[Puzzle] Facility J - "This Side of Paradise"

[TOSG]

I think that you guys definitely might be on to something. XSCID is indeed a sex-linked genetic disease (that's what the X stands for). This does seem to tie in with some plot points hinted at in TravelerJ's earlier videos, especially History Lessons (XX/XY).

Good thinking, team!

[janesalteredstates]

While the disease may genetically transmitted by female carriers, XSCID is a distinctly MALE disease. Imagine what would happen to the global male population if, in fact, this gene could be further developed and enhanced in the female population.

To tie all of this back to LG15 and OpAphid, you have to do a little research here on the forum. I'll give you a head start, do a search for "Y-The Last Man" - it's a comic series that's has a distinct influence on the Tachyon story. It also happens that in that series the entire male population of the world is wiped out, with the exception of 1 man. Hence, the reference to the "Y" chromosome.

In addition, it's been speculated that the Order or OpAphid, if you prefer, is a distinctly female oriented organization.

There are more ties and if you put all of this together and you might draw the conclusion that the Order is intent on the elimination of all males of the human species.

O.M.G.
You are a genius. And this storyline rules. I hope you are right and I hope the creators catch on!

I actually started a novel a bit back where the world is run by women due to the after effects of a nuclear war... anyway PLEASE SOMEONE INCORPORATE THIS STAT! ahem.

.... unless it's a "women are evil" sort of thing. Then I'm gone.

But yes, I see all the connections and think you have a brilliant theory.

Oh wait (edit time), I want to bring this back around to connect to my ancient "religion/cult" theory. Akhematen was revolutionary (and hated) for many reason, one being his depiction of himself with a feminine physique. He seemed to have a real fascination with the beauty and power of the feminine which was absolutely un-Egyptian. After his death artwork went right back to the old ways. Pharaohs again depicted themselves as masculine and women as subservient.
Oh the Cult of Aten! You wacky bunch of Illuminati-type New World Order people. Will you ever learn?

[TOSG]

Approximately half of all cases of severe combined immunodeficiency are seen in males.

Wouldn't that mean that approximately half of all cases of sever combined immunodeficiency are seen in females?

Haha, it would seem so. BUT, that type of SCID is probably not X-linked (XSCID). In general, it's fairly uncommon (albeit not impossible) for females to develop X-linked genetic disorders. Although, in this case, it's quite unlikely, given that a male carrier of the defective X-chromosome is unlikely to survive and reproduce.

[janesalteredstates]

I believe they do not develop the symptoms, they simply carry the gene?

[Luminous]

Great post Trainer! Thanks. It answered the question I had about the distribution of the disease between male and female populations.

you might draw the conclusion that the Order is intent on the elimination of all males of the human species.

Girls rule boys drool!

[TOSG]

I believe they do not develop the symptoms, they simply carry the gene?

That's correct. Because women have two X chromosomes and men have only one, if a woman has one X-chromosome with the defect and one that's normal, she'll be fine. This is called "haplosufficiency" - the protein encoded by the gene from the normal chromosome is sufficient to compensate for the protein encoded by the defective chromosome. This is not true for all genetic defects, but is true for this particular one.
Since men only have one X-chromosome, if that chromosome is defective then they're shit outta luck.

[trainer101]

While the disease may genetically transmitted by female carriers, XSCID is a distinctly MALE disease. Imagine what would happen to the global male population if, in fact, this gene could be further developed and enhanced in the female population.

To tie all of this back to LG15 and OpAphid, you have to do a little research here on the forum. I'll give you a head start, do a search for "Y-The Last Man" - it's a comic series that's has a distinct influence on the Tachyon story. It also happens that in that series the entire male population of the world is wiped out, with the exception of 1 man. Hence, the reference to the "Y" chromosome.

In addition, it's been speculated that the Order or OpAphid, if you prefer, is a distinctly female oriented organization.

There are more ties and if you put all of this together and you might draw the conclusion that the Order is intent on the elimination of all males of the human species.

O.M.G.
You are a genius. And this storyline rules. I hope you are right and I hope the creators catch on!

I actually started a novel a bit back where the world is run by women due to the after effects of a nuclear war... anyway PLEASE SOMEONE INCORPORATE THIS STAT! ahem.

