'Sleeper'
A topic for the discussion of Farscape, Smallville, and Due South. Beware possible invasions of Stargate, Highlander, or pretty much any other "genre" show that captures our fancy. Expect Adult Content and discussion of the Big Gay Sex.
Whitefont all unaired in the U.S. ep discussion, identifying it as such, and including the show and ep title in blackfont.
Blackfont is allowed after the show has aired on the east coast.
This is NOT a general TV discussion thread.
I mean, they have barely enough housing, food and clothing for the tiny population they've got.
Well, but they kill off people with magnificent regularity. The real question is, a couple generations along, how are they going to control against inbreeding?
What's a generally accepted minimum number of breeders (of either gender) to repopulate without risking great genetic damage to the resulting population?
I don't have any idea for sure, but the examples I've heard where problematic diversity issues arose for populations have implied much smaller numbers than 49,000 and change.
Yes, someone on my flist did some calculations and said the BSG population is nowhere near small enough yet to worry about long-term survival and genetic diversity. Baltar is either wrong or lying, either of which could be interesting. My fear is that the writers actually think he's right.
In "The Millenium Ark", Soulé et al. conclude that 6 is the absolute minimum number of founders, and that with fewer, the group will lose more than 10% of its genetic diversity as soon as it reproduces. Twenty is a much safer number. Furthermore, the population size should be increased to 200-300 as quickly as possible to prevent significant loss of diversity. The necessity for increasing the population size is to prevent random loss of alleles that may be important.
BSG population is nowhere near small enough yet to worry
Well, but the population is all over the place larded into closets and cubbyholes, right? Unless they have the galaxy's coolest roommate lottery every couple of months, how are all the members of the population going to meet and mix their genes?
(That would be hilarious! Random grannies on the prison ship; that ship full of gamblers invaded by a Beadazzling housewife!)
how are all the members of the population going to meet and mix their genes
Well, there are more than 6 per ship. More than 300 too, unless I'm sizing the fleet way wrong.
They have got to have a BSG version of match.com or even an old-fashioned matchmaker, possibly working aboard Cloud 9.
They have got to have a BSG version of match.com or even an old-fashioned matchmaker, possibly working aboard Cloud 9.
Interstellar Yenta!!
Damn, now I'm trying to filk "Matchmaker," with Laura/Bill for Hodel/62-year-old man, and Ellen/Tigh for Chava/drunk, but since the drunk's also "tall, that is from side to side," that won't work.