Braincase

In androids, homo excelsiors, and mature homo superiors, the braincase houses, protects, and nurtures the mind. Typically massing around five kilograms, it exists completely independently of the rest of the body - even in the case of alpha superior, once fully matured. It tends to be slightly larger than a root strain cranium, though this difference is well hidden.

Looked at on its own, the most notable feature of the braincase is the metallic 'construction' - mostly a non-magnetic steel alloy, with lead, gold, silver, titanium and other metals used in other places. Several 'blemishes' do stand out, however.

• In the bottom of the front, roughly where the eye-sockets would be placed, are four connectors, two for the eyes and two for the nose and tongue.
• Two connectors can be seen on either side, one for the ear, the other for a jack, which allows for a direct data connection to the brain.
• At the bottom rear, where the cranium attaches to the spine, is a complex socket for just that purpose.
• A similar socket setup exists to place the maxilla-zygomatic 'face' onto the braincase, as well as the mandible.
• Two pairs of raised strips that act as radio antennas and transmitters.
• A pair of closable slots, in the back of the case, in which optical discs may be inserted.
• Several strips and other streamlined features can be seen, which provide chemical and electromagnetic analysis of surroundings. This, combined with basic sound and magnetic flux sensing, mean that the senses of an enhanced human body are triple-redundant.

Both socket systems are capable of supplying nutrients and draining waste from the braincase. In addition, the bottom of the structure contains a small deuterium fusion reactor, allowing the brain to function completely independantly. This reactor is exceedingly weak - the maximum draw is typically less than 200 watts, and usually about a tenth of that value.

The brain structure is supplemented by a pair of encephalons - supplemental computer processors for the brain. These perform most of the basic processing work, leaving more of the neural network to focus on tasks more suited to it.