![\"This](\"https:\/\/pagan-gerbil.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/image.png\" "\\"Engineers")
<\/p>\nWhat can I say about this episode? Not a lot. It was fun!<\/p>\n
It touched sideways on an argument between anecdotal evidence versus scientific evidence and scepticism. Kasinsky is arrogant but misguided, and although his actual changes are meaningless he has evidence to back him up. It isn\u2019t mentioned in the episode, but based on the circumstances that the changes had an effect on the engines, we can say with certainty that if someone had taken his published findings and tried them on a starship without his (and more specifically, the Traveller\u2019s) help, they would find nothing to back him up. Of course, given Kasinsky\u2019s arrogance, he would put this down immediately to people not doing it right, only he is able to do it properly, and so on.<\/p>\n
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Riker and Argyle (the early, bearded chief engineer – or one of<\/em> them) are the voices of scepticism putting Kasinsky down. They\u2019ve analysed it from a scientific point of view and find errors with the reasoning. Kasinsky isn\u2019t smart enough to answer these, and doesn\u2019t have the core scientific value of trying to prove himself wrong, or testing under neutral conditions. That being said, Riker and Argyle appear hostile to Kasinsky but let him try anyway. They didn\u2019t really have an opportunity to be anything but hostile, given Kasinsky\u2019s general demeanour towards them – rude, condescending, dismissive of rank and disrespectful. I think the crew\u2019s attitude is entirely justified. Actually, I think quietly stuffing him out of an airlock is entirely justified.<\/p>\n If Kasinsky is the only person who could make these changes work, is he planning to visit every starship and upgrade it personally? Did the other starships see continued improvement once the Traveller had left?<\/p>\n How did the Traveller end up with Kasinsky anyway? Kasinsky was investigating ways to get warp engines to run better. He presumably didn\u2019t see results until the Traveller became his assistant, but how does a non-Starfleet person, a civilian, join a Starfleet research project? Was the Traveller involved in any research institute, hoping to hitch a lift on board starships? If his goal is to explore, finding Kasinsky seems like a roundabout way to do so. Maybe he only approached Kasinsky once there was a trial beginning to test his theories, or maybe Kasinsky was already doing his research on a travelling starship.<\/p>\n How would this have played on Deep Space Nine? They don\u2019t really have engines, just \u2018reaction control thrusters\u2019 to move the station nearer to the wormhole in the first episode. The Defiant is the only ship with a warp engine. I can see O\u2019Brien wanting to punch Kasinsky for his attitude – considering how Kasinsky treats Commander Riker, I can\u2019t see him appreciating O\u2019Brien\u2019s authority (as an NCO) or later in the series, Rom\u2019s (as a Ferengi working for the Bajorans!) Worf would actually hit him. He would guard the Defiant’s engine room with a bat’leth to stop Kasinsky getting near it (especially with knowledge of the Enterprise’s encounter…) <\/p>\n That being said, I think Sisko would overrule any misgivings based on personal feelings (O\u2019Brien and Rom can be petty) and allow the changes to be made. Kira would have broken his nose in about ten minutes – twenty in later series, when she mellowed out a bit.<\/p>\n Given that the Defiant is more for defence of the station and engine efficiency is not the key point of the Defiant (officially – escort vessel, from the design brief – to battle the Borg), as well as the fact that it has a really convenient way of getting halfway across the galaxy faster than Kasinsky\u2019s changes \u2013 it\u2019s probably end of the queue for any changes.<\/p>\n Janeway would not hesitate to do anything that might make her engines a little bit faster. B\u2019elanna would<\/em> punch Kasinsky in the face if he treated her as anything less than chief engineer (let\u2019s not forget, she never finished the academy and is a wanted terrorist). Seven of Nine would definitely need a chat with Janeway before she\u2019d even work with Kasinsky, after the first antisocial encounter. His enhancements would probably not match whatever Borg magic she pulled anyway. How Kasinsky gets to the Delta quadrant to offer these enhancements, I don\u2019t know – if he\u2019s an alien, maybe there\u2019d be a little more scepticism and mistrust from the crew. <\/p>\n In the second half of the episode, the problem is not Kasinsky\u2019s stinking attitude – it is getting the ship home safely. I can\u2019t help but think that with the parallels between Wesley\u2019s inherent understanding of space and Sisko\u2019s inherent understanding of time (as the Emissary) could give the spark of realisation a little sooner – the Prophets would give a little hint, perhaps, but Sisko would lead everyone with varying degrees of reluctance depending on his acceptance of his Emissary status in believing themselves home. And Kira already has a belief you can power a starship with, that will be proven right here. Dax and O\u2019Brien might find it more difficult, as Dax is a hardcore scientist, and O\u2019Brien is a very literal person. That being said, he\u2019d already lived through this somewhere on the Enterprise (although I don\u2019t remember seeing him in the episode)\u2026<\/p>\n One fun thing to imagine is how rich Quark would be once he saw that belief (and he has incredible belief in his own abilities as a businessman and entitlements as a person, even without adding Rom\u2019s faith in him to that) becomes real. The look on his face when it all vanishes too, would be absolutely priceless.<\/p>\n Voyager was a much less spiritual show. I only see Chakotay as being the one to start \u2018believing\u2019 them home, and maybe the crew would go along with it? There are so many scientific, literal people on the ship it might be hard to generate enough good will past the scepticism. How would Tuvok fall on the issue? B\u2019elanna believes what she sees, Seven even more so, Tom is naturally cynical of everything and Harry questions everything. Janeway has a scientific scepticism – I remember one episode where she could not progress until she accepted something that wasn\u2019t scientifically sound or reasonable, and spent days looking for the \u2018trick\u2019. So much of Voyager took beliefs, such as Chakotay\u2019s, and any number of Delta Quadrant aliens and reduced them to an explainable, scientific curiosity. Could the crew then get behind an apparently unscientific belief?<\/p>\n That\u2019s not why I don\u2019t like thinking about Voyager facing this situation though. The reason I don\u2019t like it is because they will be moved to the furthest galaxy we know, and I know<\/em> they would be returned to exactly where they began, give or take a month\u2019s travel. The whole episode would be entirely pointless and not cut any time off of Voyager\u2019s journey at all.<\/p>\n Nice strong episode, no science to trip them up and a good example of \u201cthere\u2019s amazing things out there that we don\u2019t understand\u201d, a bit of optimism about humanity\u2019s future, I liked it. The background story of Wesley being someone special is begun here, and I\u2019ll try to remember to watch out for more indicators of this beyond the child prodigy he normally displays.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also a good example of Wesley saving the ship without causing the problem in the first place. His role, like <\/font>Deanna\u2019s in <\/font>The Last Outpost<\/a><\/font>, is<\/font> a little understated – he just pays attention and tries to get people to watch the Traveller and see what is happening. <\/p>\n What can I say about this episode? Not a lot. It was fun! It touched sideways on an argument between anecdotal evidence versus scientific evidence and scepticism. Kasinsky is arrogant but misguided, and although his actual changes are meaningless he has evidence to back him up. It isn\u2019t mentioned in the episode, but based on … <\/p>\n![\"Like](\"https:\/\/pagan-gerbil.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/image_3.png\" "\\"The")
<\/p>\nOther Captains<\/h2>\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n
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