The Genesis Device, Borg, Species 8472, and Section 31

[Dryson]

First question, if a weapon was needed to defeat the Borg during the initial encounter with the NCC-1701-D, why didn't Picard replicate the Genesis Device and then use the device to turn the Borg cube into a nice blue and yellow bouquet for flowers? I mean the Borg would not have been to counter the Genesis Device due to the device restructuring matter at the sub-atomic level.

With the Borg assimilating many Federation ships and starbases along with planetary bases, was Starfleet able to keep information about the Genesis Device from being discovered by the Borg? I mean in the hands of the Collective, the Borg could have used the Genesis Device in new ways to destroy an enemy while advancing their own technology to become vastly superior to all other species in the galaxy.

The use of the Genesis Device as a weapon in the upmost and necessary situations to defeat the Borg would need to be as fast as possible, to keep the Borg from assimilating Federation worlds enmass, seems to be a rather necessary, and logical use of the weapon.

Janeway could also have used the Genesis Device against the Borg and Species 8472 in her adventures as well. Much to the demise of Species 8742 that could be turned into little white space-bunnies with spike-balls on a chain for a tail.


Would Section 31 have known about the Genesis experiments, even if only the theory had been presented to Starfleet? It's interesting to think that maybe Section 31 sent the Klingon's to capture data regarding the Genesis Device in exchange for something, maybe intelligence on Romulan movements or dilithium crystals or worse. Section 31 would have had been around for at least 134 years, prior to the Khan Incident in 2285.
Section 31 was even around before Michael Burnham in 2255, by at least 104 years. I would think Section 31 would have known about the Genesis Device and could possibly have been the covert organization that funded the experiments. Could Section 31 have set the meeting up between Kirk and Kruge in an operation to get of Kirk for some reason?

 

[Sketcher]

Probably the same reason a modern-day navy captain can't just call up the plans for a nuke and start firing them at enemies?

 

[The Wormhole]

First question, if a weapon was needed to defeat the Borg during the initial encounter with the NCC-1701-D, why didn't Picard replicate the Genesis Device and then use the device to turn the Borg cube into a nice blue and yellow bouquet for flowers? I mean the Borg would not have been to counter the Genesis Device due to the device restructuring matter at the sub-atomic level.

So it takes out one Cube. What happens when the next Cube comes along and has adapted to the Genesis Device, thus rendering it obsolete?

Would Section 31 have known about the Genesis experiments, even if only the theory had been presented to Starfleet?

Almost certainly, yes.

 

[fireproof78]

Can the Genesis Device go through shields?

 

[JoseNoodles]

The Genesis Device worked on protomatter, which was highly unstable. I don't see how it would benefit the Borg. Sure they could maybe reconfigure it to rapidly assimilate a planet, but what good is that if the planet subsequently explodes. Likewise, how would Starfleet use it? They would have ships carrying unstable material aboard to do what, turn Borg Cubes into habitable planetoids? That brings up moral and ethical questions that weren't explored in ST II, but should have, considering McCoy's arguments. And then again with the unstable protomatter that could cause explosions.

 

[Sisko_is_my_captain]

Section 31 would know about it. They had hearings with the Klingons, didn't they? No way that was kept sealed.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Imagine all the missing bits on the Borg Drones tried to grow back through their artificial limbs and implants.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Because Star Trek writers forget about any and all status quo-altering technology whenever the current episode or movie is over. It's the law.

 

[Guy Gardener]

The genesis device destroys technology.

The Federation should create a food desert and starve the Borg.

Genesis any planet the Borg plan on assimilating hours before its assimilated.

 

[The Wormhole]

Because Star Trek writers forget about any and all status quo-altering technology whenever the current episode or movie is over. It's the law.

Which makes it all the more amusing (and unnecessary) at the end of Disco season 2 they went to all the trouble of erasing spore drive from the official record and made it treasonous to speak of. Everyone would have just forgotten about it right away anyway.

 

[Tuskin38]

The Genesis Device was referenced once after the movies and that was in Voyager.

Although, according to Memory-Alpha via the DS9 Companion

According to Robert Hewitt Wolfe, Gideon Seyetik's terraforming technology in DS9: "Second Sight" was based upon the Genesis Device; "It was established Federation terraforming technology. Of course, the Genesis device didn't work, but obviously Seyetik's work is built upon the research of previous scientists. And it was a nice way to reference the movie." An early story idea was to have Genesis technology rejuvenate a part of Bajor. (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion (p. 103))

Genesis any planet the Borg plan on assimilating hours before its assimilated.

