Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

There are people now that don't like being forced to do all sorts of common mandatory things. I don't seer why that would change in a plausible future or alternate universe. Unless you want to go full dystopian mind control.

Having one's fundamental personality and mental functions changed is I feel a bit more basic of a liberty violation than paying taxes, vaccinations, or what have you.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

You are aware that some right wing radicals use the same argument against public schooling. I said this setting had scary elements.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

Many of these bio-mods are seen as like vaccinations. Take me, and place me in this setting. They slap the Empathy advantage into my brain in about five minutes. Then they'd get me new eyeballs. When I had a chance to breathe then they'd really go to town. Unlike the Twilight Zone episode this setting evokes, I'd still be me and have free will. Although my head would be spinning for years.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

Assuming the setting starts out like TNG Trek, what sort of mods suddenly show up in a war for existence like what would happen vs the Borg? Given some of the description of the Dominion, they already do this to varying degrees. Likely better than being a subject race of the Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians, etc. etc., etc. but not by much.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

I do not think that biomods can give Empathy (maybe the Empath Talent, but not Empathy). Now, a proteus virus could give someone the Delusion that they possess Empathy, which could be real scary if the Delusion was ubiquitous. When it comes to brainwashing though, it just works better when you have a telepath around to tell you if it worked.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

I have at best quirk low empathy. I most certainly would not want anything approaching Gurps Empathy.
I want to deal with my many limitations and disadvantages on my own terms.

Imagine forcing all deaf people to get hypothetical good as normal hearing treatments. You would have a literal riot.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

In the GURPS game Empathy or the advantage of that name can be induced with a bio-mod. As I wrote it, the people of this setting aren't into mind control, but they will require you to be healthy on their terms. That's coercive enough to be alienating. But you could see someone making a defense of it.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

Something that obvious would have been corrected in the uterus. Some of the more subtle mental quirks might wait until adolescence, or later.

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

That just changes the issue to removing parents' choice. Deaf parents may refuse such genetic testing to avoid being forced to alter their offspring.

The issue is much more complicated that "just fix everything I consider a disorder regardless of what they want."

Re: New Sci Fi Setting Seeds
 

You'll want to build the largest craft possible, with the largest nitrogen vacuoles possible, because of the square-cube law (easier to keep the nitrogen at the storage temperature, net lower costs of building the containers, etc.). Unless the price of Hydrogen is substantially cheaper on side of the trip, the rocket equation favours refueling at the destination, instead of just at one side. Tying up 15% of the craft's mass in armor is wasteful. Using lightweight metal, or perhaps kevlar, would probably be sufficient, and would probably not take more than 5% of the crafts mass. Having people on board is also wasteful. Besides the mass cost of the habitat, they demand a great deal supplies (which would waste more mass) and demand high labour costs. Better to front the capital for total automation.