The Voyage Without

[stads]

so time to give the dragon a handicap during game night i guess

 

[zane]

so, this might be an odd take on the situation, and possibly a simplistic one.
but I think at least on one level, this tech is acting as a kind of "cognitive lubricant"
allowing for his thoughts to flow more coherently, smoother and faster.

none of the tests we were shown were beyond his capacity BEFORE the integration, it just took time and effort.
now, he is performing at beyond peak levels. its very possible, that the tech "hugging" his brain is acing as a "bandwidth" enhancement, either by the simple expedient of quite literally broadening his neural pathways, or by adding in a more efficient transmission materiel.
or it could be acting as a biological R.A.M (random access memory for all of you non PC builder nerds out there...) enhancement. allowing for knowledge to be accessed significantly faster and with less strain.

mind you, I don't think that's "all" that this tech is doing, but with what we have seen so far, it seems to fit...
we will have to wait and see what happens when he flexes his non-standard physiology (flight, fire... anything else that decides to pop up during dragon puberty...) to find out if its more significant.

for now we will have to settle for our chief engineer "just" being able to do warp calculations off the back of his cuff, and operating at a cognitive level equal to commander Data. lul...

 

[Kaernetron]

If my theory of wireless technology interface holds true, solving equations should be easier for a VI than translating a user interface, while helping doing the latter.
Or it could be an alien probe. We'll see.

 

[Hiver]

"So... super intelligent?" Dinah asked as she studied me.

I eyed her, "What else is new?"

That got me an amused look, "Keep telling yourself that. So?"

"Not quite," I said with a sigh, "I wish. That would have been much simpler."

Dinah frowned, "So... no building a wormhole drive and getting us home by next week?"

"Unfortunately no," I admitted, "And before you ask, I tried. We have done a lot of testing and so far, results are... inconclusive and frustrating."

She picked her mug off from the table, "Explain?"

We were in the rear lounge. It was one of the main relaxation areas of the ship, as far aft as you could go in the lower hull. I didn't come here that often, there were too many tables anywhere but by the window and I didn't feel comfortable taking up everyone's view.

"Okay," I said and looked for the right explanation. The alien supercomputer in my brain of course refused to help, "Say I look at an equation. I instantly know the answer."

"Okay," she agreed with a nod.

"But I don't know how I got there," I continued, "Which is useful, don't get me wrong, but a lot less useful than you'd think."

Dinah slowly nodded, "Look at any unsolved math proofs so far?"

I snorted in annoyance, "Yes. And I did solve a bunch. But as I have no clue 'how' I got to that answer, that does not help anyone!"

"Don't we have a theoretical physicist onboard?" Dinah mused.

"Harren," I conformed, "Super focused on his theories, completely useless for actual work. I talked to him, disproved three of his theories and he went off to sulk on deck fifteen."

Dinah frowned slightly but nodded, "So... it lets you do math?"

"No, it gives me the answer. Not even give me the answer, I just have to be presented with something and I know the answer, fully formed, like I knew it all along," I sighed, "Maybe I can finagle the thing by going through things step by step. Which could be useful, but... it feels like something is broken or like I'm doing something wrong."

"How come?"

"Because somebody built something that lasted seventy million years, out of materials we can't even begin to explain how it works, to integrate with a neural system and... it's a fancy calculator?" I asked, shifting my wings in annoyance, "I feel like I'm sitting at the pilot's seat in a warp capable starship and all I'm doing is playing with the calculator application that also lets me know how gravity is around me."

She nodded, "On the bright side, your brain didn't melt."

"On the bright side, my brain didn't melt," I agreed and rubbed the side of my neck with a paw.

"...I was terrified when you collapsed," Dinah said quietly, "I have lost... a lot of friends already."

I nodded, "I'm sorry."

We were quiet for several long moments and she sipped her drink, looking out towards the stars behind us.

"It reacted to you," she finally said, "Nobody else. That thing was made by your people."

I snorted, "That's a leap of logic."

"Not really," she said with a small smile, "I've been thinking about it. You're fairly smart and learn quickly. What could an entire civilization of Zephyrs do with a million years to work?"

"Growl at each other and get in fights over hunting grounds?" I suggested.

Dinah grinned briefly, "Maybe. But I think you're smart enough to realize that working together is advantageous in the long run, even if you're a solitary species. You're willing to put up with us monkeys after all."

"We do think my human memories may be a moderating influence," I pointed out.

