At the beginning of the episode, the crew observes the 315th anniversary of First Contact Day, which is established in Star Trek: First Contact (1996) as having taken place on April 5, 2063. That would mean this episode takes place on April 5, 2378; however, the stardate later given in Captain Janeway's log, 54868.6, suggests that the episode actually takes place on November 12, 2377. (See Trivia Section for Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) on how this was calculated.)
Neelix's eyes appear brown, a departure from his typical yellow/orange eyes. This is the natural eye color of Neelix actor Ethan Phillips.
Talaxians use "geothermal energy" from an asteroid's core. Geothermal energy is the result of the gravitational collapse and radioactive decay inside the Earth. Asteroids are much too small to generate any practical amounts of geothermal energy. In any case, using the word "geothermal" for anything other than Earth is a misnomer, since "geo" means "Earth."
The Talaxian colonists previously inhabited a planet where the indigenous people wouldn't allow them enough land to grow enough food to feed themselves. The Talaxians left the planet to live inside an asteroid - a big rock where nothing grows yet where they've managed to survive and thrive.