Chief Science Officer
- Thread starter Nick086
- Start date
Since Janeway herself has a Science Officer past, one might think she'd appreciate having a high-ranking veteran CSO aboard her vessel. And "Ashes to Ashes" features that casualty list with several high-ranking names who must have died in "Caretaker" because their survival till any later date should not have gone unnoticed. The Chief Engineer and Chief Medical Officer would be two of those casualties of LtCmdr rank or higher, and perhaps the Chief of Ops would be on that list, too, but that still leaves plenty of theoretical room for a LtCmdr or Cmdr CSO who also died in the pilot episode.
OTOH, Janeway might instead decide that she didn't need no stinking CSO because she herself was competent enough to do his own science summarizing and her small vessel didn't need the extra step in science bureaucracy that a high-ranking department head on the bridge would represent. Perhaps nobody aboard outranked Ensign Wildman and the assorted other blueshirt single-pippers who are seen doing menial science jobs?
The episodes don't go explicit on this issue; I guess somebody versed in the novels might tell what's going on there.
Timo Saloniemi
OTOH, Janeway might instead decide that she didn't need no stinking CSO because she herself was competent enough to do his own science summarizing and her small vessel didn't need the extra step in science bureaucracy that a high-ranking department head on the bridge would represent. Perhaps nobody aboard outranked Ensign Wildman and the assorted other blueshirt single-pippers who are seen doing menial science jobs?
The episodes don't go explicit on this issue; I guess somebody versed in the novels might tell what's going on there.
Timo Saloniemi
It could be that Voyager wasn't assigned one yet. Early on in season 1 Janeway laments about not having a counciler aboard and Voyager wasn't assigned one since the mission wasn't supposed to last longer then 3 weeks.
And since the mission (chasing Maquis) didn't require a science officer, they weren't assigned one.
And since the mission (chasing Maquis) didn't require a science officer, they weren't assigned one.
Yes, Starfleet didn't assign a CSO to Voyager because they already knew that 3 years down the road a former Borg Drone would become part of the crew and figured Voyager could do without one in the meantime.
The Next Generation also lacked a science officer, although Data essentially did that job (despite wearing yellow and not blue) in fact if not in title. Harry, as Voyager's ops officer, would seem to be the closest they had. He scanned things every now and then
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The Next Generation also lacked a science officer, although Data essentially did that job (despite wearing yellow and not blue) in fact if not in title. Harry, as Voyager's ops officer, would seem to be the closest they had. He scanned things every now and then
I think they have Data down as Chief Science Officer/ Chief Operations Officer. I think they had him in the yellow uniform for a reason to do with the makeup
Yes, Starfleet didn't assign a CSO to Voyager because they already knew that 3 years down the road a former Borg Drone would become part of the crew and figured Voyager could do without one in the meantime.
They still had Janeway durin' those three years.
Voyager wasn't a science vessel. Therefore it was a waste of resources to have an entire crewman devoted to the post of science officer or even chief science officer when they could have part time science officers professing duel professions.
A "science lab" is mentioned in Drone, but that's about it. Both janeway and Tuvok (flashback) claim to have been science officers in their former posts before Voyager.
A "science lab" is mentioned in Drone, but that's about it. Both janeway and Tuvok (flashback) claim to have been science officers in their former posts before Voyager.
^ I though Janeway was a Commander of USS Billings after USS Al-Batani (Memory-Alpha).
Well, in some Star Trek related pages they say "Chief Science Officer (if ship has one.)..."
And Voyager wasn't really a science vessel so they didn't need one and I think the chief science officer isn't always needed. Aboard Voyager were Harry, Tuvok and Janeway. Also Ensign Wildman was shown, who were a science officer, but she wasn't "Chief Science Officer".
Well, in some Star Trek related pages they say "Chief Science Officer (if ship has one.)..."
And Voyager wasn't really a science vessel so they didn't need one and I think the chief science officer isn't always needed. Aboard Voyager were Harry, Tuvok and Janeway. Also Ensign Wildman was shown, who were a science officer, but she wasn't "Chief Science Officer".
Yes, Starfleet didn't assign a CSO to Voyager because they already knew that 3 years down the road a former Borg Drone would become part of the crew and figured Voyager could do without one in the meantime.
They still had Janeway durin' those three years.
No captain wil fill both the CO position AND departmenthead position. Running a ship is demaning enough without having to worry about running a department aswell. Makes no sense.
And as for Voyager not being a science vessel....
Technically neither the Galaxy class starships or Sovereign class starships are science vessel, they are Explorers. But they both have science departments, which requires a CSO.
DS9 wasn't a science vessel. Hell, it wasn't even a vessel to begin with, but that still had a CSO. And yes, Dax was Chief Science Officer.
I think it's save to say that a vessel like an Intrepid class starship, capable of staying in space for a period of three years without maintenance, so probably build for deepspace assignments (exploring) would have a science department, indicated by the fact that ensign Wildman was A science officer, just not CSO.
I still believe that Starfleet just hadn't assigned a CSO yet, since Voyager's current mission didn't require one yet.
Technically neither the Galaxy class starships or Sovereign class starships are science vessel, they are Explorers. But they both have science departments, which requires a CSO.
DS9 wasn't a science vessel. Hell, it wasn't even a vessel to begin with, but that still had a CSO. And yes, Dax was Chief Science Officer.
I think it's save to say that a vessel like an Intrepid class starship, capable of staying in space for a period of three years without maintenance, so probably build for deepspace assignments (exploring) would have a science department, indicated by the fact that ensign Wildman was A science officer, just not CSO.
I still believe that Starfleet just hadn't assigned a CSO yet, since Voyager's current mission didn't require one yet.
Yes, Starfleet didn't assign a CSO to Voyager because they already knew that 3 years down the road a former Borg Drone would become part of the crew and figured Voyager could do without one in the meantime.
They still had Janeway durin' those three years.
No captain wil fill both the CO position AND departmenthead position. Running a ship is demaning enough without having to worry about running a department aswell. Makes no sense.
'Caretaker' showed that Janeway was a hands on type commander - she went from the bridge to engineering to fix the warp core AND managed to fix her hair on the turbolift ride down.
They probably did have a science officer, whom we just never met.
Just because the character didn't appear onscreen, doesn't mean that there ISN'T one!
Just because the character didn't appear onscreen, doesn't mean that there ISN'T one!
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science officer is a section head job.
The science officer should have been at the table every week trying to save the day
What if every one was a science officer to one degree or another?
It's kind of redundant to make a chief science officer when every department and every crewman falls in bounds of the science remit if there's already captain and XO.
The ships size and functions determines what jobs it's good for which determines what composition of crew it needs to use the ship to do those jobs. There was never a science office because the ship was not designed to uphold those sorts of missions.
The science officer should have been at the table every week trying to save the day
What if every one was a science officer to one degree or another?
It's kind of redundant to make a chief science officer when every department and every crewman falls in bounds of the science remit if there's already captain and XO.
The ships size and functions determines what jobs it's good for which determines what composition of crew it needs to use the ship to do those jobs. There was never a science office because the ship was not designed to uphold those sorts of missions.
Wasn't it? Voyager has every ability and luxury that the Enterprise-D had. It was just smaller and had a nasty cheese allergy.
