Expert: Justin Case - 6/9/2009

Question
If the Satarran did push Data, would Data be moved? I really doubt that the force would put Data on the ground.

If the unknown aliens from "Allegiance" abducted Armus, Apollo, and Nomad, how would the three react, and would they try to work together to solve the puzzle?

Would Nomad's mind-eraser work on Data?

Would Nomad's mind-eraser work on non-humanoids, such as Species 8472, Excalbians, Tin Man, etc.?

Was Odo ever shown 'brushing off' phaser blasts? Would a phaser set to kill vaporize him (the lowest 'kill' setting)?

If a phaser set at the kill setting was fired at a huge oak tree, would the entire tree vaporize, or would there simply be a large hole where the blast hit?  

Answer
Hi John -

I doubt the Satarran would be able to exert enough force to move Data.

If escape were not possible any other way then I think the three would work together at least until they had secured their freedom.  After that they would turn on each other.

Destroying each other would (as far as they knew) be a death sentence for the 'destroyer' as well so I'd bet they would cooperate in the interests of their own self preservation.

I don't think Nomad's mind-eraser would work on Data.  In order for it to wipe out specific memory cells and not others (such as the ones that remember to breathe and cause the heart to beat), the device must be pretty carefully calibrated to work on humans and/or biological entities by targeting specific biological markers.

Since Data's brain is more like a computer than a human brain I doubt the biological markers would be available for the weapon to 'lock on to' so to speak.

I doubt it would work on 8472, Tin Man or the Excalbians as it is probably set specifically for humanoids and works on specific traits in humanoid biology exclusively.

I don't recall seeing Odo ever brush off phaser blasts.  If that were possible he probably wouldn't have shifted his face in the pilot episode of DS9 (Emissary) when the alien threw a projectile weapon at him.  If his body is tough enough to brush off concentrated energy blasts, why would he even care about a metal projectile weapon?

Phaser's have something like twelve to 14 settings depending on which source material you use.  Settings near level 9 can pretty effectively kill a humanoid without disintegrating them (we saw Capt. Picard dispatch a Borgified Enterprise crew member in ST: First Contact using a setting near this).  So, at that setting the blast would probably just drill a hole in the tree.

At higher settings such as 12 or 14 the phased effect would pretty quickly spread throughout the tree and disintegrate it.

Thanks!

Deran