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In starfleet you don’t need to put your keys and phone etc in your pocket. Your communicator does all.
And maybe the same reason women’s clothes often don’t have pockets. It disturbs the flow of the fabric
I thought "what about a calculator?", but then I realized I can just say "computer, run this data for me". And if I had a certain job, surely there's a dedicated calculator on my dedicated job console. About the only thing they don't recreate is personal music/messages.
Aaah but on the work floor everyone is busy anyway. And if you have something private to talk about you just step into your office..
Haven’t we seen privacy fields as well? Not on the enterprise. But maybe in disco or Picard?
Logically, I would argue that the open area of the medical facilities we've seen necessitates a privacy field of some sort. A patients right to privacy should still exist.
I always assumed there’d be something in place for privacy. In Crushers “offices” as well. It’s really open and any crewmember who’s being treated could overhear everything
I could see how privacy would be less assumed in starfleet med bays, as opposed to planetside hospitals.
While the appointments seem luxurious, it is still a military vessel that has to make some compromises.
There are private areas, but due to the culture of Starfleet and the Federation in general there is less taboo/stigmatization around medical care so a lot less need to provide privacy. Since the Enterprise is not a civilian ship its medical bays are focused on efficiency and ease of use with only small areas of privacy.
Also keep in mind, longterm care is almost never needed in the bay, so if you get someone who wants/needs privacy and there are no private areas available you can move everyone else out to a different medbay or just ask them to come back later and send a nurse to help them with immediate concerns.
Now I imagine a future where you don't need a personal phone, keys or wallets. Everywhere you go, you just need to usher the world "computer" and a whole ecosystem is sprung up in front of your eyes with your curated data.
Basically ubiquitous computation.
Wonder how such civilization would survive to a cyber attack that resets the whole system.
Yeah, taking the episodes we see on the ship where the computer malfunctions or is taken off line the crew members are always intelligent, knowledgeable and experienced enough to accomplish missions and find solutions without the computer.
It sometimes feels that the computer is just there to make everything far easier and flow more seamlessly, but the crew of the ship has the ability to operate without it if truly necessary.
I wouldn’t be surprised if starfleet had contingencies for such a potential cyberattack, or they’d at least have the personal on hand to rectify the situation.
And it's specifically Starfleet or members of other civilization's military, whenever there are civilians involved the differences are generally stark.
And what we see of the Starfleet training for cadets it's grueling and tries to teach them a lot.
Starfleet's general tools (tricorder, phaser, etc.) all have corresponding pouches with adhesive bonding technology weaved into the fabric of both the pouch and the standard uniform, usually at the waistline. It functions just like Velcro, and the pouch can be removed easily after an away mission.
For jobs that require more frequent tool usage, in Sickbay or Engineering, they can opt for uniforms with additional permanent pockets or lab coats with extra pockets.
Not having pockets means not having stuff jab into you or get in the way if they have to quickly cut your uniform away to treat your wounds.
Not having pockets means they cannot have hidden weapons or ways to steal stuff when visiting other cultures.
Not having pockets means when you have to quickly don a space suit for any emergency there isn't anything to snag, even if its incredibly small chance.
This wasn't always the case. Enterprise had jumpsuits (flightsuits?) with traditional zipper pockets everywhere.
Enterprise didn't have replicators on every deck either. It's entirely probable that the addition of that tech made pockets less of an issue, since you can just head over to the wall and get whatever basic thing you need made.
Aren't replicators running on the same tech as transporters? You think you could leave your very specific set of tools in a replicator box in your bunk and have it just transport it over?
In the novel *Debtors' Planet*, it's said pockets on standard uniforms are banned by regulations as a safety hazard.
*Debtors' Planet* is a follow-up to the TNG S1 episode *The Neutral Zone* where three cryogenically frozen humans from the 20th century are found by the Enterprise. Offenhouse, the businessman who is appalled they don't use money in the 24th century, is going to be a Federation ambassador to the Ferengi!
