opnet [OpNet] Research Specimens Needed

[Regina Newcastle]

First, my sincere apologies for my months of silence. My education has kept me very busy, and I have accordingly had little time for social interaction on or off the opnet. I have checked in periodically to read, but little, I felt, required my attention.

That having been said, hello to all of the new faces who I see have joined this community in my absence. I hope that the experience is proving worthwhile for you.

The reason I am posting today is because I am requesting volunteers for a scientific study on the so-called Quantum Backlash Syndrome, colloquially known as "taint". Some of you may recall that I was - and remain - a student at Oxford. It is with no small amount of bittersweet joy that I announce that I am poised to graduate in short order. But before that, as is the case, I must compose a doctoral dissertation in my field. I have chosen the new and only recently explored field of Quantum Biology, and will be the first individual to be receiving a doctorate in this field.

My intentions for this study are a greater understanding of QBS and what causes it, specifically insofar as the manifestations of QBS seem to have much in common with the quantum abilities of respective novas, in many cases. Testing will be conducted at three facilities by scheduled appointment and will consist of a battery of tests that will include a questionnaire, sleep study, blood and genetic analysis, response to various stimuli, displays of quantum abilities, and interviews. Novas with and without known aberrations are encouraged to take part in this study. All participants will be compensated with a modest parcel of currency upon request. Testing will take place at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, UK, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, US, and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, US. It is my hope to gather as large a sample group as possible. Each nova who takes part in the study will be doing a great service to their species and our furthered understanding of our fundamental biological nature.

[Wakinyan]

I would be happy to help, let me know when I should show up at the Minnesota Clinic.

[Cade]

Same here, just let me know when you need me to be there.

[Doctor Nova Madigan]

Sign me up too.

[Lemmy Chillmeister]

You know what? Why the fuck not?

Count me in.

Oh, and I don't need any cash, thanks for the offer though.

[Mr. Crimson]

This interests me greatly. In fact, I'd love to help, but there are certain facts about my powers and other manifestations that I cannot reveal due to security reasons, and only giving half the data would just skew the tests. I apologize, but offer up my extensive experience in studying the nature of QBS in different novas and the effectiveness of exercises designed to control it to an extent, if you ever wish to talk it over, or maybe compare results.

[Kultra]

I could take a couple days off the office to help on your dissertion Regina, might appear on the Los Angeles clinic, but I might be more of a bother than a help since I might be trying to snoop on your research for my own enlightment on the subject. Hope is not much of a bother.

[Ptesan-Wi]

Minneapolis has a problem, mihinga ki; it's within 500 miles of Chicago.

[Tempest]

Uh, is it just me or is anyone else wierded out by the fact that Regina refers to her volunteers and "Specimens" and not "Subjects?" in her thread title?

[Machina]

Hrm. I'll go to the Mayo Clinic, Genie.

The terms "specimen" and "subject" are more or less interchangable when referring to individuals in a scientific inquiry. Sounds like she picked the right word, though. Genie's a cold fish.

[GDP_ST]

I volunteer, Regina.

Let me know which clinic and when you would like me to show up: my schedule is fairly open and travel is not a problem.

And as the Chillmeister says: Money is not necessary. I respect your scientific detachment and lack of political affiliation, and that is why I volunteer. We all stand to learn from your study.

[Butterfly]

I can offer my services as a non-Tainted individual with some resistance to it.

My entropic powers may be of some use as well, seeing as I control mostly probability.

[Regina Newcastle]

My thanks to everyone who has reponded thus far. It is my hope that I'll find still more volunteers, as I am aiming for a sample size of five hundred. Naturally, I've also scheduled appointments with novas outside of this community, and I'm pleased to announce that within a week of my initial announcement, I've already recruited two hundred and thirteen applicants. It is my hope to have reached my threshold by the end of April and begin testing by the second week of May. Intervening time will be used to schedule appointments and accept potential late applicants, as well as prepare testing facilities at the three locations.

As to some of your individual concerns:

Originally Posted By: Mr. Crimson

I apologize, but offer up my extensive experience in studying the nature of QBS in different novas and the effectiveness of exercises designed to control it to an extent, if you ever wish to talk it over, or maybe compare results.

Thank you for the rather generous academic opportunity, Mr. Crimson. I'm afraid I'd be unable to collude for purposes of this study, but I will happily compare notes with you once the study has completed. The nature of this work is such that I must be the sole administrator, however. I will be in touch.

Originally Posted By: J. 'Polymath' Rivera

I could take a couple days off the office to help on your dissertion Regina, might appear on the Los Angeles clinic, but I might be more of a bother than a help since I might be trying to snoop on your research for my own enlightment on the subject. Hope is not much of a bother.

