Miles nodded, shrugging a little. "It seems that most of Earth pretty much did that," he noted. "At least from the texts I've read."

"As to the centers of power... Well, there's Beta Colony, where my mother comes from. They're very scientifically-minded there, and are definitely the most technologically advanced. Then we have Barrayar, which has been fairly isolated lately, at least until the Cetagandans invaded. That was during my grandfather's time, and now we're kind of at uneasy peace with them. And then there's Jackson's Whole, which operates on a lassez-faire system of polits gone horribly, horribly awry."