Weapons in Star Trek and Montesquieu: Difference between pages

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The following weapons are used in the fictional [[Star Trek]] universe:

[[Image:Charles Montesquieu.jpg|thumb|right|Montesquieu in 1728.]]

'''Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu''' ([[January 18]], [[1689]] in Bordeaux – [[February 10]], [[1755]]), more commonly known as '''Montesquieu''', was a [[France|French]] social commentator and political thinker who lived during the [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]]. He is famous for his articulation of the theory of [[separation of powers]], taken for granted in modern discussions of [[government]] and implemented in many [[constitution]]s throughout the world. He was largely responsible for the popularization of the terms [[feudalism]] and [[Byzantine Empire]].

== Biography ==

''(Disclaimer: the remainder of this article is [[treknobabble]] in its purest form and should not be construed in any way, shape or form to reflect reality in any sense. These are fictitious descriptions of fictitious weapons using fictitious science. This is even (mostly) true for descriptions of weapons like lasers and fusion devices.)''

After having studied at the Catholic [[College of Juilly]], he married Jeanne de Latrigue, a Protestant who brought him a substantial dowry when he was 26. The next year, he inherited a fortune upon the death of his uncle, as well as the title Baron de [[Montesquieu]] and [[Président à Mortier]] in the [[Parlement]] of Bordeaux. By that time, England had declared itself a constitutional monarchy in the wake of its [[Glorious Revolution]] (1688–89), and had joined with [[Scotland]] in the [[Union of 1707]] to form the [[Kingdom of Great Britain]]. And in 1715 the long-reigning [[King Louis XIV|Sun King]], Louis XIV died and was succeeded by the weaker and more feeble Louis XV. These national transformations impacted Montesquieu greatly; he would later refer to them repeatedly in his work.

== Beam Weapons ==

=== Starship Phasers ===

Phasers are the quintessential Star Trek beam weapon, first seen in the original series. The ship-board variant is known to have existed at least ten years before the time of the original series, and we may have seen them in ''The Cage'' as the ship-board beam weapons were not called lasers there.

Soon afterwards he achieved literary success with the publication of his ''Lettres persanes'' (''[[Persian Letters]]'', 1721), a [[satire]] based on the imaginary correspondence of an [[Oriental]] visitor to [[Paris]], pointing out the absurdities of contemporary society. He next published ''Considérations sur les causes de la grandeur des Romains et de leur décadence'' (''[[Considerations on the Causes of the Grandeur and Decadence of the Romans]]'', 1734), considered by some scholars a transition from ''The Persian Letters'' to his master work. ''De l'Esprit des Lois'' (''[[The Spirit of the Laws]]'') was originally published anonymously in [[1748]] and quickly rose to a position of enormous influence. In France, it met with an unfriendly reception from both supporters and opponents of the regime. The Roman Catholic Church banned ''l'Esprit'' – along with many of Montesquieu's other works – in 1751 and included it on the papacy's notorious [[Index Librorum Prohibitorum|Index]]. But from the rest of Europe, especially Britain, it received the highest praise.

The term is commonly held to be derived from ''PHASed Energy Rectification'', but this is most likely a [[backronym]].

Montesquieu was also highly regarded in the British colonies in America as a champion of British liberty (though not of American independence). Political scientist Donald Lutz found that Montesquieu was the most frequently quoted authority on government and politics in colonial pre-revolutionary British America.<ref>"The Relative Influence of European Writers on Late Eighteenth-Century American Political Thought," ''American Political Science Review'' 78,1(March, 1984), 189-197.</ref> And following the American secession, Montesquieu remained a powerful influence on many of the [[United States|American]] Founders, most notably [[James Madison]] of [[Virginia]], the "Father of the Constitution." Montesquieu's philosophy that "government should be set up so that no man need be afraid of another" reminded Madison and others that a free and stable foundation for their new national government required the inclusion of a clearly defined and balanced separation of powers.

Ship-board phasers have been seen set to stun, just like their handheld cousins.

