Spoilers ST Discovery - Starships and Technology Season Three SPOILER Discussion

[Mark_Nguyen]

Just rewatching that final scene again, I was overjoyed to see that Discovery has FINALLY CLOSED HER BACKFLAP! It may have been evident earlier in the season, but as recently as 3x08 (post-refit, I might add) we saw her jump with the shuttlebay open. Perhaps it was Burnham's official act as Captain to replace the batteries in the garage door opener. Rejoice!

Mark

 

[valkyrie013]

Always found transporters as just information flow thru's.. there's no actuall storage involved, your Disintegrated into you componet molecules, sent in a beam to another place, then your reassembled by the machine.
But that fly's in the face of a few episodes too... Darn writers!

 

[UssGlenn]

But perhaps the transporter badges have a range limit of a few hundred kilometers, so the turbolifts are necessary for reaching the really distant parts of the ship...?)

They still have turbolifts for the same reason tall buildings today still have stairs even though they have elevators, you always need lower tech backups.

The DS9 episode "Our Man Bashir" never made much sense: those hero patterns were previously effortlessly stored inside the tiny machinery of a runabout, and now the vast station is having trouble with them? They never really explained why this should be - there was no mention of compatibility problems, say. But what the episode does suggest is that normal transport involves no computing feats and no memory, and the use of such resources is the sign of abnormal transport...

Always found transporters as just information flow thru's.. there's no actuall storage involved, your Disintegrated into you componet molecules, sent in a beam to another place, then your reassembled by the machine.

I've always assumed that transporters convert all your atoms to energy, but they stay associated with each other (thus you stay conscious). So once the beam lets go you automatically convert back to matter, like magnets snapping back together. The computer only has to do heavy lifting if something goes wrong. The Pattern buffer holds you in the energy suspension, but only for so long, stay that way long enough and you become "demagnetized" and float apart. Thus the need to do a highly irregular "permanent save" in "Our Man Bashir".

 

[Tuskin38]

I liked the depiction of the inside of the warp nacelle, some TNG inspiration there, with what I'm assuming is the plasma injector.

 

[Deks]

I liked the depiction of the inside of the warp nacelle, some TNG inspiration there, with what I'm assuming is the plasma injector.

Yup, and it actually looked to scale in accordance to Discovery's refit nacelle.
Its sad the VFX department hadn't incorporated same diligence when making the turbolift shaft or the engineering section where the warp core is.
The ship looks TOO BIG from the inside out.

 

[Tuskin38]

It isn't a turbolift shaft, it's a 'systems hub', whatever that means, in the secondary hull, the turbolifts are just passing through to other places.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

And nobody has "Personal Shields".

Everybody doesn't wear any real "Body Armor" for some reason.

Even when boarding a ship.

Same ole Phaser Pistol takes down enemies in one shot.

 

[Timo]

Armor should only be worn if it helps. In WWI and WWII, say, armor didn't help and wasn't worn, certain bizarre experiments notwithstanding.

Phaserproof armor might not exist in any Trek era (except in the hands of superbeings). Phasers are fairly impressive weapons, after all. Press a button and a vehicle disappears... Machinery needed to countermand such firepower might be so bulky that it loses battles on its own right, by immobilizing whole armies.

The eternal question in Trek is as regards armor against bullets and knives. We have seen bulletproof riot shields in ST5:TFF, but OTOH bullets seem to be an extremely rare mode of attack - quite possibly because they are so useless, except when fired from ambush positions against individuals who haven't yet rolled open their transparent and inertia-free plates of invulnerability. Yet knives (or arrows, rocks or assorted other missiles) continue to be a constant threat in every era, now including the 32nd century.

And there's no winning for TPTB here: if they do decide that "future clothing is knife-proof", they then have to make the heroes wear helmets or the enemy goes for the jugular, and television heroes just plain can't wear helmets. So trousers that don't stop a silly little knife are in fact consistent and absolutely necessary for continuity!

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

and television heroes just plain can't wear helmets.

"The Mandalorian" proves the opposite. TV Heroes can wear a helmet 99% of the time and do just fine!

I wouldn't be surprised if "The Mandalorian" starts a new trend of more costumed heroes in armor that rarely takes off their helmet except when it's practical to do so.

 

[Timo]

Well, one take on Judge Dredd worked just fine... The other, less so.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Well, one take on Judge Dredd worked just fine... The other, less so.

Timo Saloniemi

Maybe if they had better source material.

The entire Tokusatsu Genre has Super Sentai & Kamen Rider as a Japanese Super Hero franchise.

They wore Combat Suits all the time and take off their Combat Suits for practical reasons.

But a GIANT percentage of the time is "In Suit".

 

[fireproof78]

It isn't a turbolift shaft, it's a 'systems hub', whatever that means, in the secondary hull, the turbolifts are just passing through to other places.

Perhaps a hub designed for coordination and repair of the cars and other tech that passes through, including the DOTS.

"The Mandalorian" proves the opposite. TV Heroes can wear a helmet 99% of the time and do just fine

If the Mandalorian becomes a trend then I am probably done for a bit. I couldn't give a measure of care for the main character. He's just an armored cipher with no personality save for what the plot requires. Helmets 99% sounds good in theory but the one example cited hasn't worked for me.

 

[Deks]

It isn't a turbolift shaft, it's a 'systems hub', whatever that means, in the secondary hull, the turbolifts are just passing through to other places.

