when you have that tile selected, there are 2 icons that accurately descibe the effect. there's green arrow pointing upward and next to it the game displays some bonus - like "+3 manufacturing". that bonus applies to structures built on that tile (but only if they are of the appropriate category - ie. a tile with +3 manufacturing improves factories, power plants or other buildings that are in the manufactuing category)

the other icon (4 small orange arrows/triangles pointing outwards) is the bonus adjacent tiles get. it's usually a +1 bonus since it can apply to multiple tiles. if there's a "+1 research" next to that icon, that means all research buildings adjacent to that tile get a +1 research bonus.

in most cases a +1 simply means 5% bonus,so a factory on a bonus tile with "+3 manufacturing" basically gets +15% manufacturing. some buildings get different effects (an approval building on a +3 approval tile gets +3 approval for example, not +5% approval) 

What they said   here is a pix with arrows

http://screencast.com/t/f4YCpx9bgOx

Appreciated that pic by the way a0152570  (are you a computer program?) - flow charts, pics, scribbles on cave walls - all these things go a long way.

Unfortunately there is no direct way to observe how much a tech costs in research points at the moment. They could be reverse engineered but who wants to do that.

Correct on both points.  And the third

I would prefer if they showed it also, but is really that big a deal.  I mean if your trying to optimize spending when you getting 700-1000 POINTS A TURN, isn't that taking micromanagement to the extreme?  Just saying...

Probably not absoultle correct but it something like this.  Resistance if how much fight your population put up against attackers.  planetary defenses comes in many flavors, some improvements /techs  increase your resistance, others give you a buff (or make you practically immune) to a certain type of invasion, like bombardment of bio warfare.  So keep an eye on what invasion type your enemies have and get the appropriate defense.  Cousrc i perfer to just meet them head on with my fleets and blow em to hell 

Wow WOPR dude! I can see why from you're perspective it is not a big deal. According to steam I have played for 54 hours, and well over 10 games in that time, and I am yet to see my research above I think 200 before everyone kills me. For me, spending 600 points wisely feels like life and death. Well prolonging life before death anyway.

e.g. Do I get the harpoon for my ship to try hold them off, or get the academy tech so maybe it will take two transports to take out my last planet instead of one?

Encountered another need for it today as well. I picked a new ability intuitive but felt like I was choosing blind, with one tech half-way researched with like 26 turns to completion which didn't feel like a good choice, but I had no way to know how far the pick would get me into that tech until I had already picked it.

Not to be argumentative for the sake of it - I suspect detailed maps of all tech costs would not buy me more than a few turns of extra life anyway, but what seems like micromanagement in the extreme to you is trying my best to stay alive as long as possible for me.

I'll do the steam review when I can survive long enough to lose to something other than conquest.

Great link Achro btw, thanks.

On to next question - is there a way I can adjust my ship without making a new one each time? Over several games with the one civ I'm really starting to crowd out my ship list with like 30 very similar designs of tiny and small ships. I tried everything I could think of but can't figure out how to just edit a ship instead of making a new one each and every time, and if I keep going like this, sooner or later I'm going to end up with 30 versions of the same medium ship as well (how many sizes are there incidentally?).

very easy, just select and use the ship you want to change, make you changes and hit save.  If you do not change the name a "are you sure dialog" pops up and say yes. you just edited you ship