Wanderlust

7.3 — “Interface”

7.3 — “Interface”

Plot: Geordi is preparing for an assignment guiding a probe using a virtual reality control system tied directly to his brain when he receives the news that his mother’s starship, which she serves as captain, has been lost. Geordi must decide whether to continue his work while he deals with this news and the hope that his mother may still be alive. When complications on the mission ensue, his shipmates question whether his judgment is compromised.

Thoughts: Knowing this was going to be a Geordi episode made me inwardly groan. The producers seem to have it in for the guy! Episodes like “Acquiel” and the one where he falls in love with a virtual reality simulation of Dr. Leah Brahms ensure that what we most remember about Geordi is his best friend has no real emotions and he can’t get laid.

I think this is pretty good, though! The act structure is a little weird, with the conflict not developing until late in the show. But the loss of a parent makes for a sensitive story. Good for the writers not allowing Geordi to save the Hera, the more obvious, easy way out.

I like the scene where Geordi convinces Data to help him hijack the probe. What would make an android with no emotions decide to play along? Some complex calculation about Geordi’s comparative welfare? This scene illustrates how difficult it would be to program an artificial intelligence to interact with humans over a wide range of circumstances. The consolation scene in which Data reads poetry made me laugh out loud with the 47 minute lacuna.

To be sure, the technical limitations everyone labors under in this episode are mysterious. Surely the Enterrprise can just scan the surface and determine if the Hera, or a warp bubble, is present? Why can’t the probe or the deserted ship be controlled remotely in a conventional way? That’s the way we’d do it in the 21st century.

In a way it makes sense to learn that Geordi was born into Starfleet. Nobody on board seems to have any life outside the ship. He’s just a second generation person with no real home or hobby other than warp engines.

3.5 of 5 massive gas giants. Not all the planets are class M!

http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Interface_(episode)

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7 responses to “7.3 — “Interface””

  1. Randi Cohen Avatar
    Randi Cohen

    Yes… for a Geordi story, not bad! Did we ever understand why Geordi had a vision of himself without the visor, though? Was that intended to imply that the device functions as wish fulfillment somehow? At least Geordi is portrayed as not completely incompetent in his personal life in this episode.

    My favorite was the scene where Geordi lets Data know he accepted “no” too easily and actually he does want to talk. That being said, I think the writers are as usual acting like Data has emotions when the plot device is that he doesn’t. Really the only reason to allow Geordi to keep going is an emotional one, since a robot would be taught to preserve life regardless of free will (particularly if the person is disobeying orders). I am sure it is in the “ethics program”. By the way, I feel annoyed even though I should not really expect plots to be carried forward between episodes that Data tortured and nearly killed Geordi a couple of episodes back yet nothing is said about this.

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  2. Kevin Black Avatar
    Kevin Black

    Right?

    If your intuition says that the best choice is to let Geordi continue and support him, I suppose it would be possible to devise a computer program that would reach the same conclusion, but the complexity is boggling and I suddenly understand why AI is such a challenge.

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  3. Randi Cohen Avatar
    Randi Cohen

    Do you think that the best choice is to let Geordi continue? I suppose that when he basically threatens suicide if he is not allowed to continue, then at that point it makes sense. But perhaps not at the outset. And particularly not if you’re a machine that does not have feelings (therefore no special attachment to Geordi as a person). I can’t think of a non-emotional reason why Geordi should be allowed to go against the Captain’s orders. Can you?

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  4. Kevin Black Avatar
    Kevin Black

    Well, IIRC the premise is that he is taking a purely personal risk, and not endangering other crew or valuable equipment (in this post-scarcity economy, does the wrecked ship have salvage value?). Picard makes the point that for the Enterprise/Starfleet, the risk of losing Geordi outweighs the benefit of what he might discover (times his chance of actually discovering it). Let’s assume for the sake of argument that Picard is correct, but the same calculation may not hold true for Geordi personally. OTOH, his current appraisal of the costs and benefits may be distorted by grief or various understandable fallacies (difficulty of predicting future emotional states, optimism bias, etc.), and may not take fully on board the consequences of his insubordination.

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  5. Randi Cohen Avatar
    Randi Cohen

    Well argued, Counselor.

    That said, I think that even if obeying orders isn’t sufficient reason to stop Geordi, Data’s thought process would echo Picard’s as far as risk.

    So he would have to be prioritizing Geordi’s free will over his safety and compliance with orders, which seems like a suspect choice at best given

    that he knows Geordi’s thought process is compromised by grief. I suppose he could conclude that Geordi is the one with the most at risk so should be able to make these choices. But somehow I don’t feel convinced that a purely unemotional being would land there.

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  6. Kevin Black Avatar
    Kevin Black

    The dynamic of the episode feels odd because you usually see Geordi, Riker, and Picard as friends or peers, and near constant companions. This is one of the few episodes that put them at odds, or acknowledge that Geordi is a subordinate with an obligation to follow orders. Kirk never let you forget the hierarchy and responsibilities of command, but TNG can seemingly forget about Starfleet and rank entirely for long stretches.

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  7. Randi Cohen Avatar
    Randi Cohen

    Yes, they can indeed forget about this! One wonders if this is a military organization at all, at times.

    Reply

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