Ruling Answers In or Out?
Posted on Tue 9th Jun, 2020 @ 7:59pm by
Edited on on Tue 9th Jun, 2020 @ 11:55pm
818 words; about a 4 minute read
Mission:
Resolution
Location: Unknown Space
Timeline: MD 3, 1900
Previously, while looking for answers, Henry asked Riko ...
"Well, could we have picked it up from Nāmaka?" Henry asked. "Can certain types of radiation allow for bacteria to grow in some biological entities?"
And now ... does this answer help?
Riko looked at Henry in surprise. "As a matter of fact, there are probably several, but the most famous is Conan the Bacterium. Somewhere around 400 years ago, it was first discovered when scientists were trying to see if gamma radiation could be used to sterilize canned foods. It comes to mind first because when its DNA was analyzed some fifty or more years later, it was discovered to have some unique repair properties."
Leaning back and closing her eyes to concentrate, she added, "I seem to recall that there were some scientists who thought it had originated on Mars and come to Earth in some kind of meteorite, but that was a little far fetched, even then. I think it's still used in bioremediation, but I'm not sure."
Glancing at his expression she said, "You know, remediation, as in fixing or returning a contaminated environment to its natural condition, and bio because it's using microorganisms, fungi, plants or the enzymes derived from them to do the job. Whether that helps us in this case, I would have to research, and maybe run some experiments. But if it were radiation from Nāmaka, wouldn't Hari have been affected, too?"
Realizing the confusing expression he felt he was making, Henry gathered himself and pondered on Riko's question for a moment before answering. "What if Hari has some type of shielding that protects his positronic matrix?"
Henry walked over to one of the open panels where some of the gel packs were installed. "See, look here." Henry pointed to an area in the panel. "This is basic shielding provided for anything installed in starships. What if this type of radiation somehow got past this shielding and made the system go all gobbledy?"
Laughing, McCord questioned, "Gobbledy? Love the new technical term you invented. Very descriptive. You're probably right about Hari, but I would have thought a captain's yacht rated the same kind of high-tech shielding. It probably costs even more than a humaniform does!"
Thinking a little more, she said, "But what if ..." her eyes stared off at the ceiling for a minute or two. Bringing her attention back to Henry, she asked, "What if the combination of radiation, an impurity in the AI programing of the gel packs, and the interaction with the ship's systems fostered a mix that ignited this endosymbiosis. It's something that shouldn't have happened, but it did, and maybe it's the combination of things all at the same time. Possibly, it isn't even an impurity," Riko shrugged. "I could be the AI itself with the ship's systems and the radiation leaking past the basic shields."
Henry stood there thinking about what Riko said. Unsure if the fault was his or not. Riko was right and wrong about the shielding on the yacht. The yacht did have shielding, but not the same positronic shielding that Humaniforms had. These gel packs worked differently than a positronic brain but combined with AI .... That changed the game.
"O.K. Riko, we will have to solve that problem when we get back home. The question we have to answer now is how to get back home, and I have a crude answer for that."
"A crude answer that works is better than no answer at all. I'm starting to feel as if my brain is going in circles and getting nowhere. Probably an accurate description," McCord mused. "I really am going to want to come back to this. Right now, I think this whole A.I. chip thing is a disaster and a no-go, but will Starfleet listen to the people tasked with testing them? Probably not." She shook her head in resignation.
"Have you decided what your report to them will say?" Riko asked, putting him on the spot.
"The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," Henry said as he chuckled and made his way over to one of the chairs on the bridge. "In all seriousness, though you are right. This has been a disaster. It is hard for me to believe that Starfleet would send me something like this without conducting some type of primary analysis. Then again, I guess you can't foresee every little situation, can you? Henry asked
Henry walked over to the ship's main computer core and began pulling the paneling off. "We are gonna have to strip her down to bare bones to make sure the AI hasn't made any new connections to ship systems and take control again. Once that is done, we will have basic ship systems. And I mean basic, but it will be enough to get us home."
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