Additionally, I have found these links helpful (probably all from Hatrackers!)

http://www.nas.nasa.gov/About/Education/SpaceSettlement/75SummerStudy/Table_of_Contents1.html (NASA living in space study)

http://www.writesf.com/

while you're out there, check out this one for common mistakes in sf/fantasy writing:
http://www.sfwa.org/writing/mistakes_allen.htm

http://www.sfwa.org/writing/writer.htm - Science in SF: Making it Work

I am going to see if "Portal" works.

If your just moving through space, Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained by Peter Hamilton explores them well.

My biggest gripe with Star Trek was inconsistency, due to poor continuity directors, and technology existing in a vacuum.

You'd have a technology like Transporters, but not the ancillary devices and technologies that would exist because of it. You would also frequently have story conflicts that should not exist because of estsblished technology within the canon of the show.

Anyway sci-fi readers tend to me kind of anal so having tech existing without the underlying technologies or it's ancillary off shoots is generally a big no no.

One of the things I liked about the Hamilton books I mentioned earlier was that the core teleportation technology completely changes society and because it exists alot of other technologies, which are viable, are obviated because they are made moot by the gate tech.

Worm holes are tunnels through space and time. Most of the time they are used to move from point a to point b in space negating all time requirements to get there. Worm hole is a term that was used in scientific magazines long before star trek came along with their drivel of a Babylon 5 competitor. Ignoring star trek, worm hole will be understandable to most people who read scifi somewhat regularly. The above mentioned books by Perter Hamilton does use wormholes and adjust society around them. The books could have both been half the size and been much better. It is a good example of how not to follow every whim. But I think if you are really looking to get an idea of what space and time are about, then you need something a bit more relevant to it. Black Holes& Time Warps by Kip Thorne is a space physics book that is more understandable, and enjoyable, by people who lack a physics degree. It not only explains the ideas behind the science, but some of the history behind the discoveries. I thought it interesting that Einstein's theories created the possibilities of black holes, and he was one of the ones most heavily against it. There is also a writing book that deals more with planets and the physics of how solar systems work, but that is a bit math heavy, and you have to have more than a passing interest to get past the first chapter.

I think the prime examples for how to write scifi is to read good scifi by those who make a living off of it. Niven is one of my favorites, and ringworld is still an incredible concept.

OSC didn't invent the ansible or hyperdrive, yet he uses them in his novels. And he doesn't take credit for them either. In fact, he used the term ansible out of respect to the author that created the term.

Star Trek, Stargate, and Farscape, to name a few, all use worm holes as a term to describe their function. So again, steal it. People know exactly what you're talking about.

It's like dragons. Just about any high fantasy novel has dragons or references dragons. If you want to use dragons, USE THEM. And don't apologize. If you make it interesting enough, you won't have to.