She nodded, "True, but I can tell people annoy you. Even back at the academy."

I shifted my paws slightly, "...A little," I admitted, "But at least some of it is from the fact that when people are around, I always have to be so very careful with everything. I can rip my way through a ship's deck, compared to that even Klingons are pretty squishy."

"Decks don't move out of the way, we're not made of glass, Zeph. We won't break if you bump into us."

I eyed her, "You might. And I'd rather not take the risk. Almost all of my self defense training was in how not to murder my opponent by accident."

Dinah smiled a bit, "So back on duty?"

"Tomorrow," I agreed, then sighed, "I have been away too long as is. I haven't... gotten angry-"

"Had a panic attack."

I glared at her, "Gotten angry, since I first discovered what had happened. I don't feel good about it but there is nothing I can do about it. So I might as well get back to work and stop moping around."

"While we're on the subject, my sonic shower has been acting up," Dinah said, "It seems to be on or off, it's not taking any settings changes."

Letting out a sigh, I nodded, "I'll send someone to look at it tomorrow."

"Thanks."

"...Anything I missed while I was indisposed?"

Dinah shrugged one shoulder, sipping her coffee again, "Some, nothing special. We did stop to study a nebula the Captain thought was interesting. We also gathered some deuterium while we were at it. Other than that, it's mostly gossip you have no interest in."

"Good to know the buggies were not part of a Kazon trap at least," I admitted, "I was getting worried."

Dinah shook her head, "No, they were actually super upset that you got hurt while a guest of theirs. Not only did they help get you back to the shuttle, but they gave us so much supplies as an apology that we had to fill half the corridors on deck forteen to store it all. Kinda wish they were around in the alpha quadrant, they seem like really nice people."

"They did," I admitted, "Who knows, maybe we'll return here some day and they can join."

"That'd be nice."

 

[stads]

hmm perhaps one side benefit can be that the computer in his brain block the smell from neelix registering ?

 

[jacobpaige]

"they gave us so much supplies as an apology that we had to fill half the corridors on deck forteen to store it all." Are we sure this is a species introduced to Voyager by The Nelix?

I wonder when he'll get around to his flying exercises. Not sure if the implant will have an obvious effect, but it would be the easiest way for him to accidentally discover if it impacts that. Regardless, from just what he knows so far, it should help quite a bit with his warp improvement research.

 

[Moochy]

"Tomorrow," I agreed, then sighed, "I have been away too long as is. I haven't... gotten angry-"

"Had a panic attack."

I glared at her, "Gotten angry, since I first discovered what had happened.

Click to shrink...

This is a very… human reaction. I guess not wanting to appear weak is a common reaction between us monkeys and flying, fire breathing psionic reptiloids.

he really needs a therapist.

it's both interesting and somewhat alarming and frustrating that the neural lace is so clever and yet so stupid. i'm guessing it might still be calibrating. that, or it's in fail safe mode because there's no adult dragon techs around to switch it on. maybe zephyr can do it himself?

 

[SuperDani]

it might be because he's literally a baby as far as the designers were concerned, if it really is his species. Like based on their not-that-educated guessing he just barely started puberty right? Space Dragon Nanosuit AI might be going "no no little buddy, you can't access the shoulder lasers or ultrawarp blueprints until you're at least 500!"

 

[Saphire]

Dinah slowly nodded, "Look at any unsolved math proofs so far?"

I snorted in annoyance, "Yes. And I did solve a bunch. But as I have no clue 'how' I got to that answer, that does not help anyone!"

"Don't we have a theoretical physicist onboard?" Dinah mused.

"Harren," I conformed, "Super focused on his theories, completely useless for actual work. I talked to him, disproved three of his theories and he went off to sulk on deck fifteen."

Click to shrink...

Ah, Star Trek, where someone suddenly being able to solve math that refused to get cracked for way too long, or advancing science by leaps, is just another Tuesday.

That explanation about "sitting in a warp capable ship and only poking at a calculator" sounds suspiciously too potentially possible. As well as the reply above about it being in "childproof" mode. Do wonder when the Chekhov's McGuffin will actually get figured out, and what exactly it can do…

 

[sdeligar]

....I might be remembering this wrong but isn't the entire reason they couldn't get transwarp tech to work is because starfleet computers can't keep up with the constant calculation changes needed to maintain a warp field at that speed? Kinda sounded to me like Zephyrs new brain buddy might provide a fix for that.

