Atoz 77
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Post by Atoz 77 on Oct 22, 2010 7:33:46 GMT -6
Tracking a stellar core fragment broken off from an neutron star, the Enterprise finds previously unknown Human colony on Moab IV (Genome Colony), directly in its path. Riker and Troi beam down to talk to the administrator, Aaron Conor. The colony is genetically engineered and in perfect social balance, so that they cannot leave without disrupting their entire society (or so they believe). Laforge and their chief scientist, Hannah Bates, finally come up with a way to save the colony by increasing the tractor beam strength by 400% and by reinforcing the colony's shields at the same time.
This story raises several questions. One, if the stellar core fragment is all that dense, the tidal forces should have also effected the Enterprise herself when she got within tractor beam range. Two, I would think it's not so much the strength of the tractor beam but the power available in the Enterprise's propulsion system; a starship simply wouldn't have the mass to affect any change in the fragment's inertia. Three, wouldn't the colony's own laws (as embodied by the Administrator) supercede Starfleet directives about human rights?
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Luke
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Post by Luke on Oct 23, 2010 7:41:31 GMT -6
Even if a core fragment was superdense, wouldn't it be in a plasma state? So I would think a tractor beam would just pull off pieces and not affect the whole thing.
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Atoz 77
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Post by Atoz 77 on Nov 5, 2010 7:50:52 GMT -6
Probably. But then that was probably what Geordi and Hannah were doing when the increased the tractor beam's efficiency by 400 percent, don't you think? How do you suppose a tractor beam works, anyway?
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Luke
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Post by Luke on Nov 10, 2010 12:23:44 GMT -6
I expect it generates a field of gravitons or something and uses that to either pull or repel. so logically if the field were intensified it might hold the matrix intact. I see your point.
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Atoz 77
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Post by Atoz 77 on Nov 15, 2010 8:58:51 GMT -6
What about the whole premise of a society cut off from all contact with the outside. What do you think of that?
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Luke
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Post by Luke on Nov 17, 2010 12:14:41 GMT -6
I don't see how it would work. How many of them were there? Had to be a fewe thouand at least, right?
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Atoz 77
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Post by Atoz 77 on Nov 19, 2010 9:10:59 GMT -6
For a reasonable amount of genetic diversity, I'd say at least ten or fifteen thousand. It's probably also safe to say they had some bioengineering skills as well. But you can see Hannah's point -- to suddenly see that there's a whole wide culture out there and so much you can learn from them, and to be stuck on the same planet, with the same ideas.
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kijuro
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Post by kijuro on Dec 1, 2010 10:54:15 GMT -6
Sounds like no fun at all.
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Luke
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Post by Luke on Dec 1, 2010 11:41:37 GMT -6
What I'm saying is after a few generations wouldn't they have interbred so much that there wouldn't be different races?
But heres another question about the legality of Picard granting asylum to those people. Wouldn't the colonies laws take precedence, so if the colony ruler said that emigration was not possible, wouldn't that be the end of it?
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kijuro
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Post by kijuro on Dec 1, 2010 16:29:29 GMT -6
1) Actually that reminds me of Iceland
2) Asylum is generally granted in opposition to the wishes of a government. It's never good for diplomatic relations, but it is granted. I'd say Picard could do so.
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Luke
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Post by Luke on Dec 4, 2010 9:01:51 GMT -6
True but Starfleet has the Prime Directive to consider. We can't go around doing things in opposition tothe local governments without a very very very very very good reason.
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Atoz 77
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Post by Atoz 77 on Dec 6, 2010 8:37:41 GMT -6
This is a tricky one. The very concept of asylum would seem to be contradicted by the Prime Directive. But the possibility has to be taken into account, for human rights reasons if for no other. Technically I think Picard would have the legal ability to do it, but as you say, he would have to think very very carefully before exercising it.
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kijuro
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Post by kijuro on Dec 7, 2010 11:32:43 GMT -6
I'm not sure that the entire scope of the Prime Directive has ever been made known, but I'd assume that since this is not a pre-warp culture then they are free to seek asylum.
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Luke
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Post by Luke on Dec 8, 2010 13:20:28 GMT -6
And think of the population control they'd need. There's only so much room in thedome, right? In a way this was as bad as Vaal in the Apple.
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Atoz 77
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Post by Atoz 77 on Dec 10, 2010 8:43:27 GMT -6
That's a good point. Although they probably had the technology to build new domes as the need arose, I didn't get the impression that they were expanding their extent all that much.
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