You're welcome to gleam what you can from the proceedings, Sr. Rivera, though we our doing our level best to conduct a double-blind study, and as such, all applicants will not have access even to their own records until the testing is complete. You are free to extrapolate from the proceedings and I would be happy to answer as many questions as practical both during and after.

Originally Posted By: Tempest

Uh, is it just me or is anyone else wierded out by the fact that Regina refers to her volunteers and "Specimens" and not "Subjects?" in her thread title?

My apologies if that designation is off-putting. I had supposed that some novas may bristle as the notion of being referred to as a "subject", and I chose the term I thought to be less odious.

Originally Posted By: Butterfly

I can offer my services as a non-Tainted individual with some resistance to it.

If you are indeed completely free of taint, you would make a wonderful example for our control group. I welcome your assistance and thank you for it.

Thanks to a generous grant from a source who wishes to maintain anonymity, I am in a position to issue a participance parcel of 50,000 USD. Those of you who opt to deny the payment may waive that.

I will begin contacting individuals shortly to work out scheduling and locations.

[Warren Verona]

Piss on this. I spent way too much time in a vat being poked by scientists. I've had all I can for one lifetime.

[Wakinyan]

Originally Posted By: Ptesan-Wi

Minneapolis has a problem, mihinga ki; it's within 500 miles of Chicago.

In three weeks this will not be an issue.

[Contessa]

Originally Posted By: Procyon

I volunteer, Regina.

Can you do that? I mean, she is the one that's supposed to be performing the experiment right?

Have you discussed this with her? Maybe you should make sure she's okay with the idea before you volunteer her.

[Roma]

This is wonderful! I hope you do good on your doctor thing and find ways to help novas. I wish I could volunteer. I can't but I wish I could. I still have a little time before my life explodes. I want to keep that. I know its selfish. I'm sorry.

[The White Rat]

Regina.

A research experiment into Taint is admirable. I would offer to help you further your goals, but I would appreciate that local authorities not be aware of me. They tend to 'over-react'.

I too am involved in my own research on QBS. It takes a different road however, and might not be of much use to you. Your research would be quite valuable to me however, and I would love to trade my services, or those of my colleagues, as specimens.

[Regina Newcastle]

Originally Posted By: Revenant

Piss on this. I spent way too much time in a vat being poked by scientists. I've had all I can for one lifetime.

Thank you for the response, Msr. Revenant, but this is the wrong thread. Later on, when I post the "Who Doesn't Want to Be a Part of My Experiment?" thread, you sit up and take a sip of coffee, because that's your cue, okay?

[GDP_ST]

,,

Originally Posted By: Contessa

Originally Posted By: Procyon

I volunteer, Regina.

Can you do that? I mean, she is the one that's supposed to be performing the experiment right?

Have you discussed this with her? Maybe you should make sure she's okay with the idea before you volunteer her.

This made me chuckle.

Thank you.

[Contessa]

Uh, why?

You're welcome, I guess.

[Trooper]

Isn't this offer coming from the same lady who on another thread said she'd never reveal exactly what it is she can do?

Hmmmmmm.

[z-Carver]

Originally Posted By: Trooper

Isn't this offer coming from the same lady who on another thread said she'd never reveal exactly what it is she can do?

Hmmmmmm.

Which is one reason I'll never be her lab rat.

[Regina Newcastle]

Originally Posted By: Trooper

Isn't this offer coming from the same lady who on another thread said she'd never reveal exactly what it is she can do?

Hmmmmmm.

My quantum abilities are not germane to the research project, and I do not suffer from QBS insofar as I can detect. Furthermore, being a specimen in my own experiment would negate both the double-blind results and the objectivity that is required. The fruits of my eruption are largely plain to see; I'll be graduating from Oxford at 22 with three doctorates. There is little else to tell.

Originally Posted By: Carver

Which is one reason I'll never be her lab rat.

You never asked. In fact, nobody has.

Regardless, your point is entirely without merit. I somehow doubt that you request a complete life history from every physician you see. If you do, you're a loon. The reason educational institutions offer degrees is to repesent the depth of training and experience an individual has achieved, specifically to differentiate them from untrained laypeople. My academic credentials are documented publicly; what else would you care to know?

[z-Carver]

Originally Posted By: Regina Newcastle

You never asked. In fact, nobody has.

Regardless, your point is entirely without merit. I somehow doubt that you request a complete life history from every physician you see. If you do, you're a loon. The reason educational institutions offer degrees is to repesent the depth of training and experience an individual has achieved, specifically to differentiate them from untrained laypeople. My academic credentials are documented publicly; what else would you care to know?