 

[Roaming_Guardian]

....I might be remembering this wrong but isn't the entire reason they couldn't get transwarp tech to work is because starfleet computers can't keep up with the constant calculation changes needed to maintain a warp field at that speed? Kinda sounded to me like Zephyrs new brain buddy might provide a fix for that.

Click to shrink...

If he could input them all fast enough.

If the hilariously powerful supercomputers that run starships cant keep up with the process, there isnt an input device in existence that will let Zephyr plug in the numbers manually.

 

[Byzantine]

it might be because he's literally a baby as far as the designers were concerned, if it really is his species. Like based on their not-that-educated guessing he just barely started puberty right? Space Dragon Nanosuit AI might be going "no no little buddy, you can't access the shoulder lasers or ultrawarp blueprints until you're at least 500!"

Click to shrink...

Ah, Star Trek, where someone suddenly being able to solve math that refused to get cracked for way too long, or advancing science by leaps, is just another Tuesday.

That explanation about "sitting in a warp capable ship and only poking at a calculator" sounds suspiciously too potentially possible. As well as the reply above about it being in "childproof" mode. Do wonder when the Chekhov's McGuffin will actually get figured out, and what exactly it can do…

Click to shrink...

Agreed, this is some kind of safe mode. Probably a child-safe mode, since Zephyr is a (very young) teenager at the oldest as far as it would understand. The other option is the device's calibration is off and it can detect it but not alter itself sufficiently (out of spec?) to fully sync, so it's running on safe mode, which locks out all the advanced features. The fact it isn't blaring this to Zephyr though makes me suspect it's the child-safe mode. After all, tell kids that they don't have full access and they'll scream and cry for it, so just... don't tell them the device is locked down. Most probably wouldn't notice. Compared to safe mode on computers, which basically yells at you it is active constantly.

 

[.Winged_One.]

hmm perhaps one side benefit can be that the computer in his brain block the smell from neelix registering ?

Click to shrink...

You know that's an interesting point, probably a bit of a stretch but

Zephyr idling thinking "why does Neelix smell so bad" and immediately getting the answer of "he is producing a large amount of pheromones with undetermined side effects"

 

[TotallyNotEvil]

We did stop to study a nebula the Captain thought was interesting.

Click to shrink...

I think this is one of the main prerequisites to be a Starfleet captain, at least a background one. Just finding random nebulas terribly interesting.

 

[Darth Cooter]

You know that's an interesting point, probably a bit of a stretch but

Zephyr idling thinking "why does Neelix smell so bad" and immediately getting the answer of "he is producing a large amount of pheromones with undetermined side effects"

Click to shrink...

Or it comes back with "the user's sonic shower hasn't been utilized since he took residence "

 

[Jackofcookiejars]

Honestly, with how this device is presented, it really undercuts a large portion of the first novel. I hope this ends up being a temporary power-up that shows itself out, or stops being so effective shortly, as this arc is severely grating on my nerves.

 

[Aineko]

Honestly, with how this device is presented, it really undercuts a large portion of the first novel. I hope this ends up being a temporary power-up that shows itself out, or stops being so effective shortly, as this arc is severely grating on my nerves.

Click to shrink...

Undercuts what, how?

 

[Jackofcookiejars]

Undercuts what, how?

Click to shrink...

A very large portion of "Always Be Yourself..." was the trial of his schooling, one chunk of which was dealing with the maths involved in engineering. Like, I get that he's well beyond that at this point, but the magical sphere of plot cutting out his well-earned skill in the mathematics also brings up the question of "what else does it 'help' him with?" as well as the question of "Why did the author even bother with schooling if he was going to give himself this quick-fix solution that does a large chunk of the hard work?" Simply knowing the answer whenever your presented with a question promotes stagnation and lethargy, both of which were something that the first story made as part of it's core antagonists. This arc feels like a complete 180 on the plot of the first story to me.

 

[Aineko]

...'A thing the protagonist dislikes promotes things the protagonist is vulnerable to' doesn't seem to support the response you're making.

I'm bemused that you took learning Star Trek math to be a large portion of the first novel, though.

It's weirdly hard to figure out what this thing actually does. Zephyr keeps saying it provides answers but not how you get there, but also says that it works when pointed at proofs. But a proof is how you get there. I mean, it might let Zephyr generate proofs Zephyr doesn't have the background to understand, but that wouldn't really limit the value of those proofs at all, while Zephyr keeps implying that this is a limitation.