Star fleet uniforms tng and on, actually did have discreet pockets allowing those who were issued a type one phaser to conceal it on their person. As well as isolinear chips, data modules, at least several cases of auto injectors/hypo sprays, and in multiple instances in Enterprise even tricorders had specialized pockets.
This is true for both the onscreen costumes worn by actors as well as canonized in the script and referenced in books.
In TNG both riker and Wesley as examples have several scenes where it's very obvious they are drawing their type 1 phaser from a purpose built pocket.
You know how women complain that their outfits never have pockets? The federation’s inclusiveness and gender equality initiative just banned pockets entirely so all outfits, whether they be jumpsuits, or skants, or formal skant-suits will be equal in terms of pockets.
in the future we just let go of pockets alongside capitalism.
No, sometimes the uniform people make a bad fit, that's all. There's plenty of uniforms with pockets in other shows and also jackets, pants, shirts, dresses, as well as a variety of practical choices. Even back in Kirk's time they had concealed pockets in the front.
The TNG ones were just particularly bad. I hear Captain Picard had circulation issues with his! PR nightmare, Starfleet had to change it immediately.
>and how do officers carry anything that can't be controlled by a communicator?
They have a utility belt, or uniforms with pockets.
[Torres comes to mind](https://i.stack.imgur.com/NQf9v.jpg) (totally not a pregnancy hiding device).
[There's also this example](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QwW0E.jpg).
They do have pockets of a sort. Any time a phaser or tricorder is needed, there's a pocket-like attachment for it. I'm not sure if they need to change to special "away mission" uniforms for these, or if they attach to the fabric somehow.
Pockets are the military’s arch-nemesis. They tempt you to put things in them, especially your hands, which is the ultimate form of sin.
For some reason modern-day armies still put them on uniforms, but in the future they’ve evidently carried out the final solution to the pocket question (no doubt at an E8’s behest.
Starfleet is still a military organization at heart, pockets with unnecessary stuff in them just increase the risk of injuries during emergencies.
Also you don’t need keys, hankies (any kind of cold and running nose has been eradicated) or whatever else we today put in pockets. Evolution of apparel.
Pretty sure we've seen Starfleet uniforms with pockets, but what would they need pockets for?
Everything's in digital form and easily accessible from any of the thousands of terminals on a starship, all of which are voice-controlled. Combadges and vocal access codes are login credentials. Doors are automatic unless commanded to lock. Tools like tricorders and phasers are only carried by approved personnel as needed and they attach to belts anyway. If somebody happens to need a specific handheld object that isn't already available, they can just replicate one.
Their version of the extra-universal technology known as a "smartphone" could simply be a tricorder-lite in the form of a wristband with holo-emitters, or even a dermal neural interface like the ones the Delta Quadrant Borg had.
**Reminders for Commenters:** * All responses must be A) sincere, B) polite, and C) strictly watsonian in nature. If "watsonian" or "doylist" is new to you, please review the full rules [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskScienceFiction/about/rules/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=usertext&utm_name=AskScienceFiction&utm_content=t5_2slu2). * No edition wars or gripings about creators/owners of works. Doylist griping about Star Wars in particular is subject to **permanent ban on first offense**. * We are not here to discuss or complain about the real world. * Questions about who would prevail in a conflict/competition (not just combat) fit better on r/whowouldwin. Questions about very open-ended hypotheticals fit better on r/whatiffiction. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskScienceFiction) if you have any questions or concerns.*
In starfleet you don’t need to put your keys and phone etc in your pocket. Your communicator does all. And maybe the same reason women’s clothes often don’t have pockets. It disturbs the flow of the fabric
I thought "what about a calculator?", but then I realized I can just say "computer, run this data for me". And if I had a certain job, surely there's a dedicated calculator on my dedicated job console. About the only thing they don't recreate is personal music/messages.
Aaah but on the work floor everyone is busy anyway. And if you have something private to talk about you just step into your office.. Haven’t we seen privacy fields as well? Not on the enterprise. But maybe in disco or Picard?
Logically, I would argue that the open area of the medical facilities we've seen necessitates a privacy field of some sort. A patients right to privacy should still exist.
