Spoilers Senior Officer Replicators

[Deks]

A replicator is a replicator.
It makes 0 sense for Starfleet to differentiate the technology by giving lower decks inferior ones because each replicator is probably designed to be identical to a certain standard.
The only thing that's different are replicator programs.

Its possible that ensigns in 'Lower Decks' might not have access to directly change their own replicator programs and make something that's individual to them... albeit, thus far (in TNG and VOY), we weren't lead to think this would actually be the case.

People complaining about replicated food are probably just complaining about the way its been prepared.
Most people and SF officers in the 24th century grew up with replicated foods... and each person/household likely has their own version of how the food is prepared (programmed).

Standard replicators on board Federation ships likely can create amazing meals, but it would likely be a replica of a gourmet meal (which probably isn't what everyone wants to eat) or variations on the preparation (or what's been programmed).
You can tweak the program to your liking for example, but that takes a bit of tinkering and possibly access (or even skills) that most ensigns might not have.

 

[Jadeb]

In some ways, this fits with the traditional notion that replicators have set, programmed menus. Personally, I would think that a replicator should be able to make anything, but if the menus are limited, for whatever reason, it makes sense officers would have more options. Though maybe that militaristic approach is more TOS than TNG.

It could also be a matter of perception, like how wine connoisseurs often struggle with blind taste tests.

 

[Colonel Midnight]

I’d just chalk it up to the old ‘RHIP’ principle (Rank Hath Its Privileges), and move on.

Another way to look at it is IRL anymore (on the newer USCG ships, prob the same with USN ones, but can’t confirm), the officers eat the same as the crew, but it’s served on better plates, bowls, flatware, etc., rather than on a cafeteria tray. (CPO Mess has its own dish ware as well, btw.) YMMV, of course.

Cheers,
-CM-

 

[Sarcastic Vulcan Salute]

There's no real reason for the replicators or their menus to be limited in a post-scarcity society. It presumably takes as much energy or other resources to build and maintain a "SD replicator" as a HD replicator, and when you are talking 2300s, the potential difference between the storage space to program for or to "cook" regular old ravioli versus lobster ravioli seems minimal.

The easiest ways to understand this to me is that they just set up a branding/status barrier.

 

[BillJ]

The easiest ways to understand this to me is that they just set up a branding/status barrier.

Works for me, never bought into the "no money" stuff.

 

[valkyrie013]

Well, Take this example. Food in the regular enlisted mess, or the food in the Officers mess.
Better ingredients, better portions, better silverware. in general better.
Now in LDS, I can "Maybe" see that replicators for lower ranks may have a different menu than senior staff. But at this point, photons are photons.. doesn't cost any more to make crab legs than a bowl of Gruel ..
I can see a persons replicator permissions taken away as a punishment. Or it may be something like "Replicator Credits" where senior staff have near unlimited, but an ensign may only be able to "afford" to get crab legs once a week?
I don't know. don't like the thing of better, or more options of food being limited..

 

[Charles Phipps]

A replicator is a replicator.
It makes 0 sense for Starfleet to differentiate the technology by giving lower decks inferior ones because each replicator is probably designed to be identical to a certain standard.

Why not have an Officer's Replicator and a Lower Deck Replicator? I mean, Officers have larger quarters and more room for them.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Why have an Officer's Replicator and a Lower Deck Replicator?

Fixed that for ya

 

[Deks]

Why not have an Officer's Replicator and a Lower Deck Replicator? I mean, Officers have larger quarters and more room for them.

Officers would have same replicators... but they are present in their quarters and could use them at their convenience.
The lower decks crew has to share one or two replicators (or however many are down there) - in that sense, it would be no different to going to the mess-hall and using the replicators there (a communal thing) or going to the quartermaster (if there is one) to requisition new uniforms or technology (such as commbadges, phasers, whatever).

In a sense, an officer has an added 'convenience' of having a private replicator (in addition to having extra responsibilities and privileges)... but otherwise, the type of replicator is in all likelihood the same.

 

[DaveyNY]

My guess would be that it is an energy allotment thing.

Command Officers are allotted a larger amount to use as they please and have access to a personal replicator in their quarters, whereas the overall crew are limited to how much energy they can each use for food replication.
(there's only just so much energy that the power cores can produce)

Which means the enlisted crew probably have a more limited variety of food stuffs to pick from.
Also, it's pretty obvious from what we've seen so far, the enlisted replicators are used so much that they apparently breakdown quite often.

