Starbuck "Replicate some marmalade, Commander - helm control is toast!"
Member # 153
posted
If Starfleet tech is advanced enough to create the EMH, why don't they create a Holoship (a la "Red Dwarf") or more holographic crewmembers for emergency use? For those of you who don't know, this isn't an Insurrection-style holoship, but instead a ship and crew composed entirely of holograms.
Perhaps in the 24th century the old bridge simulator at Starfleet Academy is now a holodeck. Does anyone else think it's also possible to, eg. re-route controls through the holodeck (as Moriarty did in "Ship In A Bottle") and control the ship through a simulated bridge?
------------------ WARNING: Storing semtex in the microwave may be hazardous to your health!
posted
It does make sense. The only problem is the the Holo emitters can be damaged as well as the programs to run the crew. A real crew can still work without Holo emitters or the computer core.
------------------ Death before Dishonor! However Dishonor has quite a disputed defintion.
posted
Then we'll perfect the doc's portable holo-emitter and make it shock-resistent! Maybe some scientist in SiAB took a peek at the thing before sending him back.
------------------ -You are crazy. -I thought I was pisces.
posted
Well, in a way, this question isn't entirely accurate. I mean, it doesn't really get to the heart of the matter. The Federation is certainly capable of building completely automatic ships manned with intelligent robotic crewmembers. (And by intelligent I mean like a ship's computer, which is very intelligent indeed, but not necessarily like Data. That is, intelligent but not self aware, per se.)
There are two reasons not to do this, or at least not to do this exclusively. One, people WANT to see what's out there, and they want to see it first hand. This impulse is apparently shared by most intelligent species in the universe. Two, computers do funny things. They lock up, they crash, they behave in ways you don't necessarily want.
Now, could you crew a ship with self-aware holograms, or androids, or what have you? Sure. But then we are no longer dealing with tools, but thinking entities with their own lives.
------------------ "And if we weren't good to you, Dave, you shouldn't take it all the way to your grave." -- Will Rigby
posted
A possible problem with the creation of artificial self-aware entities is that their makers put limits on what they can do as well as on their freedom. This might be considered a form of slavery. Can these self-aware entities decide to leave Starfleet and, say, open up a shoe store? Probably not. This was Data's situation before "Meaure of a Man" (IIRC). If we follow this line of reasoning, Roy Batty is a slave, as are R2D2, C3PO, and HAL 9000.
------------------ When you're in the Sol system, come visit the Starfleet Museum
If it's restricted to automated units that perform automated functions, Starfleet does not have a problem with it. The Doctor was initially supposed to be such an automated unit too, yet, his program allowed understanding, learning and evaluating. I can't tell if this automatically implies self-awareness, but it's obviously a step in this direction. I know that *our* Doctor is supposed to be a sentient being, I only wondered if this is generally the case.
Now that Starfleet has learned that Data, exocomps or holograms may be self-aware, they don't consider anymore to use them like slaves, and they are careful about future developments of systems that perform more than just automated computing and working. They might build ships completely manned with holograms, but these would have to have the same abilities and the same rights as humanoids. This is why it is still the normal case that the humanoids want to do it themselves, unless Starfleet suffers from a lack of applicants.
------------------ "When diplomacy fails, there's only one alternative - violence. Force must be applied without apology. It's the Starfleet way." A somewhat different Janeway in VOY: "Living Witness" Ex Astris Scientia
posted
Or perhaps the Frankenstein Complex is alove and well in the 24th Century?
Frankenstein Complex: The belief that creations of man, especially intelligent creations, will eventually rebel and destroy him. Term possibly coined by Asimov in his "I Robot" stories.
To a much lesser extent, the belief that ALL living creations (whether they be mechanical, genetically engineered, cloned, or spontaneously created [see: Genesis Myth]) will inevitably turn against their creator.
------------------ Calvin: "No efficiency, no accountability... I tell you, Hobbes, it's a lousy way to run a Universe." -- Bill Watterson
posted
Also consider the fact that the only holo programs ever to attain sentience are Moriarty which is likely considered a fluke, and the Doctor (our Doctor) and Starfleet doesn't really know about him yet. They never considered leaving the EMH on and letting him leran to sing and stuff.
The First One
A lovely little thinker, but a bugger when he's pissed
Member # 35
posted
Absolutely. Let's stay at home snug and warm, and let holograms go out and do all that dangerous stuff. In fact, to be extra safe, let's hide under the bed!
Do we really think the Star Trek universe came about because they sent probes everywhere?
posted
I wonder what happend to the USS Prometheus then with all those holo-emitter on every deck of the ship? Anyway, having emergency holographic crew members sounds like a good idea in theory. Having backup emergency holo-crew for the number of senior staff. One or two for command, one for enginnering, one for medical, one for science, one for security/tactical, and one misc. In case that one of the senior officers, or all, cannot perform his or her duties, there would be a replacement. But as I said, it sounds nice in theory, but in practice, anything goes.
------------------ "All you people, can't you see, can't you see How your love's affecting our reality Everytime we're down You can make it right And that makes you larger than life"
posted
Well you do realize a holographic engineer and doctor makes sense, you actually need something to go out there and fix the human/machine or whatever.
But why a holographic science, helm, or tactical officer? I'm sure the main computer core or secondaries can simply bypass the user consoles and control a ships movement, weapons, and science anaylsis without the need for an intermediary holographic crew member.
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