+++
title = "Data's Poetry"
author = ["Michał Sapka"]
date = 2023-11-16T23:00:00+01:00
categories = ["star-trek"]
draft = false
weight = 2002
primary_menu = "star-trek"
abstract = "Poems by Commander Data"
[menu]
  [menu.star-trek]
    weight = 2002
    identifier = "data-s-poetry"
    parent = "tng"
+++

{{< img-r "st-tng-data.png" >}}
The Next Generation
{{< /img-r >}}

Data, our Operations Officer aboard USS Enterprise was a Soong-type android.
He was sure that his goal in life was to learn what it means to Human; to experience the world like his cremates.
One attempt to achieve that was by writing poetry.
Below are two poems he wrote as a result.


## A Sunset Bloom {#a-sunset-bloom}

Beginning part of the poem is considered to be lost.

> [...]
>
> "Then we sat on the sand for some time and observed
>
> How the oceans that cover the world were perturbed
>
> By the tides from the orbiting moon overhead
>
> ‘How relaxing the sound of the waves is,’ you said
>
> I began to expound upon tidal effects
>
> When you asked me to stop, looking somewhat perplexed
>
> So I did not explain why the sunset turns red
>
> And we watched the occurrence in silence instead.”

(from S06E25)


## Ode to Spot {#ode-to-spot}

Spot was cat Data kept aboard the USS Enterprise.
This poem was written in his honor.

> "Felis catus is your taxonomic nomenclature,
>
> An endothermic quadruped, carnivorous by nature;
>
> Your visual, olfactory, and auditory senses
>
> Contribute to your hunting skills and natural defenses.
>
> I find myself intrigued by your subvocal oscillations,
>
> A singular development of cat communications
>
> That obviates your basic hedonistic predilection
>
> For a rhythmic stroking of your fur to demonstrate affection.
>
> A tail is quite essential for your acrobatic talents;
>
> You would not be so agile if you lacked its counterbalance.
>
> And when not being utilized to aid in locomotion,
>
> It often serves to illustrate the state of your emotion.
>
> O Spot, the complex levels of behavior you display
>
> Connote a fairly well-developed cognitive array.
>
> And though you are not sentient, Spot, and do not comprehend,
>
> I nonetheless consider you a true and valued friend."

(from S06E08)