Besides composing additional works on society and politics, Montesquieu traveled for a number of years through [[Europe]] including [[Austria]] and [[Hungary]], spending a year in [[Italy]] and eighteen months in [[England]] before resettling in [[France]]. He was troubled by poor eyesight, and was completely blind by the time he died from a high fever in [[1755]]. He was buried in L'église [[Saint-Sulpice]] in Paris, France.

=== PhaserPolitical Smallarmsviews ===

Montesquieu's most radical work divided French society into three classes (or ''[[trias politica]]'', a term he coined): the monarchy, the aristocracy, and the commons. Montesquieu saw two types of governmental power existing: the sovereign and the administrative. The administrative powers were the [[legislative]], the [[executive (government)|executive]], and the [[judiciary]]. These should be separate from and dependent upon each other so that the influence of any one power would not be able to exceed that of the other two, either singly or in combination. This was radical because it completely eliminated the three ''Estates'' structure of the French Monarchy: the [[clergy]], the aristocracy, and the people at large represented by the [[Estates-General]], thereby erasing the last vestige of a [[feudalism|feudalistic]] structure.

Hand phasers were first seen in the episode ''Where No Man Has Gone Before'', from the original series. They have a variety of settings, and are quite versatile. They can warm rocks, stun people, cut holes in things, cause burn damage on people and even vaporise things and people outright. From ''The Wink of an Eye'' we know that phaser beams do not go at the speed of light, but significantly slower.

Likewise, there were three main forms of government, each supported by a social "principle": [[monarchy|monarchies]] (free governments headed by a hereditary figure, e.g. king, queen, emperor), which rely on the [[Honour|principle of honor]]; [[republic]]s (free governments headed by popularly elected leaders), which rely on the [[Virtue|principle of virtue]]; and [[despot|despotisms]] (enslaved governments headed by [[dictator]]s), which rely on [[fear]]. The free governments are dependent on fragile constitutional arrangements. Montesquieu devotes four chapters of ''The Spirit of the Laws'' to a discussion of England, a contemporary free government, where liberty was sustained by a balance of powers. Montesquieu worried that in France the intermediate powers (i.e., the nobility) which moderated the power of the prince were being eroded.

The basic hand phaser (Type I) is a small rectangular box that fits into the palm of the hand. In most versions seen in the various Star Trek series, these can be clipped into a pistol-like unit (the Type II) for increased power and battery life. The Type III designation is used for larger phaser rifles that do not apparently share any components with the Type I or Type II.

Like many of his generation, Montesquieu held a number of views that might today be judged controversial. While he endorsed the idea that a woman could head a government, he held that she could not be effective as the head of a family. He firmly accepted the role of a hereditary aristocracy and the value of [[primogeniture]]. His views have also been abused by modern [[Revisionism|revisionists]]; for instance, even though Montesquieu was ahead of his time as an ardent opponent of [[slavery]], he has been quoted out of context in attempts to show he supported it.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

=== Disruptors ===

Disruptors are employed by the Cardassian Empire, Romulan Star Empire, Klingon Empire, Borg, Breen and Orions in their hand armaments and military armaments as well as being mounted as cannons, arrays, emitters, turrets and banks.

One of his more exotic ideas, outlined in ''[[The Spirit of the Laws]]'' and hinted at in ''Persian Letters'', is the [meteorological] climate theory, which holds that [[climate]] may substantially influence the nature of man and his society. He goes so far as to assert that certain climates are superior to others, the temperate climate of France being ideal. His view is that people living in very warm countries are "too hot-tempered," while those in northern countries are "icy" or "stiff." The climate of middle Europe is therefore optimal. On this point, Montesquieu may well have been influenced by similar statements in ''[[Germania (book)|Germania]]'' by [[Tacitus]], one of Montesquieu's favorite authors.

They differ from phasers in usually having a different colour beam. One type of disruptor, the Varon-T Disruptor, is outlawed in the [[Federation]] because it causes a painful, lingering death; [[Commander Data]] was threatened with this in the episode where he was captured by a collector, Kivas Fajo, in the third season Next Generation episode, [The Most Toys]. Only a few were made, and those were presumably destroyed after Fajo's arrest.