 

[eschaton]

My headcanon is it has to do with human (and alien) psychology, not anything real.

I mean, plenty of modern studies have shown that if you do a double-blind taste test of wine, and tell people one wine costs more, they will say that wine tastes better. Other studies have given people real and vegetarian sausages in double-blind taste tests (hopefully not tricking any vegetarians). People who were conservative rated the sausage they were told was "real" as tasting better, even if it was the vegetarian sausage.

Our own internalized perceptions about the "quality" of the food are inexorably part of why we enjoy them, even if there's zero chemical difference. Hence as long as someone was aware that food was replicated, they probably would perceive the food to not be as high quality as "real food."

 

[UssGlenn]

Based on everyone's opinion so far, this is what I think is going on:

All the food replicators on the ship are the same model. The Lower decks have a communal replicator that restricts customization. The ensigns don't have sufficient privileges to add custom menus and change existing recipes. This is both a security measure (adding unknown programs to the computer) and a function earning privileges with rank. In addition the standard menu available is likely mostly healthy food, designed to keep the lower deckers in good shape. We've never seen, to my knowledge, the ability to make unhealthy food healthy.

The Officers have the ability to both import custom menus and modify existing ones. This means they can add all the unhealthy and tasty, or simply not standard menu, food selections they want. Starfleet trusts them to use good judgement about their food choices.

 

[Orphalesion]

I think a lot of the whole "senior officer replicators taste better" is obviously a part of LD's homour, just like the ensigns literally sleeping in the corridor int he lowest, back-most deck of the saucer.
(and before somebody wants to say it's reasonable *yet again*. In the TNG episode Lower Decks Ensigns slept in quarters, they just had to share them with another ensign)

 

[Charles Phipps]

I think a lot of the whole "senior officer replicators taste better" is obviously a part of LD's homour, just like the ensigns literally sleeping in the corridor int he lowest, back-most deck of the saucer.
(and before somebody wants to say it's reasonable *yet again*. In the TNG episode Lower Decks Ensigns slept in quarters, they just had to share them with another ensign)

That's actually an accurate military joke by itself. Ensigns share quarters because they're officers. Enlisted personnel sleep in bunks.

Presumably on the Cerritos, unlike the flagship, the Ensigns are forced to bunk with the Enlisted due to being a smaller ship.

 

[Orphalesion]

That's actually an accurate military joke by itself. Ensigns share quarters because they're officers. Enlisted personnel sleep in bunks.

Presumably on the Cerritos, unlike the flagship, the Ensigns are forced to bunk with the Enlisted due to being a smaller ship.

But still, I'd say it's part of the joke that our characters are the lowest of the low, and not serious world building.

 

[Jedi_Master]

But still, I'd say it's part of the joke that our characters are the lowest of the low, and not serious world building.

I agree - it's a joke, primarily to help characterize Boimler who is rule oriented and ambitious, wanting to be an officer for the perks and the prestige.

 

[Charles Phipps]

But still, I'd say it's part of the joke that our characters are the lowest of the low, and not serious world building.

It is a joke but part of the fun is separating the serious world-building from the humor.

It's half the reasons the novels exist: to explain why Kirk once said the thing that contradicted the later thing.

 

[BillJ]

Whatever one thinks of the idea, it is now canon that the senior staff eats better than everyone else on a Starfleet ship in the late-24th century.

 

[edschen]

Then there was Deanna Troi and her chocolate Sundaes. The replicators spit out something that was apparently at least somewhat better for a human, while she strongly preferred "the real thing".

Based on everyone's opinion so far, this is what I think is going on:

The Officers have the ability to both import custom menus and modify existing ones. This means they can add all the unhealthy and tasty, or simply not standard menu, food selections they want. Starfleet trusts them to use good judgement about their food choices.

 

[valkyrie013]

Ensign: Computer 1 Twinkee
Vrrrrrrrr... Ding
Computer: One low fat no sugar Twinkee.
Ensign: No computer, 1 regular Twinkee.
Computer: Administrative privlages do not allow a regular Twinkees unless Lt. or above.
Ensign: Fine give me a chocolate Sundae
Vrrrrrrrr. Ding
Computer: One low fat no sugar Vegan choclate Sundae.
Ensign: Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu&**&&^