Can Data be assimilated by the Borg?

There's something that I've always wondered about. Can Data be assimilated by the Borg? I remember him being called "obsolete" in Best of Both Worlds, but I also recall hearing more than a few times that the Borg needed their organic parts in order to survive. I ask this because for many years after watching First Contact, I could never quite figure out why Data wasn't assimilated so the queen Borg would be able to know that Data was playing along, but was still on the side of the Federation.

 

The queen wanted a counterpart, rather than just another mindless drone.

 

Yes I understand that, but could he actually be assimilated??

 

no

 

Data is a technological device, and thus can be assimilated. It would be no different than the Borg subverting a ship's computer systems.

Whether or not Data can *fight back* is unclear. But the Borg can certainly try.

That applies to drones which had organic parts in the first place, yes. But we've seen Borg taking over computer systems, and Data would be the same. You don't need organic parts to survive if you never had them. The Borg are a collection of millions of different species; some of these surely were not organic.

 

I don't see why Data couldn't be assimilated. After all, the Borg have never had any trouble assimilating completely technological things. The Raven, for example.

 

"we will add your biological & technological distinctiveness to our own"

That's assuming your biological and/or technological distinctiveness is of any use to the Borg and not, in fact, "obsolete".

 

If the Borg could assimilate portions of the Enterprise, surely they could assimilate Data.

 

Data could be assimilated; remember when Masaka rewrote his programming in Masks.

 

Locutus says Data is primitive and would be obsolete in the New Order.

First Contact says Data could've been the Borg King.

So it's a matter of opinion, since both arguments have supporting canon facts.

 

Data states in First Contact that he was incapable of being assimilated, or words to that effect. Data's system would have probably fought back against the nanoprobes and defeated them. In "Contagion," for example, Data is 'killed' by the alien influence, but his program eliminates it and Data regains consciousness.

 

I don't see why Data couldn't be. Of course, his defense program would kick in; but ultimately, they very well could assimilate him into the Collective.