.... unless it's a "women are evil" sort of thing. Then I'm gone.

But yes, I see all the connections and think you have a brilliant theory.

I'm blushing.
Since we're conjecturing - imagine this...
Bree's dad somehow received information about what he was really working on and wanted to defect from the Order. (He's a male, after all)
Perhaps the information Jonas has relates to the Order's true philosophies - this would explain the symbols.

As far as recruiting Bree's dad - hypothetically speaking, if you wanted to recruit someone from inside the Order over to your side, you'd have to have some pretty compelling evidence. I think that's what the Anti-Order symbol refers to.
Theta Eta (Death/Destruction) (Textual Criticism) Similar to the Skull and Crossbones this represents destruction of the Order via exposure (as related to TauPhi and LamdaSigma). As a group it would refer to an "Anti-Order".

I interpret the other symbols this way:
Tau Phi (Life) (Philosophy) Represents the Philosophy of the Order - not necessarily a religious philosophy per se, but more a compound philosophy drawn from varying influences.

Lambda Sigma (Head or Brain) (RNA Factor) Representing either a higher faction/genetic factor or genetic mutation.

Whew! Am I making any sense?

[Luminous]

Approximately half of all cases of severe combined immunodeficiency are seen in males.

Wouldn't that mean that approximately half of all cases of sever combined immunodeficiency are seen in females?

Haha, it would seem so. BUT, that type of SCID is probably not X-linked (XSCID). In general, it's fairly uncommon (albeit not impossible) for females to develop X-linked genetic disorders. Although, in this case, it's quite unlikely, given that a male carrier of the defective X-chromosome is unlikely to survive and reproduce.

Thanks for filling in the blanks on this.

I believe they do not develop the symptoms, they simply carry the gene?

It all becomes clear or 'clearer'. anyway

[janesalteredstates]

Whew! Am I making any sense?

Absolutely.
What I love is the possibility that the Order is very old, and has only fairly recently stumbled upon the technology that can make their dreams come true

Maybe once that happened even more in-fighting occurred. Or perhaps a more militant branch came into being.

I love to speculate haha

[Luminous]

.... unless it's a "women are evil" sort of thing. Then I'm gone.

For whoever's listening, I've gotta say I agree with this one. One of the things that has attracted me to the LG15 universe, or Breeniverse if you will, is the equitable treatment of the male and female characters. They both have their strengths and weaknesses, and the women, particularly, show strength without being overtly sexual or miltant. The women actually have BRAINS , and even the men go emo. Love it

[Loki]

I remember learning about X-linked traits back in high school biology... we were learning about Punett Squares at the time. *frowns* Sometimes I wish I had a photographic memory, it would totally help when I'm trying to remember something like this...

X x

X XX Xx


Y XY xY


Where X is a normal chromosome and x is the affected one... 50% chance of an unaffected child being born, 25% chance of a female carrying the recessive, and 25% chance of a male with the disease... XSCID, was it?

Of course, that logic only holds if the trait really IS a recessive. If it's dominant, well, that's a whole nother story...

P.S. Sorry if this doesn't make much sense, it was just sort of train-of-thought after reading through most of the posts around here. *is a bored migrant from the OpAphid ARG* I don't know much about DNA sequencing, but *shrugs*... maybe this is relevant, or maybe it's not... if not, feel free to ignore/delete it.

[janesalteredstates]

haha CiW attracted me. But now I can't escape. Kind of like Cassie...

OK I am sorry. This is waaaaaaay off topic.

I would be so happy if a lot of this could be incorporated into the "canon" storyline. Sooner or later something actually might happen over there in breeland... maybe. And if it does, it could totally kill all outsider theories.

[TOSG]

Loki: Yep, you're on the right track. Your analysis of probabilities is totally correct. The trait is indeed "recessive," although that terminology is often not used for describing sex-linked traits.

Good to have you aboard!

[Luminous]

Hmmmm. Jonas just cut his hand. I wonder if he's prone to infection. Maybe a little latent immunodeficiency problem?

Edit: Yes, Welcome Loki! Thanks for the input.

[trainer101]

Loki,

Thanks for jumping in here. I think that what we are seeing in the TravelerJ/WalterD storyline are the efforts of the Order/OpAphid to pursue a track that would make the defective X (x) chromosome the dominant trait.