Moved here from http://drunkardswalkforums.yuku.com/top ... -Barbara-f]THIS thread.
OK, so this is starting to be a bit of a discussion for a probable page or rather an extension of the http://www.fenspace.net/index.php5?titl ... dification]existing wiki page on biomods.
I’ll start by splitting the benefits from the downsides of biomods as I see them:
Benefits:
* Being biomoded boosts the person’s healing. They recover quicker than unmodded people (baring medical help).
* As a side effect, the affects of aging are reduced. You can expect at least a decade extra of life.
* The person normally gains abilities from the biomod.
Downsides:
* Biomods make extensive (if not visible) changes to a person’s body. At the very least this means genetics are changed.
* Again as a side effect the above, it becomes harder to procreate.
* Depending on the actual changes incurred, it can become harder to live. Specific foods will have differing affects on the person, the need for customised gear and/or living quarters, medical help gets harder due to altered biology, etc…
Mechanics:
This can probably be broken down into two parts, regeneration and homeostasis. They are NOT the same; related yes, not the same.
Homeostasis in our discussion is the affect of the biomod maintaining itself. It is the primary reason it is so difficult to get rid of a biomod once gained. There is likely a bit of ‘maintenance’ handwavium in the biomod’s system helping with that.
Regeneration is the related mechanism by which the biomod maintains itself. This is what has the knock-on health benefits.
Pregnancy causes quite a few changes to the biochemistry of the mother. This will be fought by the homeostasis effect (trying to keep to the biomod template). It can be overridden, the wave being a memetic substance after all. It’s just ‘maintenance’ wave is not as reconfigurable as regular handwavium, which makes ordinary pregnancies hard. The regeneration effect is also not instantly applicable, so it is possible for a fait accompli to be enacted. IVF is a way of doing this.
Cross-mod compatibility is ALSO a question. Before the birth of Helen Scott, there were no mod/non-mod children, and no children of modded parents. The Swansen-Scott/Peters papers detailing the pregnancy of the former may help alleviate that. The pregnancy of Loviatar shows what a lot of work and stubbornness can do as well.
The homeostasis effect also causes the issues with aging. In most cases where it’s strong enough to remove the visible affects of aging, there is an issue of how the insides of a body cope. It is fully possible for a biomod to just…stop.
Higher levels of regeneration also cause the problem of ‘immortals’. We don’t know how to cope with people living centuries, let alone more. It’s bad enough with all the A.I.’s we have.
More comments are needed to get a feel for the collective's position on this.
OK, so this is starting to be a bit of a discussion for a probable page or rather an extension of the http://www.fenspace.net/index.php5?titl ... dification]existing wiki page on biomods.
I’ll start by splitting the benefits from the downsides of biomods as I see them:
Benefits:
* Being biomoded boosts the person’s healing. They recover quicker than unmodded people (baring medical help).
* As a side effect, the affects of aging are reduced. You can expect at least a decade extra of life.
* The person normally gains abilities from the biomod.
Downsides:
* Biomods make extensive (if not visible) changes to a person’s body. At the very least this means genetics are changed.
* Again as a side effect the above, it becomes harder to procreate.
* Depending on the actual changes incurred, it can become harder to live. Specific foods will have differing affects on the person, the need for customised gear and/or living quarters, medical help gets harder due to altered biology, etc…
Mechanics:
This can probably be broken down into two parts, regeneration and homeostasis. They are NOT the same; related yes, not the same.
Homeostasis in our discussion is the affect of the biomod maintaining itself. It is the primary reason it is so difficult to get rid of a biomod once gained. There is likely a bit of ‘maintenance’ handwavium in the biomod’s system helping with that.
Regeneration is the related mechanism by which the biomod maintains itself. This is what has the knock-on health benefits.
Pregnancy causes quite a few changes to the biochemistry of the mother. This will be fought by the homeostasis effect (trying to keep to the biomod template). It can be overridden, the wave being a memetic substance after all. It’s just ‘maintenance’ wave is not as reconfigurable as regular handwavium, which makes ordinary pregnancies hard. The regeneration effect is also not instantly applicable, so it is possible for a fait accompli to be enacted. IVF is a way of doing this.
Cross-mod compatibility is ALSO a question. Before the birth of Helen Scott, there were no mod/non-mod children, and no children of modded parents. The Swansen-Scott/Peters papers detailing the pregnancy of the former may help alleviate that. The pregnancy of Loviatar shows what a lot of work and stubbornness can do as well.
The homeostasis effect also causes the issues with aging. In most cases where it’s strong enough to remove the visible affects of aging, there is an issue of how the insides of a body cope. It is fully possible for a biomod to just…stop.
Higher levels of regeneration also cause the problem of ‘immortals’. We don’t know how to cope with people living centuries, let alone more. It’s bad enough with all the A.I.’s we have.
More comments are needed to get a feel for the collective's position on this.