The wide range of uses for synthetic synapses is largely due to the fact that they are able to serve double duty as electrical conduits and as replacements or additions to biological nervous systems. This allows them to be used in computers, cybernetics, and artificial intelligence equipment.

Since original oil can be harvested only from a world with a long biological history, synthetic oil has become frequently produced in laboratories all over known space.

When found in harvestable quantities beyond the unapproachable heat of an active star, plasma is said to be in a “suspended” state. Specialized electronic equipment is used to attract the ionized particles into collection tubes, after which it can be stored, transported, or applied to a variety of technologies.

“Hyperoxidation” was the term given to the process of rapidly fossilizing the carbon structures, readily available in the form of biomass, which forms the basic framework of supertensile plastics. The only amorphous solid known to retain the resilience of other such materials while also adopting conductive properties, supertensile plastic is highly sought after for a wide range of industrial applications.

Required for highly advanced technologies too numerous to mention to function properly, these conduits are made from super-cooled materials that function as perfect conductors, having an effective electrical resistance of zero.

When an individual computer system incorporates a wide range of networked utilities, layered processors, and redundant memory cores, it is said to have evolved into a supercomputer. Such systems can be put to use managing spaceships, starbases, or even entire planetary administrations.

Sustaining diverse populations of station inhabitants – many of whom come from different worlds with different ecologies – was a medical nightmare until the development of sterile conduits. Each length of flexible, self-repairing tube is powered by breaking down the chemical energy in the water they convey, which itself is laced with smart vaccines able to identify and destroy almost any known antigen.

These tiny cubes form the building blocks of many simple structures, from basic walls and doors to entire homes and even industrial office spaces. Whenever a sufficient number of smartfab units are placed together and have been programmed with the same instructions, they will automatically combine to form some portion of that object and then become inert in their new form. With adequately detailed blueprints, there is theoretically no limit to the complexity of object or structure these clever devices can create.

As one of the most common elements in the universe, it's no surprise that silicon has found its way into almost every aspect of manufacturing, resulting in a steady price and perpetual mining operations on most solid planets.