AboutDeran McKean Expertise I am a 35 year fan of all the incarnations of Star Trek from the original show to the newer incarnations, to the books, comics and toys. I can answer most questions regarding the storylines and characters including their non-screen histories.
Experience Thirty-five years of collecting Star Trek merchandise, pouring over the books, comics and attending a number of conventions
Education/Credentials I have a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology and an MBA
Expert: Deran McKean Date: 5/11/2008 Subject: Data + mom, and other things...
Question In the episode "Inheritance" (season 7, episode 10) we see that Data had a "mother" who was an android, we also find out that she had a chip of some sort that displayed a holographic image, simple enough. What I don't get is this, how could the holographic image say the reason for Data's mother to leave soong? If she left him there was no way that he could put the chip in her brain, unless they met after? Or maybe he knew she will leave? I hope you can clear this up.
Another thing, when they do a "level X diagnostic" (X=number) what is the number refer to? Does a higher number mean a better diagnostic?
Another thing- in "power play" (season 5, ep15) the entities that take control of diana, data and o'brian seem to be immune to phaser blasts. I thought they were only controlling the bodies? Shouldn't phasers stun them, or did the entities coat the bodies with anti-phaser shielding?
One more- I beleive it was the episode "The Next Phase" where Geordi and some other person where cloaked and could pass through matter, my question: Why did they not pass through the ground?
I keep reading about certain characters that I do not remember from Star Trek TNG...like the Edo God, are these characters in future Star Trek series?
Sorry for all the question...I just recently finished the entire season and found this site...
Answer Hi Peter -
The chip was put in before she left Soong and had some type of memory building component. While Julia Tainer couldn't access it, I think the Noonien hologram was something of an 'android within an android' if you'll forgive the analogy as it was interactive with Data. It's possible that the hologram might have been somewhat analogous to the Doctor in Voyager. Tainer wasn't able to access those memories, but they continued to accumulate.
Yes exactly, the higher the number, the more complex the diagnostic. Here is a website if you want to look at it that explains the various diagnostic levels and what they entail. http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Diagnostic
That was a good catch in "Power Play". The entities, as far as I know, only took over the minds of the characters. It's possible they could have boosted the host body's adrenaline production and thus made them more immune to the effects of stun blasts, but beams fired at heavy settings should still have had an affect. What probably happened is the security officers who shot at O'Brien, Data and Deanna didn't want to risk firing at the heavier settings since they can cause permanent tissue damage and/or disintegration.
You're right the episode was "The Next Phase" and Geordi and Ro Laren and cloaked and phased. I myself have asked other experts why they didn't phase through the deck of the Enterprise and have never gotten a satisfactory response. If they were truly phased, they should pass through any solid matter, even the deck upon which they were walking. It's become kind of a crusade for me to find out the answer, but so far I haven't been able to discover anything other than ridiculous answers that make no sense.
The Edo God was a trans-dimensional super entity that appeared in the Star Trek the Next Generation first season episode entitled "Justice". We only see if for a few seconds but it was indicated to be an immensely powerful entity.
No problem on the amount of questions, keep'em coming! I don't have all the answers but will try and answer what I can!