Actually, I have a question: will your quantum powers be used in this research? If they are, then consider this. I can find the educational history of any doctor, and I can research what a piece of medical equipment or a procedure might do to me. But I have no idea what you will be doing with your experiments or what powers you may be using during them, so I'd prefer to have no part of them.

[Regina Newcastle]

Originally Posted By: Carver

Actually, I have a question: will your quantum powers be used in this research? If they are, then consider this.

That's a valid question. Aside from my own enhanced cognitive and perceptive abilities, which I would be hard-pressed to try to not employ even if I tried, no, my quantum abilities are not relevant to this study, and using them would compromise the integrity of the experiment. I will not be using them.

[z-Carver]

Originally Posted By: Regina Newcastle

That's a valid question. Aside from my own enhanced cognitive and perceptive abilities, which I would be hard-pressed to try to not employ even if I tried, no, my quantum abilities are not relevant to this study, and using them would compromise the integrity of the experiment. I will not be using them.

Thank you for the answer. I appreciate your willingness to talk.

[Slattern]

Will this data be released to baselines?

[Regina Newcastle]

Originally Posted By: Slattern

Will this data be released to baselines?

Eventually, Ms. Slattern, the data will be made available to the public in the form of a book. The study is being underwritten by an organization who has a vested interest in the subject, and one of their stipulations was that they be able to capitalise, in part, upon the buying public's desire to read this information. Even if that was not the case, however, only in rare cases are the dissertations of laureates not a matter of public scrutiny.

However, no individual novas will be indentified in the work itself unless they specifically request as such, and maintaining the anonymity of my specimens both overtly (by not listing names or other personal data) or covertly (by making my notes broad enough as to not leave sufficient clues to pin down any individual nova) is paramount. Some participants have already expressed to me a need for total anonymity, and I am doing my best to accomodate them.

Congratulations are in order on your recent birth, Mm. I hope mother and child both are happy and healthy.

[Slattern]

With the nearly unique nature of nova powers and aberrations how can you guarantee anonymity? And, why release it to baselines? It would be meaningless to them. You're talking about things that affect us, not them.

[Regina Newcastle]

Originally Posted By: Slattern

With the nearly unique nature of nova powers and aberrations how can you guarantee anonymity? And, why release it to baselines? It would be meaningless to them. You're talking about things that affect us, not them.

To be perfectly clear, I can make no such "guarantee", Mm. Slattern, only give my assurances that I will do everything in my power to maintain anonymity. I intend to do so by keeping my descriptions of participating novas' powers as basic as possible and to keep those descriptors apart from descriptions of QBS. The study that will be released to the public is not meant to be a compilation of case studies; the individual files will be treated as medical records and will not be released to the public. The published work that results from the study will be a compilation of those studies and will make statements about the general trends appearing in QBS, not about individual novas. The individual case studies are a means to the end of discovering atecedent causes of QBS, and as such, personal information is not germane to whatever findings I make and will only be included in the published product with written consent of individual subjects.

To answer your question as to why this work would be released to baselines, I would answer simply that the decision is not mine. This study is very costly, and the organization that is providing the bulk of the capital has expressed their desire to have the published results mass-marketed as popular science reading. You have my blessing if you or anyone representing your interests wishes to attempt to dissuade my backers. I can put you in contact with them upon request.

[Sam 'The Crusader' Hill]

Ah, science! The instruction manual that helps us to build the Swedish furniture of our lives! Indispensable in all of its vacuum-tubed and Tesla-coiled glory!

But those manuals are written in Swedish as well, and so it's up to the stalwart adventurers known to the laypeople as scientists to translate that arcane script into something that we can use. Does Tab A insert into Slot B? And why? Wouldn't it be better to use a peg, or a good heavy bolt? Surely those tabs are the weak points in our personal assemblies, the ones that break into splintery halves and leave the indelible mark of those flaws on the futons of our bodies and bed-tables of our souls.

Yes, these are the heady words that Doctor Newcastle hopes to discover, and through her efforts, maybe we can get those bolts!

I would be proud to volunteer my peg-assembled self for your study, brave explorer!

[Warren Verona]

Apparently Sean didn't change your passwords this week like we asked him to.

Hi Sam.

[Cisco]

Originally Posted By: Regina Newcastle

All participants will be compensated with a modest parcel of currency upon request.

How small is this modest parcel of currency?

Originally Posted By: Regina Newcastle

Testing will take place at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, UK, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, US, and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, US.

Will your group pay for travel to the locations? I am closest to the hospital in Los Angeles.

[Trooper]

Hey, Cisco, when doctors ask for volunteers you shouldn't stand up. It's only AFTER all the volunteers found out what the icky side-effects are of Dr. Mengele's treatment does that you have enough data.