Question about Racial techs

[Suicide Junkie]

Sorry.
You can't steal racial techs, even if they aren't directly under a racial tech. I've anaylsed phong ships and not been able to get shard cannons.

You certainly can't research stuff you don't have the "tech that opens the tech area that the component is in"
eg. I steal shield tech from some alien. I don't even have physics 1, but I get shield tech level 1. I cannot research shields, but I can still build ships with Shield Generator I's on them.