Star Trek why's...

[phgnome]

1. Data -- no one knows how to build another one of him except Dr. Soong. But, if there are replicators, why don't they replicate another one of him? I mean, he's the most useful "life form" on the ship (and probably in the whole Federation, for that matter) -- why don't they make other ones for other star ships? I'd imagine that he's quite coveted by other ships.

2. Why are the Ferengie still so obsessed with commerce if they're already spacefaring and have already made contact with species with replicators?

3. Why is it so bad to be a Borg? I mean, to me, it sounds like kind of fun to go travelling across the universe in this amazing cube ship with thousands of other Borgs. And the whole idea of having access to collective knowledge and experiences doesn't seem so bad. Why does the Federation see this as such an undesirable thing.

4. For that matter, why don't the borg just have a recruiting campaign? I'd think that many people would join voluntarily. And, logically, I don't honestly think the Borg would want to grow their population infinitely -- just because of a shortage of resources. Why are they painted this way? Who wouldn't want to be a borg? If I could have a nice lens attached to my eye and be able to upload hi-res images or video to the collective, I'd think that was pretty cool and that alone would make me want to be a borg.

5. Can replicators replicate organic life forms? It can replicate food, which contain organic compounds...should it not, in theory, be able to replicate an embryo?

[billyskank]

1. THE BORG ARE COMMIES!!!

Didn't you geddit? :rofl: The Borg are the ultimate commies, that's why they're bad!

Although thinking about it, the Federation is not a little bit on the socialist side themselves. No money?? Heavens! It ain't Babylon 5, that's for sure. :D

Although I remember one exchange with Quark which went something like this:

"That sort of thinking (Ferengi thinking) nearly destroyed our planet!"
Quark: "Why would you destroy your planet? That's bad for business!"

I'm sure I got every word of that exchange wrong. But that's the gist of it. I wish someone would point that out to our business elites. :eyes:

[skygazer]

2. Because it's in the script

Silly....

[yurbud]

3. they could replicate anyone too, and sometimes did--but only on

accident.

Why wouldn't you just have the data on your young self in a pattern buffer, then when you die, have a new copy "beamed down"?

[billyskank]

5. Wouldn't help you though

you'd still be dead.

[yurbud]

14. that's the problem with most cloning/duplicating scenarios...

unless they pull the brain out of your old body and stick it in the new one, the new you would be you to everyone else and himself, but you would actually be dead.

Of course that same issue comes up with the transporter. If you do that process, the end result is a copy, you just don't notice because there is only one, but the original was destroyed, like when you automatically delete photos from your camera as you download them.

[billyskank]

17. Yes - the transporters actually murder every person they 'transport'

Fuck that! I'll take a shuttle.

[yurbud]

23. they did that on an episode of outer limits once...

a woman was being transported to another planet, but her body on this end wasn't destroyed. So the transporter operator had to kill her. Then meet her when she can back from the other planet after her trip.

[ProfessorGAC]

95. Yes. Even The Two Rikers. . .

. . .were different people, and that was a transporter accident that doubled up the same person. But, the experiences Will had after that, and those Tom had after it, made them two different people.
The Professor

[yurbud]

4. If borg called their implants iBorgs....

[yurbud]

6. yeah, theoretically, having access to all knowledge at once would be good

and what we are moving toward anyway.

[tigereye]

7. you have too much time on your hands...

just kidding.

We are rewatching a lot of Next Generations after 20 years and there are a lot of continuity/script questions that come up. And I love to criticize Counselor Troi's lack of psychological skill.... ;)

The Borg force people to collectivize and take away their individuality. We enjoyed the one about the young Borg who starts to think as an individual as a result of contact with the crew. (Somehow we had missed that one the first time around.) I think that's it.

[billyskank]

10. That's another thing that bothers me

Not only do they have a fucking SHRINK on board, but she sits on the bridge and outranks ALMOST FUCKING EVERYBODY!

:wtf:

[yurbud]

19. and contributes nothing of value except cleavage...

Her "psychic" observations were exactly the same as what any carnival fortune teller could come up with--educated guesses based on observation. And half the time, socially inept Trekkies already figured out what she was going to find out with her psychic abilities anyway, so she is a waste of cabin air.

