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SPOROCYSTIAN MICROBES IN
[#1 AND #2 CARETAKER] AND [#26 COLD FIRE] |
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In early 2371, in the series première [#1 and #2 Caretaker] and in the sequel [#26 Cold Fire] which takes place ten months later, the USS Voyager crew encounter a species called the Nacene, specifically two members of that species - a male who calls himself the Caretaker and who brought the crew of Voyager and of Chakotay's Maquis ship into the Delta Quadrant, and his mate called Suspiria. They are a sporocystion lifeform that has evolved into a highly complex,
intelligent entity.
[#1 and #2 Caretaker] |
[#1 and #2 Caretaker] |
Paris and Kim go to carry out Janeway's order to: "Move around. Scan the area. See if you can find anything that might be a holographic generator."
Kim looks at the readings on his tricorder. "Whoa."
Paris: "What?"
Kim: "Sporocystian lifesigns."
The lifesigns emanate from a barn, and they head toward it, despite the country lass trying to stop them. |
the Caretaker in his true form, although he is dying, [#1 and #2 Caretaker]
2 screenshots above: the Caretaker's mate Suspiria in her true form, preparing to leave Voyager, [#26 Cold Fire]
Microbial life is the dominant form of life on our planet. Adding up the mass of all of the living creatures on the
planet (the biomass), one finds that most of the planet's bio-mass is found in single-celled, bacterial organisms. When you get right down to it, bacteria rule.
Single-celled organisms have been discovered that thrive
in the most unlikely environments. Chemosynthetic bacteria
live several kitometers deep in the Earth's crust, surviving on
sulfur and hydrogen gas. There are bacteria (called thermophiles) that live comfortably at temperatures greater than
the boiling point of water. Another variety of bacteria lives deep
in the ocean near hydrothermal vents. These vents, called black
smokers, continually spew hot sulfur- and mineral-rich water
into the ocean. These chemicals are nutrients for the bacteria,
which feed other marine organisms, such as several metre-long
red tube worms.
Bacteria are often thought of as infectious agents, toxic to
human beings and a threat to our health. But there are some
bacteria that are essential to human health; we couldn't live without them. They help us digest food and prey on other bacteria that are harmful to us. This is one of the reasons people
need to be careful when they take antibiotics. Antibiotics
designed to kill dangerous bacteria can sometimes harm the
"good" bacteria we need to stay alive.
The term "Sporocystian" life is one term invented by the writers of
[Caretaker] and does not refer to a real class of organisms. Presumably it refers to a lifeform that spreads spores as part of its reproductive process.
An interesting bit of bacterial trivia: the dry weight of a
human being is about ten percent bacteria.
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