==Notes==

=== Plasma Beam Cannons ===

<references/>

These are usually mounted only on vessels and use similar technology to a transporters ACB to emit a beam of highly concentrated, high powered and mildly unstable stream of electroplasma. This weapon was developed by the Romulans and was one of the best-kept secrets from Starfleet and was highly effective against Federation shields and technologies.

==Further reading==

Few other races but the Ferengi, who still employ it on their Marauders, use this weapon. The Romulans disbanded with the weapon, as it was not only dangerous to the target but the very nature of electroplasma meant that the weapon was unstable. Nor did the weapon have a modifiable power strength and could easily destroy a target or an object when all that was desired was to disable them.

{{French literature (small)}}

* Pangle, Thomas, ''Montesquieu’s Philosophy of Liberalism'' (Chicago: 1989 rpt.; 1973).

* Person, James Jr., ed. “Montesquieu” (excerpts from chap. 8) in ''Literature Criticism from 1400 to 1800'', (Gale Publishing: 1988), vol. 7, pp. 350-52.

* Shackleton, Robert. ''Montesquieu; a Critical Biography''. (Oxford: 1961).

* Schaub, Diana J. ''Erotic Liberalism: Women and Revolution in Montesquieu's'' 'Persian Letters'. (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 1995).

* Spurlin, Paul M. ''Montesquieu in America, 1760-1801'' (New York: Octagon Books, 1961).

=== PhasedList Polaronof Cannonsworks ===

* ''Les causes de l'écho'' (''The Causes of an Echo'')

These are weapons that were first encounter when contact with the Dominion was made. Polarons are Anti-Muons, the antiparticle counterpart of the muon, it is extremely powerful and has an immensely devastating effect against Federation shielding.

* ''Les glandes rénales'' (''The Renal Glands'')

* ''La cause de la pesanteur des corps'' (''The Cause of Gravity of Bodies'')

* ''La damnation éternelle des païens'' (''The Eternal Damnation of the Pagans'', 1711)

* ''Système des Idées'' (''System of Ideas'', 1716)

* ''[[Lettres persanes]]'' (''Persian Letters'', 1721)

* ''Le Temple de Gnide'' (''The Temple of Gnide'', a novel; 1724)

* ''Arsace et Isménie'' (''(The True History of) Arsace and Isménie'', a novel; 1730)

* ''Considérations sur les causes de la grandeur des Romains et de leur décadence'' (''Considerations on the Causes of the Grandeur and Decadence of the Romans'', 1734)

* ''[[De l'esprit des lois]]'' (''(On) The Spirit of the Laws'', 1748)

* ''La défense de «L'Esprit des lois»'' (''In Defence of "The Spirit of the Laws"'', 1748)

* ''Pensées suivies de Spicilège'' (''Thoughts after Spicilège'')

== See also ==

A Muon is a stellar sub-atomic that can be caused when cosmic rays strike a dense object, what results is either a neutrino, positron, muon or some other particle. These particles have an approximate lifespan of 2.2 microseconds but can be chronoton-modulated to extend their life spans. These have 207 times the mass of an electron with a similar charge. They have properties similar to that of a neutrino. Star ships require immensely compressed shields to prevent these high-speed sub-atomic particles from slipping through the shielding.

{{portalpar|Philosophy|Socrates.png}}

* [[Liberalism]]

* [[Contributions to liberal theory]]

* [[French Government]]

* [[Napoleon]]

=== LasersExternal links ===

{{wikiquote}}

[[Lasers]] were seen used as hand weapons in ''The Cage'', the first pilot episode. Since then we have not seen the protagonists using them. In Next Generation episodes, when the [[USS Enterprise]] was confronted by enemies using

{{wikisource author|Montesquieu}}

them as shipboard weapons, they remarked that it would not harm them even with

* [http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/book/search?author=Montesquieu&amode=words Free full-text works online]

combat shields off.