I did like it when she did actual psychotherapy with Reg, and he had sexual fantasies about her in the holodeck.

[LostinVA]

46. I was sooo glad when they put her in the blue uniform

And actually had her be a real medical officer.

[yurbud]

51. they should have called her "courtesan" instead of "counselor"

[LostinVA]

52. I know!

[tigereye]

78. yeah, tits aren't exactly a requirement for doing therapy!

it's odd, since that version of the show was somewhat more sophisticated genderwise than the original...

[edbermac]

79. Hey Troi was HOT!

:loveya:

[yurbud]

85. If someone shows me two feet of cleavage, I'm listening.

Not making eye contact, but listening.

[tigereye]

94. mmmm

I don't think that you would be! ;)

[Porcupine]

92. But they should be!!! n/t.

.

[phgnome]

42. Troi = Organization's HR lady

Troi's the busy-body know-nothing but know-it-all HR person. Much like the HR person, she has no solid quantifiable skills that actually contribute to the growth of an organization except have "hunches" about people and advises the ship (or organization) whether or not to deal with a person.

[tigereye]

48. well, the character is supposed to be a trained psychologist

but sometimes she doesn't display any of the requisite skills! To be fair, though, some of her insights are quite accurate.

[tigereye]

47. well, I don't mind the idea of a psychologist on board

and it's cool to have one as an important member of the crew, but sometimes even I (and I'm a mental health professional) want to slap her for the inane, intrusive and stereotypical way she behaves....

[Deja Q]

13. Watch 'Q Who?' and then 'I, Borg'...

It's amusing how Guinan, who is cool and collected in her status of the Borg can so conveniently change her mind on an entire species just because one of them was isolated from the hive and re-educated by Geordi.

Hardly the spectacular followup to "The Best of Both Worlds" that everybody was hoping for...

[sakabatou]

34. Ah. Hugh.

[phgnome]

41. young borg

Yeah, I really liked that episode. He was such a cute little borg. He wasn't "brainwashed" by communism -- he had a good balance of individuality with collectivism.

[YankeyMCC]

71. Do you know what shocks me about your post...

20 years after TNG!!!

:wow:

I remember so vividly Waiting for the new Trek to start.

I mean I know it's been 20 years but it still jarring to be reminded how old I am. ;)

[ProfessorGAC]

96. It's Called "I, Borg"

Great episode. Hugh resurfaces in the episodes "Descent" both parts 1 and 2.
The Professor

[ProfessorGAC]

97. It's Called "I, Borg"

Great episode. Hugh resurfaces in the episodes "Descent" both parts 1 and 2.
The Professor

[Deja Q]

8. Answers from the Grand Geek:

1. "The Measure of a Man" explicitly rules Data is a living being and not subject to duplication. (Awesome episode... pity the template was re-used in, amongst other stories, "The Offspring" and "Quality of Life" - neither of which is as good, with the latter being pure garbage...)

2. The energy required to use a replicator must be considerable. Also, genuine articles versus replications. I bought a reprint of "The Matrix" (1999) movie poster for $15 but would have preferred the original article for $150.

3. Riker would not like it because there's no sex. There is no individuality either; everyone is just a drone. Keeping the collective is all nice and well; but when it comes time to conquer others you're as expendable as anything else. Hardly a culture that cherishes life...

4. It's not their way. Theirs is not a system of choice or freedom. And, again, the Borg do not allow individuality or freedom. Or even emotions.

5. Undoubtedly. Had Rick Berman been given yet another show, he'd have given us an episode badly playing that concept out too. (he did do it for individual body parts, such as Worf's spinal column in the garbage episode "Ethics".)

[yurbud]

11. the question isn't SHOULD Data be replicated but technically, why wouldn't

they be able to?

They did that in Voyager once. Some planet liked the holographic doctor's musical talents so much they wanted to keep him, presenting a dilemma until the aliens made a copy of him.

[Deja Q]

18. Hmmm

Well, "Voyager" tends to make everything it deals with into a farce.

The Kazon are pathetic replications of the Klingons.

The Borg get watered down.

Q's stories, despite being hilarious, are a total send-up and self-mockery. B+ for effort with the metaphor, but it destroys its own credibility.

