Parlien Culture

The Parlien culture is highly focused on science, though only marginal amount of people actually become scientists. Science in general is nevertheless very popular among Parliens and much more popular than among the other species of the Milky Way Galaxy.

Historical changes

Some historical changes have occurred over the centuries and millennia. While science has been a more prominent element in Parlien society for a very long time there has been much more conservative times as well.

People

The Parlien people are considered to be very friendly towards each other and to outsiders as well. The Parlien people do not treat differently those who live in, for example, the border worlds or outside the Parlien Geniocracy. All three genders also have equality though sometimes certain issues might be questioned. There are also no social classes or anything that divides the people, although renowned scientists and politicians are kept in higher regard by the general populace.

Religion

There is no longer any religious activity among the Parliens.

Racial minorities

There are several different Parlien subtypes depending on their point of origin on their homeworld. Though over time these differences have become smaller due to genetic mixing. Nevertheless there is no racial discrimination and non-Parliens are treated equally, though they usually have difficulties in achieving political positions or other positions that require to pass an entrance exam.

Telepaths

Parliens do not have telepathic capabilities and got their first contact with telepathic beings when dealing with the other races. The question on how they should treat telepaths caused quite a debate among the Parliens. They were considered especially dangerous and unreliable. This was reinforced by an incident with the Folan Star Empire when the Parlien ambassador was telepathically scanned without her knowledge. Eventually the problem was solved by inventing devices that could detect and track telepathic activities. Because of this everyone entering a Parlien planet is scanned first to determine the telepathic status and then issued a monitoring device if the person is detected as telepathic. This has been criticized as being stigmatizing.

Family structure

Parlien core family includes the parents and the children, though relatives are also very close, but almost always live apart from the core family. The children can spend quite long with their parents, even over 30 years. Due to the three genders of the Parliens there are no clear man-woman/father-mother situations. Same-sex marriages and families are also not uncommon, especially among the "third" gender, though in these cases the situation is more complex due to their ability to change their gender. Nevertheless all the gender combinations have equal rights when it comes to family and conjugation.

Festivities and traditions

There are several various festivities held in the Parlien Geniocracy, many of which are also public holidays. One of the festivities is the "Day of Science" which usually involves open day at the various scientific laboratories as well as scientific demonstrations, seminars and presentations. This is widely practiced among nearly all colony worlds and planetary regions.

A common Parlien tradition is to have large parties when a person graduates, this involves inviting family members and some local people as well.

Literature

Literature is widely enjoyed by the Parliens, both fact and fiction. Scientific articles and essays are much more available to common people and also much more popular than among other races.

Visual arts

Parliens also enjoy various visual arts, both conventional ones and digital ones. Scientific phenomena are often depicted in these.

Architecture

Parlien architecture can be considered as highly modern. Transparent surfaces on buildings are common as well as shiny, metallic looking surfaces. The buildings themselves are often shaped highly irregularly, which means that buildings are rarely simple rectangles or even spherical, but can have all kinds of weird looking appendages. Many other alien races consider Parlien architecture to be extremely strange.

Painting

Painting styles include both conventional methods (physical painting, drawing, etc.) and digital methods (3D modeling and animations, holographic art, etc.). It is common to have various different paintings at homes and public buildings.

Sculpture

Sculpture also has high popularity, once again both conventional methods as well as digital ones. On streets both kinds of sculptures can be soon very often.

Holovision

Holovision is also widely practiced with several different channels offering a wide variety of programs. Scientific programs are though the most common ones and also the most popular ones.

Fashion

Fashion also plays a big role in the Parlien society although most people find that difficult to believe initially. It is not uncommon for various scientists and political figures to, as well as common folk, to seek unique clothing. The styles used vary a lot, but the most common depiction on clothing is scientific areas. Many people also often obtain clothes that represent their line of work, for example biochemists might have clothing that depicts various biomolecules or reactions involving biomolecules. Colors are often used as well.

Work clothes are a different matter, however, as they are designed to be as practical as possible. Because of this it is also common for people to change clothes during the day while at work. This has raised some criticism for being inefficient and as such not everybody does it. There are no differences between genders either, that is all of them wear the same type of clothes.

Media and communications

Media plays an important part in Parlien culture as well as news of scientific discoveries are quickly spread through the various forms of media. Tabloid press is practically non-existent as only a few of them operate withing the Parlien society and all these originate from other races (mostly from Gigerdi Federation and United Commonwealth of Planets). Due to this the Parlien media doesn't emphasize on relationships or highlight emotional subjects. The Parlien media can be considered very formal. There are nevertheless several different media houses that usually focus on different areas or regions.

Communications are completely free among Parliens with no legal restrictions on the content. The Parlien-wide net is commonly used and available to every Parlien and non-Parlien living or visiting the Parlien space. Access from galaxy net is restricted, however. Galaxy net access is common also, but not available yet everywhere.

Education

Education is an important part in the Parlien culture as well. It is highly valued and usually begins when the child is at the age of seven. It is also emphasized that education should not be started too early. Due to technological advancements there is little need for people in areas of low education because of this most people seek to become lettered. Because of this it is not uncommon for people to keep studying actively until they are over 30 years old. Though even after that various educational forms are popular and continuing education is commonly practiced. The Parlien school system has two more basic schools that everyone attends to, after this people move to second degree education which involves, for example, universities. Student counseling is of very high quality and changing your major is also very easy. The government also seeks to provide jobs for every student on the field they are studying or are interested in during their vacations.

Language

There are various dialects in use, but the formal language Lopiihg is the official language and thus used in official documents and in scientific papers.

Cuisine

Parliens are mainly semi-vegetarians, but recently some have tried eating meat products although it is not among their natural diet.

Public holidays

Parliens have several public holidays as it is believed that extra free time motivates people and enhances their problem solving skills.

Sports

There are various sports in the Parlien culture, many of which involve complex tactics.