* [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10536a.htm Montesquieu] in The Catholic Encyclopedia.

* [http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/montesquieu/ Montesquieu] in The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

* [http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl302/philosophers/montesquieu.html Timeline of Montesquieu's Life]

<br clear=all>

== Ballistic Weaponry ==

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=== Fusion missiles ===

title= [[List of members of the Académie française#Seat 2|Seat 2]]<br>[[Académie française]] | years=1728&ndash;1755 |

These are the original weaponry carried by the first Starfleet vessels. They involve the primitive use of heavy hydrogen and a high speed particle accelerator. The heavy hydrogen is accelerated and fired into a store liquid supply of heavy hydrogen by the particle accelerator. The heavy hydrogen atoms collide at high speed and release masses of energy this is isolated and the result is that of a helium atom. The resulting energy is greater than a nuclear explosion that occurs on the sun. This weapon was eliminated when shield technology was introduced and when shield technology advanced until it could repel most forms of simple common radiation. Also called Spatial Torpedos.

before= [[Louis de Sacy]] |

after= [[Jean-Baptiste de Vivien de Châteaubrun]]

}}

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===Photonic Torpedos==

These torpedoes are the precurser to Photon torpedoes, they most likely use Anti-Matter Induced detonation to create Nuclear Fusion.

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=== Photon Torpedoes ===

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Photon Torpedoes are a missile weapon usually fitted to Federation vessels, but seen used by many races. They were first seen in the Original Series, and have not been introduced into Enterprise (yet). They are supposed to work by annihilating matter and anti-matter, thus causing a large explosion.

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They have variable yield (lower yields used for close range shots) - the yield is adjusted by changing the amount of anti-matter loaded before launch, according to the Next Generation Technical Manual. They have navigation and propulsion abilities of their own, and can thus track an enemy ship. The empty cases have been used for burials at space.

[[ar:مونتيسكيو]]

By the time of the Next Generation, torpedoes (emptied from the warhead) can go at warp speed themselves - a diplomat used one in ''The Emissary'' (TNG) for transportation, though it was a tight fit. These devices are also used as probes.

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Over the years, we've seen torpedoes with many different 'MARK's written on the side, suggesting this technology has undergone continual improvement.

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=== Quantum Torpedoes ===

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Quantum Torpedeos were first seen in the [[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]] episode, ''The Search'', fitted to the [[USS Defiant]]. They are considered to pack a harder punch than normal photon torpedoes. Fan and backstage material suggests that they are supposed to work by harnessing [[zero-point energy]] (a real life concept).

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=== Tri Cobalt-Strotium Torpedoes ===

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Tri Cobalt torpedoes were seen in the pilot for Voyager, ''The Caretaker''.

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They used to demolish the Caretaker's array. Little is known about them. Some fans have suggested that they are extremely advanced and classified munitions, another theory is that they are for demolition and would not be used in combat.

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=== Chronoton Torpedoes ===

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These are chronoton temporally phased torpedoes which shuffle backward and forward in time or even shift right outside the experienced space time continuum. This allows them to slip straight through unmodified shielding no matter how powerful. These Torpedoes are highly specific in temporal variation as not to be lost or erased from space and time. To counteract

[[zh-classical:孟德斯鳩]]

temporal weaponry you require temporal shielding where the shield projection matricies are flooded a chronoton variance flow. This blocks against temporal incursion and thus can prevent chronoton torpedoes from skipping through the shields. The only problem with that is with the temporal factor removed from the equation it leaves a fight between superior shields and heavy weapons fire. One very valuable factor of the Temporal shield is that a starship or a starbase can be temporally shielded and thus unsusceptable to timeline alterations. If for instance the asteroid that destroyed the dinosaurs was deflected or destroyed and dinosaurs continued to live the all of the timeline after that point would be erased and the only thing left of the previous time line would be that of the temporal shielded facilities and vessels.

[[ko:샤를 루이 드 세콩다 몽테스키외]]

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See also: [[Physics and Star Trek]]

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