These are mostly taken from the captions to the animation-design sketches.
Ten years ago, the next generation of robot standards called "The New Standards" were proposed mainly by Conception, the largest manufacturer of robots. The standardized products, which can handle any kind of task, were labeled generally as "Seconds".
The "Seconds" have an on/off switch on their temples to distinguish them from humans. The majority of the "Seconds" are females and they wear skimpy outfits though they work in public. The manufacturers view the "Seconds" as means of freeing women from sexual discrimination, however, this is only the manufacturers' excuse for males' selfishness in society.
The TCS is a special department of the MPD formed to deal with robot crimes comitted within the precincts of St. Lowel City, a city which grew at a rate much faster than anticipated, causing a correspondingly sharp rise in related crimes.
The special focus of the TCS is dealing with acts of so-called "marionette terrorism," along with the problems associated with a boom in the Mars population of "Seconds." Increasingly elaborate robot crimes require an increasingly sophisticated police force to deal with them, and the TCS was formed to do just that.
Naturally, robots are much more physically powerful than humans, and unlike humans, the commission of crimes can continue even when they're damaged. The TCS is specially trained to handle these sorts of situations, but because the economies of Mars are so deeply intertwined with robot industries, sometimes detailed investigations become extremely difficult. In general, the MPD has its hands full trying to deter regular types of crimes and capturing non-robot criminals.
What insiders call the communication world inside computer memory. By using an interface known as a "needle," users can plug the needle into their shoulder and move about freely in the digital world. Various-sized objects seen here are programs stored within computer memory, while objects seen floating around Armitage are programes she uses while in cyberspace.
Used by D'anclaude to commit his heinous acts of terrorism. A "Second" armed with an explosive device is termed a "Puppet Bomb." At the beginning of the epiosode, one such "Bomb Second" blows up in St. Lowell airport and causes many casualties. Although they're painted in a "punk" style and dressed in "bondage" outfits, their true nature doesn't become apparent until just before the explosion, as they disguise themselves in heavy cloaks. Their basic programming boards are similar to those used in the "Third" series.
With his eccentric mode of speech and numerous acts of terrorism, D'anclaude has been responsible for the deaths of one Third after another. Eventually, it is revealed that his true identity is that of a "combat Third," the physical appearance of which is based on his creator, Third developer Dr. Rene D'anclaude. Ironically, both the D'anclaude Third and Armitage operate on the same CPU series, making them into a strange sort of siblings. Also ironic is the matter of the original D'anclaude's break from his fellow scientist, Dr. Asakura, with whom he disagreed regarding the development of the Thirds.
The word "Third" refers to robots developed independently by Dr. Asakura, a noted researcher in artificial intellignece or "AL." Almost all the Doctor's Thirds are physiologically human female, and hold the same personalities and emotions as if they were indeed human; truly, the Thirds are the ultimate in "artificial humans."
Within Martian society, there are many artists, musicians, writers, and other creative types. The greatest difference between the Thirds and other robot types is that only the Thirds have the ability to concieve and carry a child to term. Along with this ability comes the potential to reverse the low birthrate on Mars.