I know what it was (and we also know the turbolift only needed very small checkpoints to pass through)... the point is that the entire systems hub was too huge for a ship of Disco's size where it made no sense.

Yes, we've seen TARDIS tech on ENT... but that was on a time travelling ship when temporal technology was widely used. There is 0 evidence (at least thus far) to support the idea this technology is still in use by 32nd century SF (what with the ban on Temporal technology)... and add to the fact it was never mentioned as part of a retrofit (if it were mentioned as a throwaway line at least, sure, it could work... but otherwise, not really - not when you also add to the fact that this huge systems hub was seen in the first 2 seasons of Disco before the future retrofit).

 

[fireproof78]

32nd Tardis tech works for me. Simplest explanation.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

If the Mandalorian becomes a trend then I am probably done for a bit. I couldn't give a measure of care for the main character. He's just an armored cipher with no personality save for what the plot requires. Helmets 99% sounds good in theory but the one example cited hasn't worked for me.

It sucks that you didn't enjoy "The Mandalorian" as much as the rest of us who did.

 

[fireproof78]

It sucks that you didn't enjoy "The Mandalorian" as much as the rest of us who did.

I enjoyed the small dips in to SW lore. I loved exploring the Tuskens, the different aspects of the Underworld, Imperials and the like. As a window in to smaller aspects of SW as a world it is quite intriguing.

And a masked main character has potential. Just hasn't worked for me thus far in most media. Might change eventually for me. But, if it just looks cool then I need more of hook than that. The Mandalorian, as a character, hasn't hooked me.

Back on topic, it bothers me quite a bit that armor is not more utilized in Star Trek. It's a ridiculous oversight that few have tried to rectify because...??? Don't know really. Even if they are worried about a helmet covering the face they have designed exosuits that clearly have large visible windows for actor's faces. So, it's a dumb oversight.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Back on topic, it bothers me quite a bit that armor is not more utilized in Star Trek. It's a ridiculous oversight that few have tried to rectify because...??? Don't know really. Even if they are worried about a helmet covering the face they have designed exosuits that clearly have large visible windows for actor's faces. So, it's a dumb oversight.

Oh, I concur, that's one of my largest gripes in terms of their ground combat.

It's just as primitive as WW1/2, only replaced with newer Energy Projectile Launchers instead of Slug Throwers.

 

[valkyrie013]

Well, most current combat armor, the way its usually worn, is to protect against shrapnel, so basically same as the Bat Suit in Batman Begins, when Lucius said, Anything but a straight shot. There are ceramic inserts that one can use, but there HEAVY. And there is a BIG difference between hand gun and rifle bullets', police have bullet proof vests that can stop most handgun, Almost any rifle ammo ( not .22) can penetrate it.

So, a anti-phaser armor .. well I don't think there would be any as there routinely vaporizing meters of rock or metal, so any contempory armor would need to be like a meter thick.
Only thing would be personal force field. Which they should have had in Disco 32nd century Tech, even if its like a 2 or 3 shot max, and what the Borg of the 24th century had back then.

Oh, just thought of it, that Phasing hand gizmo that Daniels left behind and that Archer used to phase through the deck. Where was that??

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Well, most current combat armor, the way its usually worn, is to protect against shrapnel, so basically same as the Bat Suit in Batman Begins, when Lucius said, Anything but a straight shot. There are ceramic inserts that one can use, but there HEAVY. And there is a BIG difference between hand gun and rifle bullets', police have bullet proof vests that can stop most handgun, Almost any rifle ammo ( not .22) can penetrate it.

Modern AR500 Steel Plate armor can withstand alot rifle and intermediate calibur cartridges, and those are relatively cheap if you need durable Lv 3 armor.

Ceramic Plates are only there if you need Lv 4 armor, and as long as the shot isn't in the same area, it can take multiple shots.

So, a anti-phaser armor .. well I don't think there would be any as there routinely vaporizing meters of rock or metal, so any contempory armor would need to be like a meter thick.
Only thing would be personal force field. Which they should have had in Disco 32nd century Tech, even if its like a 2 or 3 shot max, and what the Borg of the 24th century had back then.

There were literally storage barrels in the Enterprise D cargo holds that withstood phaser and disrupter fire.

Use some of those materials to make body armor panels in modern day plate carriers, it's something.

And I'm surprised nobody has figured out how to clone the Borg Personal Force Field yet, there have been plenty of captures of Borg Drones by the time of ST:PIC.

Reverse Engineering the personal Force Field should've been a priority.

Even taking 2-3 shots is better than nothing, but Borgs with their Shields up can take quite a few hits.

Oh, just thought of it, that Phasing hand gizmo that Daniels left behind and that Archer used to phase through the deck. Where was that??

That would've been incredibly useful tech to have as a defensive option.

 

[David cgc]

32nd Tardis tech works for me. Simplest explanation.

"We're going to make your ship bigger on the inside."
"Awesome! Are we going to put in a bunch of new rooms and equipment in there?"
"No, we're just going to make all the stuff you've already got farther apart. Starfleet performance analysis suggests turbolift rides are vital forums for exchanging information and briefing officers, as well as resolving interpersonal situations, so by artificially lengthening them, we increase crew effectiveness by up to 38%. Likewise, we're eliminating the turboshafts, the lifts are now free-flying shuttles, so the computer can route them to ensure the optimum length for every trip so you'll arrive at your destination precisely when all your conversational business has been concluded, no earlier, no later."