Federation Advisors Set Course for Star Trek: The Cruise

January 26, 2024

Prepare for a stellar week with our Federation Advisors onboard Star Trek: The Cruise! Explore what awaits you on The Un-Conventional voyage, only 27 days away!

Our favorite Astrophysicist, Dr. Erin Macdonald, will be hosting an out of this world new event, This Week in the Night Sky! On February 24th onboard Star Trek: The Cruise, Dr. Erin will share what stars will be visible during the week. On February 26th, join Dr. Erin on the top deck to stargaze in real time!

Dr. Erin Macdonald and Dr. Mohamed Noor will host a number of events onboard the upcoming Star Trek: The Cruise. Topics include space, physics, biology, humanoid aliens, trivia, and of course Star Trek. Read all about these upcoming events!

The Year in Space with Dr. Erin Macdonald – In this science talk, Dr. Erin will take us through the major headlines in space news from 2024 and what it means for future discoveries and explorations!

Spacetime and Star Trek with Dr. Erin Macdonald – Warp Drives! Wormholes! Time Travel! Star Trek is filled with myriad examples of playing with the physics of gravity and spacetime. We’ll go through some of the best and worst examples and teach some science along with it!

Physics vs. Biology with Dr. Erin Macdonald and Dr. Mohamed Noor – Star Trek science advisors Dr. Erin Macdonald and Dr. Mohamed Noor share a love for Star Trek but have vastly different interests when it comes to science. Between physics and biology, these two will throw down the best examples of their field in Star Trek and point out the biggest flaws in the other. Two scientists enter! Two scientists leave (because Bat’leths aren’t allowed on the ship)!

From Vidiian Phage to Tuvix: The Real Biology behind Depictions in Star Trek: Voyager – Star Trek: Voyager aired when the first Human Genome project was in full swing, Dolly the cloned sheep was born, and stem cell research dominated the news. In this talk, Dr. Mohamed Noor introduces various basic genetic and evolutionary concepts using depictions that appeared in the series. Come hear about genetic dominance, inbreeding depression, and allopolyploids (e.g., Tuvix!) as shown, often quite well, in Star Trek: Voyager!

“Why Are There So Many Humanoid Aliens on Star Trek? An Evolutionary Biology Perspective” – Explore the possibility of humanoids or other forms of life on other planets with me. Drawing on real science, I present evidence for a common ancestor for all life on Earth and clarify misconceptions about evolutionary biology. Dr. Mohamed Noor will explain some basic evolutionary principles and use these principles to evaluate THREE hypotheses posed in various Star Trek series for why there are so many humanoids. Come see which of the hypotheses is the most feasible, and learn a lot about evolution in the process!

Office Hours with Dr. Mohamed Noor – Have another question from a talk, or are you interested in chatting about genetics, evolution, and/ or connections to Star Trek over breakfast? Feel free to drop by Dr. Noor’s “Office Hours” on sea days from 8:30am-9:30am in the Windjammer Buffet, Deck 12, at the far back!

Trivia With The Science Squad – Put on your thinking caps, because class is in session! Dr. Erin Macdonald and Dr. Mohamed Noor will challenge even the brightest minds with questions all about science!

Eugene Cordero, aka Sam Rutherford from Star Trek: Lower Decks, will be joining Star Trek: The Cruise VII! Eugene can’t wait to meet everyone onboard the Mariner of the Seas!