A hologram designed for one purpose (impractical as holograms are made of light and can't really perform intricate operations, much less touch anything, so is he truly a hologram by definition? Which means, as the EMH was originally a one-note tune and just a program, where was the harm in copying? Especially when they were so far away from home; all things being equal it'd have been wrong but Janeway had no other option and all things were not equal. (never mind he's far more a clone of McCoy than Pulaski ever was :D ). And the aliens made the copy, not Voyager. So there was no real dilemma. I didn't see that episode, though.

[yurbud]

21. functionally, the doctor was a droid like data and they discussed

whether he had personhood on several occasions. In one episode, he wrote a novel about hologram oppression that became the Uncle Tom's Cabin of the hologram community.

[Xithras]

53. He wasn't really a hologram.

Can't remember the episode off the top of my head, but the doctor was created through the use of holographic projectors similar to those used on the holodeck. He wasn't merely a holographic light presentation, he was created from holographic matter (e.g. instead of projected photons, think in terms of projected atoms).

[billyskank]

25. Copying the holographic doctor should be easy

all you need is enough memory, and do Ctrl-C Ctrl-V. :D

[phgnome]

45. Yep

Ctrl-C Ctrl-V Ctrl-C Ctrl-V Ctrl-C Ctrl-V

Now there's enough of me to go around and do everything that I'm supposed to be doing....no rest for the wicked...}(

[yurbud]

9. Why are most members of most crews asexual? If no sex, why not be borg?

[FoxOnTheRun]

24. You are watching the wrong series

[yurbud]

29. Damn that Davy Jones!

[yurbud]

30. but why don't they pork each other?

[FoxOnTheRun]

31. I think only Kirk was allowed to

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7rb83DnnoU

he was the problem, behind the scenes and on film

[trogdor]

57. Come on, now.

This guy once nailed a Klingon chick, and trashed Tuvok's quarters while doing it. The shit-eating grin on his face was priceless.

[billyskank]

12. Why do the bad guys never attack when everyone's in bed??

That's another thing that bothered me. :(

[billyskank]

15. Furthermore

why do all the most senior crew members all work shift at the same time? What kind of a dumbfuck drew up THAT rota?

[yurbud]

26. That's the one time anonymous crewmen know they won't be killed--

when Picard and Riker are asleep and they have to drive the ship.

[billyskank]

27. For real

NOTHING ever happens!

[FoxOnTheRun]

44. I think Riker was abducted during his sleep

and they made some experiments with him.

Can't remember more

[yurbud]

16. even navy ships run on round the clock schedules, fully staffed 24/7

In fact, they do 6 on, 6 off.

But maybe in space they just set the cruise control and take a group nap.

[billyskank]

20. Yup

and I'm guessing the Navy doesn't have one half of the shifts entirely operated by redshirts, right?

[yurbud]

28. I forgot what the redshirt means

gold is command...

blue is medical...

[billyskank]

32. Redshirt means you die within the first 5 minutes of an away mission

:D

[Recovered Repug]

87. In the original series: gold = command, blue = medical and

red = engineering and security. In TNG/DS9 etc. gold and red are reversed and blue is still medical.

[Xithras]

54. They do.

There have been many episodes during the various shows where incidents took place when Sulu, Chakotay, Riker, Kira, T'Pol, and even Data or some anonymous redshirt was in charge because the captain was in bed or the officers were otherwise off duty. As in a real battle however, that persons first duty would be to recall the captain and ranking officers to the bridge.

[FoxOnTheRun]

22. 1 Data has a daughter

1)

Desiring to reproduce, Data creates an android "daughter", Lal, in 2366. She exceeds Data's abilities, using verbal contractions and feeling some emotions. She becomes scared when Starfleet scientists wanted to separate her from Data, and, overwhelmed, she suffers a cascade neural failure and "dies." She tells Data, "I love you, father," but Data is incapable of reciprocating. To preserve Lal's existence, Data transfers her memories into his own memory core (TNG: "The Offspring").