But that would kill all life on the surface.

 

[IMC Headquarters]

Take permits many.

A Genesis Torpedo was launched by Section 31 against a flotilla of cubes and detonated. It didn't go as planned, and turned all the drones into the "butt-bugs" from "Conspiracy".

Head canon!

 

[Guy Gardener]

But that would kill all life on the surface.

Yes that would kill all life on the surface.

Either the Borg would feel sympathy and compassion for Starfleet's victims, or they would attack Starfleet directly, or they would find a safe corner of the galaxy to be free and never bother any one ever again.

Give me liberty or give me death.

 

[fireproof78]

Because Star Trek writers forget about any and all status quo-altering technology whenever the current episode or movie is over. It's the law.

First law of Trek writing.

 

[somebuddyX]

He didn't know about it? It was 80 years ago. Kirk had information about it on his Enterprise but is that because he was already involved in it? He's in that video that Kruge watches in Star Trek III instead of Carol Marcus but is that just some new video he made on his way home between II and III or did he have a hand in getting the project going? So Picard might not even have the information onboard his ship.
It also didn't work properly.
Their phasers did some pretty good blasting. If they'd wanted to they could have keep firing and wiped the ship out. But Picard thought he could reason with them or at least threaten them. He didn't fully understand what they were yet. I don't think there's anything he could have done, save maybe listen to Guinan, that would have made any difference.

 

[Guy Gardener]

To be fair, there wasn't a writers room in the process.

More than half the season would be spec scripts and hired talent working thousands of miles away, who had no idea what was happening in the rest of the current season.

By the time of Voyager, the script editors added shite to make each random script less random and part of a consecutive story with throw away lines you would never notice unless you are binging a season or you happen to have Aspergers.

DS9 did it better.

 

[The Wormhole]

He didn't know about it? It was 80 years ago. Kirk had information about it on his Enterprise but is that because he was already involved in it? He's in that video that Kruge watches in Star Trek III instead of Carol Marcus but is that just some new video he made on his way home between II and III or did he have a hand in getting the project going? So Picard might not even have the information onboard his ship.

Both Carol Marcus and the Genesis Device were mentioned in dialogue on Voyager, Janeway mentions them in a log entry in The Omega Directive. It sure would be odd if the Flagship and its Captain didn't have access to this information.

 

[Orphalesion]

But that would kill all life on the surface.

Yeah, but that life was gonna be destroyed, and possibly mind-raped, by the Borg anyway if it's "hours away from assimilation", so...

The bigger issue is once you mass-produce the genesis device and turn it into a weapon then it's only a matter of time until everybody has the capacity to do so and all hostile powers are just gonna "Genesis" each other into oblivion. Or possibly create an upscaled version of M.A.D.

...actually that could have been a good explanation for the abundance of life and it's inexplicable chemical and genetic compatibility in the Star Trek version of the Milky Way.
Billions of years ago some super-civilization invented their version of the Genesis device, it became a weapon and created the current inhabitable planets in the Star Trek galaxy in a galaxy-spanning war.

 

[1001001]

Both Carol Marcus and the Genesis Device were mentioned in dialogue on Voyager, Janeway mentions them in a log entry in The Omega Directive. It sure would be odd if the Flagship and its Captain didn't have access to this information.

We didn’t see Janeway look it up, so maybe it’s a Captain’s briefing thing (like Omega).

Which would mean the Borg would probably already know about the Genesis Device from assimilating Picard.

The minute they fired it up the Borg would detect it, know what it was, and already have adapted.

 

[somebuddyX]

Both Carol Marcus and the Genesis Device were mentioned in dialogue on Voyager, Janeway mentions them in a log entry in The Omega Directive. It sure would be odd if the Flagship and its Captain didn't have access to this information.

Good point, and now that I think about it, the fact a planet suddenly turned up out of a nebula and then exploded a little while later would have made some kind of news on Earth, so the planet, device and creator would have been a historical record in Picard and Janeway's time. But I still think they wouldn't have actually been able to build the device. I think that might have been locked up in some computer back at Starfleet HQ, not sitting locally inside the Enterprise-D or Voyager computer cores. Or even if it's all networked and Picard and Janeway could have got the information, they were 7000 and 70000-ish light years away so were out of range. But maybe this is wrong too.