nightflyer: an owl-like creature on Equellus that hoots (The Lost Warrior)
officiator: someone who oversees a triad game (Murder on the Rising Star)
Opposer: a prosecuting attorney in a trial
Orion hasher: something that is black and blue; Cassiopeia comments that Starbuck looks like one after his matches with Ortega (Murder on the Rising Star)
oviner: a rancher (The Lost Warrior)
plant vapors: some sort of drug, likely a reference to marijuana (Saga of a Star World)
pluton: a radioactive material whose radiation breaks down food (Saga of a Star World)
pods: a Cylon outpost (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
primaries: basic food groups (Saga of a Star World)
Protector: equivilant of a "defense attorney".
protein: another type of food
Protest: the equivalent of saying "objection" in a Colonial Tribunal
proton energizers: a type of weapon on an Eastern Alliance destroyer (Experiment in Terra)
pyramid: a card game, similar to poker
quadrant: a term for solar system
scanner: term for a computer monitor and telelvison set
scorpius: likely term for a scorpion; Maga comments that Borellian Nomen have the patience of such a creature, he also comments that the name "Borellian Nomen" strike fear at the hearts of those who hear it like the scorpius (The Man with Nine Lives)
sleep period: Colonial term for bedtime
seal: marriage
sickbed: term for bed rest when one is recovering from an illness (The Young Lords)
skybus: a type of starship (Saga of a Star World)
solium: a type of fuel
solonite: an explosive used in demolitions (The Gun on Ice Planet Zero, Part II)
spacedrome: a space port (Saga of a Star World)
tape coder: a voice recording device; Thane successfully passes off a hand mine as a device (The Gun on Ice Planet Zero, Part II)
telecom: an internal communications phone aboard Galactica (Fire in Space)
tinhead: epithet used to describe Cylons (The Living Legend, Part I)
Tribunal: a Colonial court hearing
turboflush: a toilet (Baltar's Escape)
turboram thruster: a type of engine or thruster; in a deleted scene where Serina completes her first landing, Serina turns off this part of the Colonial shuttle as a part of her landing sequence (Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I)
turboshower: a shower (Murder on the Rising Star)
travelator: a travel agent (Saga of a Star World)
triad: a contact sport, similar to football or basketball
tylium: a fuel source, highly combustible (Fire in Space)
wardaggit: "war dog" (The Living Legend, Part I)
[edit] Units of Measure
BSG Unit Earth Unit
Time measurements
yahren year[1]
quatron month
secton week
time cycle day
centar hour
millicenton 10 minutes
centon minute[2]
micron second
microcenton second[3]
Distance measurements
parsec 90 Million Miles
hectar 9 Million Miles
sectar 9 Million Miles (?)[4]
metric kilometer
maxim 10 meters
metron - meter

Scientific measurements
ergon - unknown
megon - megaton
radion - rad
volton - voltage
wavelon - wavelength

[monolith21]

I hope there isn't going to be a quiz...lol

For some reason I always heard "Feldercarb" as a kid so that stuck. When I viewed the show as an adult I heard "Felgercarb" a bit but I just doesn't feel as right when I say it.

Funny true story. I got into major trouble with my first grade teacher for saying "Frack" in her classroom. Apparently she was not a Battlestar fan.

[charybdis]

Irony, eh? I always heard and used felgercarb and the other variation sounds strange to me!!!

[monolith21]

Totally! I believe the "g" is correct though. I love it when someone says it like "fel-jer-garb". I wan't to ask them if they ever watched the show.

[Capt. Ares]

One guy said it "fel-cer-garb" to me one time and all I could do was laugh

[charybdis]

Here's a link to one of the threads at our Callisto forum that has an even more voluminous dictionary of all things Galactica:

bscallisto.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=RPG&action=display&thread=250

[Capt. Ares]

very cool charybdis

[spcglider]

We wrestled with this whole shindig back when we were assembling "Galactica Stuff" at Clean Slate Press. We took most of our definitions from the writer's bible from the studio.

Interestingly enough, originally the term "centon" meant a "day". If you watch the original pilot, the term is used correctly in-context when they are discussing how long they will be stopping at Carrillon. But obviously things got changed around drastically during writing.

Kind of like the way people started referring to the space yo-yos as "Base STARS" as opposed to "Base SHIPS". They wanted to make sure the good guys and the bad guys were driving different spacecraft, so they first called them "Base Ships". But as the series went on, the term "Base Star" crept in. And Base Star is easier to elocute.

Also from the writer's manual, the original term was "amGrosa" with a "g" and not "amBrosa" with a "b". In fact there's a note that says specifically that it is NOT to be referred to as "ambrosia" nor confused with the mythical god food.

-Gordon

[Reaper]

I knew it wasn't supposed to be the mythical Greek food of the gods Ambrosia, but I did think it was ambrosa. Just without the i. Interesting that is was supposed to be Amgrosa. It definately doesn't sound like that in the shows.

[charybdis]

I think that they all misunderstood it and still used ambrosia anyways! It is listed as ambrosia in the Encyclopedia Galactica, btw...

[spcglider]

Well, that's what you get for mucking about with spellings and familiar sounding words! LOL!! Frack! or is it Frak? Or is it Phwraque?

-G

[monolith21]

Isn't it "Phwraque" in Gemonese?

[captainchirri]

I thought that "pogees" was a term for testicles.

[Reaper]

no, if you look at how they used Pogees, then it would make more sense if Pogees was a term for "poo"

I scared the "poo" out of him, I blew the "poo" out of that fighter

Of course "poo" is that other 4 letter word that is flitered on the forums

[captainchirri]

"Poo" only has 3 letters, but I get your point.