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_(Star_Trek)


3)
"Resistance is futile" Are you kiddinng ? Having a queen and conquering the world sounds like....GB to me

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borg_%28fictional_aliens%29


3)

A replicator can create any inanimate matter, as long as the desired molecular structure is on file, but it cannot create antimatter, dilithium, or a living organism of any kind.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Replicator_%28Star_Trek%29

but

In Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Second Chances," an identical copy of commander Wil Riker is created. Years ago, while a then-lieutenant Riker was beaming up from a planet's surface through severe atmospheric interference, the transporter chief locked on to Roker's signal with a second tracking beam. When this second beam turned out not to be needed, it was abandoned – but not lost. Unbeknownst to everyone on the ship, the ionic disturbance in the atmosphere caused the second beam to be reflected back to the planet and result in the creation of a second Riker. Fast forward eight years and the two Rikers meet. Confusion reigns, Riker-2 gets together with Riker-1's old girlfriend before matters are resolved, and Riker-2 departs to pursue his separate existence.

http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/T/transporter.html

[pokerfan]

33. Remember the Scotty / Dyson Sphere episode?

When se rigged the transporter system to keep him in in suspended animation for 75 years.

OK, so the transporter can be used to create a backup of one's self. So why doesn't everyone do that first thing each morning? No more death. At most, you lose 24 hours.

[Recovered Repug]

86. Because, that wasn't a "backup" of Scotty, that was Scotty

himself. He put the transporter in a loop, beamed himself up, and remand there for 75 years.

[pokerfan]

88. Any transported being is a replica

Dematerialization is death. Various transporter malfunctions have even been known to create duplicates of individuals.

[Heidi]

35. Why were the tribbles in the original series

never given their own spinoff series? :shrug:

[yurbud]

36. most of us have one hanging in our showers now--you squirt liquid soap

on it.

[Dukkha]

59. it was actually explained in Deep Space Nine

the Klingons wiped out all the tribbles. After Scotty trnasported them to the Bird of Prey the tribbles infested the Klingon Empire. They declared war and wiped them out.

[Heidi]

37. Ya know, I'm not the world best housekeeper, but

_my_ shower tribbles don't move or communicate of their own volition. :rofl:

:hi: yurbud!

[billyskank]

38. Guess I'm not the only one who needs some DU training

:P

:loveya:

[Heidi]

39. :P

I am untrainable. x(

[billyskank]

40. ...

:hug:

[phgnome]

43. not drones...

3. ...There is no individuality either; everyone is just a drone. Keeping the collective is all nice and well; but when it comes time to conquer others you're as expendable as anything else. Hardly a culture that cherishes life...
Surely, if we can replicate organic matter and be able to break up and re-assemble matter through transport technology -- surely we can write consciousness to some sort of medium. Specifically, what I'm thinking of taking a back-up from the transporter's buffer and somehow integrating the transporter with the replicator.

The transporter seems to work in a similar way to the replicator. Who's to say that it doesn't? Maybe it really does make a clone on the other side and the original is destroyed (I saw some episode of The Outer Limits that was built on this idea).

[BarenakedLady]

49. I have no idea

But can I say...

I officially LOVE you people! :loveya:

...that is all.

[Orrex]

50. Warning: This is the geekiest thing you'll ever read

1. Data -- no one knows how to build another one of him except Dr. Soong. But, if there are replicators, why don't they replicate another one of him? I mean, he's the most useful "life form" on the ship (and probably in the whole Federation, for that matter) -- why don't they make other ones for other star ships? I'd imagine that he's quite coveted by other ships.

One of the fundamentals of the Star Trek universe is the value of individual freedom. This actually answers your questions 1, 3, 4, and 5, but I'll elaborate. Data isn't a machine; he's a sentient being protected by Federation law. To duplicate him via Replicator or Transporter would be a violation of his personal sovereignty. And, anyway, Replicators couldn't do it because their resolution is only certified to the molecular level; successful replication of a living creature requires quantum resolution.

This still leaves two problems:
What about the time before Data was ruled a sentient being? Simply put, no one had pushed for his duplication. Prior to the events of season 2's The Measure of a Man, the precise implications of Data's existence and his possible status as property hadn't been full explored. But once he was adjudicated to be a sentient being, his individuality was protected under Federation law, and the choice was his.

