47 réponses à ce sujet

[Shahnameh3]

Okay, now I know certain things in Mass Effect require suspension of disbelief (it's going for a kind of serious B-scifi thing after all), but there's one thing I'm amazed they didn't think to put in.

Okay, now, sex happens, as the game acknowledges. And it happens between species. Normally, that would be that. But in the Mass Effect universe, the Asari can reproduce across species, which means there IS a way for two species to reproduce with each other. Now, there must certainly be at least some non-Asari trans-species relationships in the universe, and enough of these people must have money. And what's the one technology they'd all be willing to spend their fortunes on? Trans-species reproduction! And clearly it's not impossible, because the Asari do it! The trick is just finding a way to apply Asari reproduction to non-Asari.

I've though of two ways it could be done. The most realistic way seems to me to use the Asari as some kind of surrogate, esentially implanting an Asari egg with the genes of one of the parents in an Asari host (whatever species you want the kid to be, it would have to be that parent's DNA), and then the Asari has sex with the other parent. After a short period of time the embryo is removed (the Asari's immune system would likely attack the embryo) and grown externally.

The other way is to completely computerize it. The Asari's biology does something to get traits from the other parent into their kid. The problem with trans-species reproduction, even with compatible organs, is that they're not made to genetically go together: the kid wouldn't even grow, or at best be sterile (like ligers). The Asari have some kind of regular way of chosing those traits that wouldn't disrupt the viability of the child. If some kind of computer algorithm can be made to immitate this, it can be used to select genes from one parent, and combine them with another to make an egg from both parents (still primarily one species, since this is based on Asari biology).

I'm bringing this up because I know that if there was a biological block to humans of difference races having kids, people would be on that right now and working like lightning. Mass Effect 2 showed that at least the Quarians were getting around, so it seems like some company would be seeing dollar signs there. Also, the advantage is that gentically deficiant species like the Krogans can strengthen their genom with genes from outside species.

( Also, as a Tali fan, I have another agenda, but that's not relevant  )

[Inverness Moon]

http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Asari



This reproductive process can lead to some confusion among non-asari, who might expect offspring with "mixed" genes. However, the offspring is always 100% asari, as it does not actually take DNA from the partner, simply use it as a "map" to randomize the genes of the offspring.

[Shahnameh3]

Yes, but in conversations they mention how they seem to have personality traits from whatever parent was the non-Asari. Even then, there's some kind of reproduction going on. I don't know if people think about the fact that it's their genes in their kids, they think of them more as a piece of themselves. So, even in that case, it still seems like a product someone in the Mass Effect universe should be peddling.

[Apophis2412]

The problem with different species trying to mate is that they don't have the same number of Chromosomes.
Perhaps genetic engineering could help solve this problem.

I think the simplest way to do to this is having two members of species A conceive a child.

This embryo would than be implanted or genetically modified with DNA from species B until a new hybrid comes into existence.

[Jalem001]

Asari reproduction does not require sex. Its not reproduction in the way we think of it.

[Shahnameh3]

I know. What I'm saying is, their whole "neural linking" thing is the closest to true genetic trans-species reproduction there is. To do true genetic reproduction you'd have to spend years basically genetically engineering a new, hybrid species. The Asari have a way to take personal traits from the mate and integrate them into the embryo. The embryo is still genetically Asari, but it has neurologically (and genetically: they mention, like was said, that it randomizes/alters the DNA of the child to not be identical to the mother) gained traits from the father. If the Asari can do it, then theoretically there should be a way to simulate the process with non-Asari species, to create a child of one species, but with traits from the other. They krogan would kill for something like that.

[Shahnameh3]

Shepard could get Cerberus to do it

[Sn0wst0rm]

Play the game(s); read the codex(es). There have been more than a couple threads about this topic. The biology of Mass Effect is relatively flushed out. Genetic engineering is unlikely at best, since it is illegal to mix DNA of sapient races. The closest thing to a "hybrid offspring" in the ME Universe is the Asari doing their "brain sex" thing, and it has been said explicitly that the "father" does not pass on DNA. The whole personality carrying over from other species thing could just as easily be environmental.

Modifié par Sn0wst0rm, 23 février 2010 - 06:48 .

[Shahnameh3]

But that brings up an even bigger issue: asari reproduction would make even LESS sense. Why even bother having sex? If it's just to randomize DNA, they can do it themselves. There are asexual species on earth. The reason for reproduction with a partner is to increase genetic variation. The partner's neurology at the very least would have to have SOME effect on what happens with the embryo, or there would be literally no reason for the asari to even have developed such a system of reproduction. They might as well reproduce with a wall for all the partner would matter in that case.

