Ex Astris Scientia
“Ex astris scientia” is a Latin phrase meaning “knowledge from the stars” and is the slogan for Starfleet Academy, in Star Trek.
It is also the name of what is probably the best Star Trek fan site there is. And honestly, “fan site” does not really do it justice.
This is the first post for content my new Worth your time page
Ex Astris Scientia is Bernd Schneider’s Star Trek reference site. It has been running since 1998, which means it’s also probably one of the oldest Trek sites still actively maintained.
The site has some “obvious” content, like:
- News about new Star Trek material that is being produced.
- Editorial opinion pieces about developments in the world of Star Trek.
- In-depth episode reviews for every Trek series, including retro reviews of older content.
It also contains a large amount of reference material:
- The starship database and fleet charts are among the most detailed you will find anywhere.
- Comparisons between original and remastered versions of TOS and TNG episodes.
- A detailed timeline of Star Trek across all the series.
But the sort of content that I find more interesting, and what made it first stand out for me, is a bit weirder.
For example, in Star Trek The Next Generation, captain Picard often had a book of Shakespeare open in his ready room. Did you know that the page it was opened on was usually different?
Or how about a comprehensive list of modern day items used as props? My favourite example is the prolific use of freezer spacers for creating dramatically lit backgrounds.
Or maybe just the simple fact that Kirk argued a computer to death 4 times?