#new treks

[virovirokun-has-adhd]

[markscherz]

Meet the seven new frog species we just named after iconic Star Trek captains!

Artwork by A. Petzold, CC BY-ND 4.0

At the right time of year along rushing streams in the humid rainforests that stretch the length of Madagascar's eastern and northern mountain ridges, otherworldly trills of piercing whistles can be heard.

Are they birds? Insects? Communicator beeps? Tricorder noises?

No, they're little treefrogs!

Boophis janewayae. Photo by M. Vences, CC BY-SA 4.0

Until recently, we thought all of the populations of these little brown frogs across the island were one widespread species, Boophis marojezensis, described in 1994. But genetics in the early 2000s and 2010s showed that there were several species here, not just one.

Now my colleagues and I have shown that they are in fact eight separate species, each with unique calls!

These whistling sounds reminded us so much of Star Trek sound effects that we decided to name the seven new species after Star Trek captains: Boophis kirki, B. picardi, B. janewayae, B. siskoi, B. pikei, B. archeri, and B. burnhamae.

Photos of all new species described by Vences et al. 2024. CC BY-SA 4.0

I subtly and not-so-subtly built some Star Trek references into the paper, but probably the best one is this one:

'Finding these frogs sometimes requires considerable trekking; pursuing strange new calls, to seek out new frogs in new forests; boldly going where no herpetologist has gone before.'

— Vences et al. 2024

There’s a real sense of scientific discovery and exploration here, which we think is in the spirit of Star Trek.

Of course, it doesn't hurt that there are at least two Trekkies amongst the authors (including yours truly). As fans of Star Trek, we are also just pleased to dedicate these new species to the characters who have inspired and entertained us over the decades.

On a personal note, this marks a milestone for me, as it means I have now described over 100 frog species! I am very pleased that the 100th is Captain Janeway's Bright-eyed Frog, Boophis janewayae (if you count them in order of appearance in the paper)—she is probably my favourite captain, and I really love Star Trek: Voyager.

You can read more about the discovery of these new species on my website! You can also read the Open Access paper published in Vertebrate Zoology here.

[pinesource]

It was always about getting the audience and building the audience. I think what we’ve found is that we’ve captured an audience with the Trek universe that may not have come to us, but generally speaking it’s the diehards. I think we should make films that appeal to people who want to see the film. I’m sick of trying to please people who don’t want to see what we do."

"I think we just make a much smaller film that’s more story-driven, more character-based, there’s less sh-t exploding, and maybe do it that way. Also shoot it on film, not digital. And then you have the fanbase. The fanbase has always been very kind to me. Obviously, there’s the trolls that lurk on the internet that hate everything, but generally I think people really liked [Star Trek]."

We’re at a place where to make a film, you make it for like $500 million. That’s half a billion dollars to make these films that you like. For it to be considered successful and everyone to be paid back, you have to make extraordinary amounts of money. The metrics of it don’t seem to make much sense to me."

[lonesomedreamer]

ALIEN LANDSCAPES of STAR TREK

[bluesngolds]

unstoppable force meets immovable object

[abiscuit]

I love Star Trek, I love how every time a federation ship goes into the romulan neutral zone there is also immediately a romulan ship. Like girl, what were YOU doing in the neutral zone?

[tossawary]

I just know in my heart of hearts that in "Star Trek" at one point, there was some moral panic somewhere on Vulcan (among the uppity sorts) because Human culture was "infecting" the local youth with their overly emotional, destructive, unproductive, frivolous, and uneducational ways.

And what was actually happening was that a bunch of Vulcan kids got really into 23rd-century "Minecraft" or something.

Small Vulcan child @ another Vulcan child: (in a tone that sounds flat to Humans but angry as hell to Vulcans) "You have compromised the optimization of my fortress. I am having an emotional urge to blow up your house... in Minecraft."

[ansonmountdaily]

Star Trek franchise wins the Peabody Institutional Award → June 9 2024

At the 84th Annual Peabody Awards, the Star Trek franchise received the Peabody Institutional Award which is given annually to recognize an organization or long-running television program that has made an indelible mark on the American broadcasting landscape.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds cast members Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn and Ethan Peck joined fellow Star Trek franchise actors and creatives on stage as executive producer Alex Kurtzman accepted the award.

Kurtzman spoke about the almost 60 year legacy of the franchise that has given hope to us all and that no matter who you are there is a place for you in the Star Trek family. He also recognized Bjo Trimble, who was in attendance, and was part of a successful "Save Star Trek" campaign in 1968, generally credited with allowing the series to run for a third season rather than being cancelled after two.

Also in attendance were Patrick Stewart, LeVar Burton, Scott Bakula, Jeri Ryan, Wilson Cruz, Doug Jones, Tawny Newsome, Sam Richardson, Akiva Goldsman, Henry Alonso Myers, Michelle Paradise, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Noga Landau, Jenny Lumet, Trevor Roth and J.J. Abrams.

Credit: StarTrek.com, speech clip

[possumtion]

Kinda cracky Animal crossing! AU

[cata613]

Someone: Why do you keep showing me clips from Star Trek TOS all the time?

Me:

[doesnotloveyou]

watching a star trek TOS episode where a starship captain has a psychosis that makes him aggressive and manipulative. he kidnaps kirk and spock, tortures his doctor, kills another mental patient, and threatens the safety of the Enterprise crew.

despite this, kirk continues to show him dignity and respect. instead of villainizing him, kirk reminds him his mental illness is not his fault and the awful things it has caused him to do are not who he truly is.

when spock finally shoots the man you think "well that's the end of that guy." but then we learn spock intentionally only stunned him, and the man is last seen getting mental health treatment. he is unaware of what has passed or who he is, and is confused to be referred to as "Captain" but he returns the respect he receives

Mental illness was treated better in a '60s scifi show than it is now.

[lady-sci-fi]

Which Starfleet First Officer would you most want/trust to generally look after the crew and act in the Captain's stead?

[kyurochurro]

and now i bring to you my concept art for my imaginary tos episode: the crew go to the beach planet (the beach episode) 🏝️

[justveeing]

This is why starfleet bans high-ranking officers from using whatever version of tik-tok the federation has.

[dearemma]

The Original Series / Strange New Worlds Star Trek

[bribinart]

something something the wireeee