In that same episode, Data muses that his value comes not from his computational speed or his phenomenal strength; it is his uniqueness that is most precious. He even asks (in the Socratic model) Geordi why, if Geordi's visor is superior to human eyes, all human crew members aren't required to replace their eyes with visors. The answer, as Data notes, is that individuality is valuable in itself, even if opportunities for "improvement" are sacrificed along the way. Guinan echoes this sentiment to Picard at another point in the episode. From this we may infer that in the centuries between now and then, the individual as an individual is valued beyond material gain or mass-produced efficiency. In fact, this view was even obliquely described by Kirk in Mudd's Women, when he derided the supposed value of "precious" gemstones, which he could produce with ease on the Enterprise. We may even conclude that something inherent in Data's programming causes him to value and protect his uniqueness, just as an organic being is inclined to do.

What about unlawful duplication by unscrupulous Transporter operators or the like? This is more problematic. The first answer is that Transporters are likely expensive (in terms of resources) to own and tricky to maintain, so they aren't widely available in public hands. Federation-owned or –leased Transporters might even contain a kind of "governor" to prevent this kind of use, but that's just a speculation. A more reasonable guess is that the cycle of dematerialize/rematerialize is built in to the function of the Transporter, much like intake precedes compression in a four-cycle engine; you can't simply rerun the "rematerialize" sequence unless it exactly corresponds to an antecedent "dematerialize" sequence. This is hardly canonical, and they screwed with the Transporters enough that, frankly, pretty much anything is possible, but I think this explanation broadly fits with onscreen evidence. The only verified duplication IIRC resulted in the Tom/Will Riker pairing (the Good-Kirk/Bad-Kirk doesn't qualify, because it was explicitly stated that neither could survive without the other, so they were two non-viable halves of a whole). And the Riker pairing involved the nearly unique atmospheric conditions of the planet from which he was Transporting IIRC, so it's not as though it could happen every time you beam yourself to the supermarket.

Of course, Ferengi and other avaricious parties with non-Federation Transporters might try to copy Data (or Troi and her mother, for example), but this was never explored either. We might conclude that, if it were possible, they'd have done it, so therefore it must not be possible (for whatever reason). That's a lame answer, but at least it matches to canon!

2. Why are the Ferengie still so obsessed with commerce if they're already spacefaring and have already made contact with species with replicators?

Why do humans continue to eat even after technology has advanced to the point that direct and high-efficiency nutrient-input could be accomplished with ease? The answer is that it's an inherent drive of the organism. Arguably superior methods exist for accomplishing the same thing, but the momentum of millions of years of habit are hard to overcome. The Ferengi are the same way—commerce is part of their fundamental nature and very difficult for them to abandon.

3. Why is it so bad to be a Borg? I mean, to me, it sounds like kind of fun to go travelling across the universe in this amazing cube ship with thousands of other Borgs. And the whole idea of having access to collective knowledge and experiences doesn't seem so bad. Why does the Federation see this as such an undesirable thing.

4. For that matter, why don't the borg just have a recruiting campaign? I'd think that many people would join voluntarily. And, logically, I don't honestly think the Borg would want to grow their population infinitely -- just because of a shortage of resources. Why are they painted this way? Who wouldn't want to be a borg? If I could have a nice lens attached to my eye and be able to upload hi-res images or video to the collective, I'd think that was pretty cool and that alone would make me want to be a borg.

These two questions have basically the same answer. "What's so bad about being a Borg" is that you're not A Borg; you're an infinitessimal part of THE Borg. You simply have no way to sit back and say "hey, this hi-res eye gizmo is pretty cool," because the part of you that would make that observation no longer has the power to make it! It's like being dead, in a way. "This is nice," you might think, "I can finally get some rest." But, again, the part of you that would be in the position to enjoy it is no longer able to do so!

Additionally, several episodes point out that fully integrated Borg are deeply traumatized by a forced return to individuality. Seven of Nine wrestled with it for several seasons, and Hugh Borg struggled to understand it as well, even though both were surrounded by a support-group of individuals. In addition, both had been cut off from the Collective, so they weren't forced to reconcile indivuality and collectiveness simultaneously. But if you were to try daydreaming of individuality in your little Borg-bed, the resulting discord would be tremendous and debilitating. Thus we can infer that the structure of Borg-consciousness actively suppresses individuality, and drones that manifest the spark of individuality are dealt with directly (see Unimatrix Zero, for example).

