Project adminstered by Niniane for the Officers of Peace and Knowledge?. It listens to the future in an attempt to discover what secrets have been passed back to allow the present to better deal with problems at hand. At first Niniane believed that Aenea was crucial to the project, and kidnapped her, but has since realized that the channel is open to anyone who can listen. While Aenea can do that naturally, most others require a specially designed chamber to hear anything.

The project has led to the development of several super-weapons, including the Null Sphere warheads and advanced engine technologies. Niniane is using these to defeat or at least parry the Dark Swarm before it destroys more Galactic Republic worlds.

also:

The beginning of a speech, where the subject is announced and the speaker tries to establish credibility with the audience. (from The Canons of Rhetoric)