[Crazy_Cat_Lady]

Stop trying to make a baby with Tali you pervert!

[Shahnameh3]

Lol. Hey, Garrus was willing to go with female Shepard, and he didn't even find her attractive. Tali is way more human than him!

Also, the point is that if it can be done, someone in the ME universe is trying to find a way, because there are plenty of cross-species perverts in the game (like that Turian in the bar hitting on that Quarian). It's just a fact of ME life, and something that people would pay a lot of credits for.

Modifié par Shahnameh3, 23 février 2010 - 07:24 .

[ImperialOperative]

[Crazy_Cat_Lady]

ImperialOperative wrote...

This.

[Shahnameh3]

That is pretty hilarious.

[Shahnameh3]

Still doesn't negate the point I made though: if there's a way, it should be expected that someone in the ME universe is trying to find it. If there's no way - if Asari reproduction can't be used - then the Asari don't make any sense, anyway. Either the Asari are doing SOMETHING with their mate, and non-asari can cross-reproduce based on that, or the asari don't make sense.

[Creature 1]

Apophis2412 wrote...

The problem with different species trying to mate is that they don't have the same number of Chromosomes.
Perhaps genetic engineering could help solve this problem.

I think the simplest way to do to this is having two members of species A conceive a child.

This embryo would than be implanted or genetically modified with DNA from species B until a new hybrid comes into existence.

The real problem with two species originating on completely different planets is that they shouldn't have the same genetic makeup period.  We have DNA most likely due to a frozen accident, an independently evolved life form should have some other chemical as the basis for its genome. 

[Creature 1]

Shahnameh3 wrote...

Still doesn't negate the point I made though: if there's a way, it should be expected that someone in the ME universe is trying to find it. If there's no way - if Asari reproduction can't be used - then the Asari don't make any sense, anyway. Either the Asari are doing SOMETHING with their mate, and non-asari can cross-reproduce based on that, or the asari don't make sense.

You win! 

[flem1]

ImperialOperative wrote...

Yup.  More desperate Talimancer fanwanking.  Ugh.

[Shahnameh3]

I know realistically the asari reproduction isn't possible, but if their "sex" has no real effect on the offspring, then they don't even make sense by ME standards.

[Shahnameh3]

Or Thane fanwank. I don't want to leave anyone out here



Everyone's still ignoring my point though. The fact that there are people who are even willing to romance GARRUS proves that at least human nature can be strange. Strange enough that people would find a way to achieve trans-species if they could, "could" being operative here. That's why I was talking about the asari. (And it's not like we're talking about horses here. They're all sentient humanoids.)



And w/e, I wasn't thinking of Tali specifically at the time. It just seemed like something really obvious.

[ImperialOperative]

All I was sayin' is that the parts don't match (on pretty much every level).



Asari can do it because they "meld" and use the force to be sorcerers.

[Nostradamoose]

Don't wanna burst your bubble, does not work. Won't happen, can't happen.





And on the mere chance that the other species have similar chromosomes, the same ammount and similar proteins, what you would get is a mule, something that can't reproduce.

And trust me, that mere chance is about 1 in a 1000 billions.

[Lord Coake]

Trans-Species Reproduction

You FAIL Biology forever!

[Shahnameh3]

Like I said before, I know it's not possible in the REAL world, and I know about incompatible chromosome count and redundant genes destroying viability, but we're talking about the Mass Effect universe here, where 90% of intelligent life just happens to be humanoid, and there are big evil space monsters. What, you think I think the asari are real? I just posted this because I thought the devs hadn't thought that hard about the implications of asari reproduction, and that something like asari-based reproduction between species should exist in ME.

And there are species on Earth that are considered different species, but can still produce viable offspring - wolves and coyotes, etc. So no, I dont fail biology.

Modifié par Shahnameh3, 23 février 2010 - 08:01 .

[Lord Coake]

Canines, no matter the breed, are all of the same genus. The term Species is being misued in discussions like this.



Quarians, Krogan, Asari and all the others aren't even of the same Phylum as Humans. No common ancestry at all.



Now, I'm sure some insane genius of a geneticist could mix DNA of humans and another species. However, in the Mass Effect universe, this is highly illegal. The making or entirely new sentient life is a big damn no-no, which is exactly what a scientist would be doing in this case.



As much as fans want Shepard to knock Tali up, it ain't happening.