 

[Jackofcookiejars]

...'A thing the protagonist dislikes promotes things the protagonist is vulnerable to' doesn't seem to support the response you're making.

I'm bemused that you took learning Star Trek math to be a large portion of the first novel, though.

It's weirdly hard to figure out what this thing actually does. Zephyr keeps saying it provides answers but not how you get there, but also says that it works when pointed at proofs. But a proof is how you get there. I mean, it might let Zephyr generate proofs Zephyr doesn't have the background to understand, but that wouldn't really limit the value of those proofs at all, while Zephyr keeps implying that this is a limitation.

Click to shrink...

I'm misrepresenting how I'm feeling. The math itself wasn't a large chunk of the first story, I know that, what I'm saying is that it represents a lot of the themes of the first story. Especially when paired with how this artifact is in-story functioning. I was kinda circling my problem with it at the end of my post, but I don't know how better to cover it other than "This approach to the magical plot sphere promotes complacency." My stance isn't "This arc is ruining the story for me." It's "I hope this device doesn't stick around in it's current form, I feel like it invalidates a lot of previous plot points."

The thing about the proofs isn't that he 'knows' the proof. He's being given the final answer. To put it into more modern terms he's basically being told that P=NP without any of the steps to prove it. He's being told that things just work, rather than having the background knowledge to make it work.

 

[Aineko]

The thing about the proofs isn't that he 'knows' the proof. He's being given the final answer. To put it into more modern terms he's basically being told that P=NP without any of the steps to prove it. He's being told that things just work, rather than having the background knowledge to make it work.

Click to shrink...

What it said about proofs:

Dinah slowly nodded, "Look at any unsolved math proofs so far?"

I snorted in annoyance, "Yes. And I did solve a bunch. But as I have no clue 'how' I got to that answer, that does not help anyone!"

Click to shrink...

Asserting P=NP or P != NP isn't solving an unsolved math proof...

 

[Jackofcookiejars]

What it said about proofs:

Asserting P=NP or P != NP isn't solving an unsolved math proof...

Click to shrink...

The by-far largest part of proofs is the little bit of explanation at each step. He is literally asserting that P=NP or P!=NP via other assertions. It doesn't matter how "solved" a problem is, if there's no explanation for it. Either the calculator works as described and is giving him just the solution without the work, which is the solution, or it doesn't and he's actually solving the equations and the function of the calculator is contradictory. Disproving is a lot easier, because you can just point at one line and say "This doesn't work this way."

 

[sdeligar]

If he could input them all fast enough.

If the hilariously powerful supercomputers that run starships cant keep up with the process, there isnt an input device in existence that will let Zephyr plug in the numbers manually.

Click to shrink...

Yea, but the transwarp experiment in the show didn't happen until season 2 which means he's got at least a year to work on that problem.

 

[Aineko]

The by-far largest part of proofs is the little bit of explanation at each step.

Click to shrink...

There's no distinction between the steps and the "little bit of explanation". The argument from premises to theorem is the proof.

If the device just tells him whether or not an unproven theorem is true, that's not solving a proof. And spitting out a sequence of unproven theorems which build up to it isn't either, though it could be extremely valuable.

Though actually also just being able to truth test theorems without any help on the proof at all seems very exploitable so long as you trust the tester.

 

[Jackofcookiejars]

Dinah slowly nodded, "Look at any unsolved math proofs so far?"

I snorted in annoyance, "Yes. And I did solve a bunch. But as I have no clue 'how' I got to that answer, that does not help anyone!"

Click to shrink...

The argument from premises to theorem is the proof.

If the device just tells him whether or not an unproven theorem is true, that's not solving a proof. And spitting out a sequence of unproven theorems which build up to it isn't either, though it could be extremely valuable.

Click to shrink...

You see, I agree, the argument from premise to theorem is the proof. That's how proofs work.

That's not how the device is presented in story. Either it gives the assertion fully formed, as if he knew it all along, which is how it's presented in story. Or it's providing some of the work, which it isn't how it's described in story.

"No, it gives me the answer. Not even give me the answer, I just have to be presented with something and I know the answer, fully formed, like I knew it all along,"

Click to shrink...

Either it solves the proof, or it gives him the binary "this works" or "this doesn't work." Those are the only two options for how it functions, and in story, it "does not help anyone!" Thus, it must give him the binary "this works" or "this doesn't work."