5. Can replicators replicate organic life forms? It can replicate food, which contain organic compounds...should it not, in theory, be able to replicate an embryo?

See the answer above re: Replicator vs. Transporter resolution. In short, the Replicator could produce an embryo, but that embryo would lack sufficient resolution to live. It would be nonliving in the same way that a Replicated steak or drumstick isn't alive.

And, for those who are still reading at this point, I'd like to address the "Transporter equals murder" mentality: nonsense! This view depends upon a misconception that the person who steps into the Transporter beam undergoes a cut-and-paste process, which is incorrect. Instead, the person is disassembled, transmitted, and reassembled at the destination point. That's why it's difficult to copy someone via Transporter; you're working with the original from start to finish.

Imagine a technology that allows you to cut a person into 100 pieces and then reassemble that person later without harm. So Louise steps up to be cut to bits in New York City, you put her bits into a suitcase, and carry her to Los Angeles where you unpack and reassemble her. One Louise in, one Louise out, and while she's in transit she's in de facto suspended animation. The same goes for the Transporter, except that you're cut into zillions of pieces, and the suitcase is the Pattern Buffer. One Data in, one Data out. Simple! And the number of pieces is determined by the Transporter's resolution (again, quantum vs. molecular).

[Xithras]

55. I couldn't have said it better myself.

Really, I couldn't have :)

Well, except for this. There is a far easier way to explain the threat of the Borg. When you become part of the collective, you DIE. The collective isn't a bunch of individuals working together, it is a single mind. Your body simply becomes a tool, a disposable, replaceable tool, that does the bidding of that one mind. You have no sense of self because YOU don't exist anymore. There is only the collective.

Of course, Unimatrix Zero does suggest that the individual minds of the Borg ARE still present, and the successful re-individualization of many people in ST after becoming part of the collective (and the fact that their minds merged their Borg memories with their individual personalities), suggests that the collective/individual relationship may be a lot more complex than we might readily assume.

[Smooth Operator]

56. Ferengi are Republicans

it's all about the money and screw anyone who gets in your way.

Once you have their money ... never give it back.
Never pay more for an acquisition than you have to.
Never allow family to stand in the way of opportunity.
Keep your ears open.
Small print leads to large risk.
Opportunity plus instinct equals profit.
Greed is eternal.
Anything worth doing is worth doing for money.
A deal is a deal ... until a better one comes along.
A contract is a contract is a contract (but only between Ferengi).
A Ferengi without profit is no Ferengi at all.
Satisfaction is not guaranteed.
Never place friendship above profit.
A wise man can hear profit in the wind.
There's nothing more dangerous than an honest businessman.
Never make fun of a Ferengi's mother ... insult something he cares about instead.
It never hurts to suck up to the boss.
Peace is good for business.
War is good for business.
Profit is its own reward.
Never confuse wisdom with luck.
Don't trust a man wearing a better suit than your own.
The bigger the smile, the sharper the knife.
Never ask when you can take.
There is no substitute for success.
Free advice is seldom cheap.
Keep your lies consistent.
The riskier the road, the greater the profit.
Every once in a while, declare peace. It confuses the hell out of your enemies.
The flimsier the product, the higher the price.
Never let the competition know what you're thinking.
Ask not what your profits can do for you, but what you can do for your profits.
Females and finances don't mix.
Enough ... is never enough.
Trust is the biggest liability of all.
Faith moves mountains ... of inventory.
There is no honour in poverty.
Dignity and an empty sack is worth the sack.
Treat people in your debt like family ... exploit them.
Never have sex with the boss's sister.
Always have sex with the boss.
You can't free a fish from water.
Everything is for sale, even friendship.
Wives serve, brothers inherit.
Only fools pay retail.
There's nothing wrong with charity ... as long as it winds up in your pocket.
Even in the worst of times someone turns a profit.
Know your enemies ... but do business with them always.
Not even dishonesty can tarnish the shine of profit.
Let others keep their reputation. You keep their money.
It's always good business to know about new customers before they walk in the door.
The justification for profit is profit.
Employees are rungs on the ladder of success. Don't hesitate to step on them.
Never begin a negotiation on an empty stomach.
Always know what you're buying.
You can't buy fate.
Never be afraid to mislabel a product.
More is good ... all is better.
A wife is a luxury ... a smart accountant is a necessity.
A wealthy man can afford anything except a conscience.
When in doubt, lie.
Deep down everyone's a Ferengi.

[FoxOnTheRun]

58. Do you think Harris likes to rub his ears?

oo-mox

[DWilliamsamh]

61. You're right that was way geeky ... But I enjoyed it fully....

I guess I didn't fully escape the "geek" stereotype of my profession. I have to admit I have liked each of the Star Trek franchises to a degree or another from the time I was just a little geek. Although I haven't explored the "universe" as extensively as you obviously have, I am always interested in more info so THANKS.

[Orrex]

67. Well, to be honest

I don't spend my days and nights thinking about it, but I recall that my friends and I used to ruminate on these and other questions years ago, so the answers were more or less fresh in my mind.

But I'm glad that you enjoyed my overlong explanation!

[DWilliamsamh]

82. Aye... that. I did laddie! (N/T)

[Love Bug]

72. Wow -- I bow to your geekitude!

[Taverner]

60. My question: 60's era Klingons vs. 80's and beyond Klingons

In the first TV show Klingons were humans with funny eyebrows.

In the movies somehow they turned into Worfs. Whats the deal?

[billyskank]

62. They never 'explained' it

There was one episode of DS9 where Sisko & co got transported back in time and ended up at the same space station as Kirk & crew in the episode "The Trouble with Tribbles."

Somebody asked Worf about why the Klingons looked different and Worf simply said "we do not discuss it with outsiders."

Translation: the writers couldn't be bothered to think of an explanation. :D

The DS9 episode was called "Trials and Tribble-ations".

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

They did explain it, unfortunately.

They took what was a hillarious "don't ask, and we won't lie to you" situation and spelled it out (ruined it) in a way
that only Star Trek can.
I blame Brannon Braga.

The episode was in the 4th season of Enterprise.
I don't remember exactly what it was. I didn't watch the 4th season of Enterprise.

[Orrex]

65. I disagree-it was a fine explanation.

Though you're right that Braga is pretty damned god-awful.

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

74. But I think it was unnecessary.

I'm not one of those fans who has to have every question about the "secrets" of the universe
answered on the show. I know that I'm in the minority when it comes to that question in particular,
but that's what made it that much more memorable to me. Michael Dorn's expression when he
says "They are Klingons, and we don't discuss it with outsiders." totally made
that episode. Then again, Michael Dorn is just great on all those shows, I think.

It's along the lines of the (showing my true geeky roots here) 7th season ep of Voyager
where Q confronts Q Jr. after Q Jr. is teasing the crew of the ship with emminent assimilation by the Borg:
"If the Continuum has told you once, they've told you a hundred times-DON'T PROVOKE THE BORG!"

They don't explain why. They don't need to. (And frankly, I don't think I want to know.)
There are just some things that we, the audience, should take for granted as a mystery of the show,
and not have every little detail explained out to us.

Their explanation does make sense, but I'm not a big fan about retconning things.

*Stepping down from my soapbox and quietly putting it away*

And I still think that the full title for Star Trek 11 should be: Star Trek 11: 100% Braga-free!

[Orrex]

75. Overall, I agree with you

If the ridge/no-ridge explanation weren't (IMO) so elegant, I wouldn't like it. But it really worked onscreen and handily dismantled a joke that I'd been tired of hearing for decades!

But you're right--it's better when they don't play out every last detail.

And I definitely agree with you re: Star Trek XI!

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

76. Good point.

So why do you think the Continuum warns its members to not provoke the Borg?

I think it's 'cause the Borg will find out that the Continuum has an excellent health spa and
medical plan, and the Borg'll want in on that. Especially since the Borg are so pale...notice Q
always has a healthy bronze look to him?

I think they've got lots of tanning beds in the Continuum.

[DWilliamsamh]

83. I LOVE your nic....One of my fav cult classics!

Rock on and remember; where ever you go... there you are. Thanks for a smile in a smiley type thread.

I think the jokes are one of (just one) of the best parts of the whole ST saga. and Q is the ultimate jokester. I wonder if Loki of Norse legend was really just a manifestation of Q?

[Orrex]

64. In fact, ST:ENT explained it very neatly

I won't go into the whole thing here, but it had to do with a meeting between human Augments (of which Khan was the most powerful, though he didn't appear in the episode) and Klingons.

An attempt was made to "augment" Klingons using the human Augments as a template, but the outcome was an aggressive virus that caused the brow-ridges to vanish and ultimately resulted in death. Dr. Phlox eventually formulated a cure, but not before a sizable chunk of the Klingon population had contracted the condition. The "ridgeless" Klingons in ST:TOS were from this group.

One of the more clever bits of ret-conning that the Star Trek universe ever produced, IMO.

[FoxOnTheRun]

66. Trials and Tribble-ations

(Worf hides his forehead)

( I like 60's hairstyle)


Here are some theories
http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/inconsistencies/klingon-foreheads.htm

[Love Bug]

73. That was a hella-fun episode!

[LanternWaste]

63. ...and the #1 question:

Why do females wear high heels on combat missions?

[FoxOnTheRun]

69. It's important

[billyskank]

77. That always bugged me

SHE would be the LAST person to wear heels. Not very efficient.

[pokerfan]

89. Those heels are actually Borg implants

LOLOLOLOLOL!!!

From a Braga chat:

Q: Why would a Borg wear spiked high heels? Where's the logic?

BB: Those heels are actually Borg implants designed to support her spinal infrastructure. Without the heels, she would die.

http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/community/chat/archive/transcript/1359.html

Someone should have asked him what the corset was for!

[SaveElmer]

68. WHy can people dodge phaser fire...

I mean isn't it an ultra powerful beam of light essentially...

Think you could dodge say the suns rays...I mean shouldn't it be moving at the speed of light?

[terrya]

70. Why do beings in another part of the galaxy...

seem to be able to speak English...and in American idiom?

[tigereye]

81. that would be the Universal Translator, Terry!

:hi:

(yes, I know more about this than I should ) :)

[edbermac]

80. Why were there no goddamn BATHROOMS on these ships?

How come Captain Picard was never sitting on the crapper when some life and death emergency occurred? Would have loved to see him running onto the bridge while all hell was breaking loose while zipping up his fly with some sheets of toilet paper stuck to his shoe...

[invitro-man]

84. trek? Blecch, Farscape all the way

[Richard Steele]

90. #2: Ferengi vs. Replicators

Whatever the hell "latinum" is, it is used as currency
because it is one of the few substances which CANNOT
be duplicated with replicator technology; therefore,
it is rare and valuable.

[liontamer]

91. These issues were all dealt with

1) your standard replicator can't do complex connections like that. Your best bet to using that technology to create more datas would be to copy his pattern from a transporter buffering system (which is way more complex and accordingly uses more power). But the ethical issues of duplicating data and treating androids as "disposable people" were already dealt with in a TNG episode, (remember the one with Lal, his daughter and the scientist who wanted to dissassemble data)

2) Again replicators use power, power is limited, which means that you have to pay for. Additionally, Ferengi culture is deeply based on acquisition of profit and this drive goes beyond actual need. It's a cultural issue.

3/4) The star trek universe respects individuality; it's essentially the culmination of american culture of the 1960's. so just as an army of disposable datas is immoral, forcing people to give up all individuality (hopes, ambition, even drives like self preservation) is bad.

5) Life is precious. replicators can recreate compounds (so can modern day chemists) not life.

[phgnome]

93. immortality

I don't see it as treating androids like disposable people. Quite the contrary. Data could recall anything -- which means that everything he experiences is written to a file somewhere in his system. If you could make another one of him and import his memories into another body, he could live well beyond his physical service life. If they could take a back-up on very risky missions and if he should die, they could just restore his memories into another body. It's not a bad thing -- it's what we try to achieve with medicine. What's so bad about that?

[liontamer]

98. the discussion in the episode led to treating android as disposable people

immortality has its own issues, as addressed on voyager's interactions with the Q continuum.