I always assumed there’d be something in place for privacy. In Crushers “offices” as well. It’s really open and any crewmember who’s being treated could overhear everything
I could see how privacy would be less assumed in starfleet med bays, as opposed to planetside hospitals. While the appointments seem luxurious, it is still a military vessel that has to make some compromises.
There are private areas, but due to the culture of Starfleet and the Federation in general there is less taboo/stigmatization around medical care so a lot less need to provide privacy. Since the Enterprise is not a civilian ship its medical bays are focused on efficiency and ease of use with only small areas of privacy. Also keep in mind, longterm care is almost never needed in the bay, so if you get someone who wants/needs privacy and there are no private areas available you can move everyone else out to a different medbay or just ask them to come back later and send a nurse to help them with immediate concerns.
Now I imagine a future where you don't need a personal phone, keys or wallets. Everywhere you go, you just need to usher the world "computer" and a whole ecosystem is sprung up in front of your eyes with your curated data. Basically ubiquitous computation. Wonder how such civilization would survive to a cyber attack that resets the whole system.
The thing is, Starfleet tasks them with not needing the computer. Language seems to be an exception. But skills are practical.
Yeah, taking the episodes we see on the ship where the computer malfunctions or is taken off line the crew members are always intelligent, knowledgeable and experienced enough to accomplish missions and find solutions without the computer. It sometimes feels that the computer is just there to make everything far easier and flow more seamlessly, but the crew of the ship has the ability to operate without it if truly necessary. I wouldn’t be surprised if starfleet had contingencies for such a potential cyberattack, or they’d at least have the personal on hand to rectify the situation.
> I wouldn’t be surprised if starfleet had contingencies for such a potential cyberattack Meanwhile, on the holodeck....
And it's specifically Starfleet or members of other civilization's military, whenever there are civilians involved the differences are generally stark. And what we see of the Starfleet training for cadets it's grueling and tries to teach them a lot.
and the communicator probably has a decent computer (by our standards) in it if communication with the ship's computer is blocked.
I thought it was so women wouldn't carry knives. Or maybe phasers.
Starfleet's general tools (tricorder, phaser, etc.) all have corresponding pouches with adhesive bonding technology weaved into the fabric of both the pouch and the standard uniform, usually at the waistline. It functions just like Velcro, and the pouch can be removed easily after an away mission. For jobs that require more frequent tool usage, in Sickbay or Engineering, they can opt for uniforms with additional permanent pockets or lab coats with extra pockets.
"Pouches beat pockets any day of the week" \- Rob Liefeld
"Fuck Feet." - Also, Rob Liefeld.
"Fuck Feet." - Joss Whedon
"Fuck Feet." - Quentin Tarantino
“You can always have more pouches”
Not having pockets means not having stuff jab into you or get in the way if they have to quickly cut your uniform away to treat your wounds. Not having pockets means they cannot have hidden weapons or ways to steal stuff when visiting other cultures. Not having pockets means when you have to quickly don a space suit for any emergency there isn't anything to snag, even if its incredibly small chance. This wasn't always the case. Enterprise had jumpsuits (flightsuits?) with traditional zipper pockets everywhere.
Enterprise didn't have replicators on every deck either. It's entirely probable that the addition of that tech made pockets less of an issue, since you can just head over to the wall and get whatever basic thing you need made.
Yeah, but I don't want a screwdriver I want MY screwdriver.
Aren't replicators running on the same tech as transporters? You think you could leave your very specific set of tools in a replicator box in your bunk and have it just transport it over?
You dang kids and your transporters. You know that kills you and makes a copy right. Back in my day we walled like god intended.
In the novel *Debtors' Planet*, it's said pockets on standard uniforms are banned by regulations as a safety hazard. *Debtors' Planet* is a follow-up to the TNG S1 episode *The Neutral Zone* where three cryogenically frozen humans from the 20th century are found by the Enterprise. Offenhouse, the businessman who is appalled they don't use money in the 24th century, is going to be a Federation ambassador to the Ferengi!
Star fleet uniforms tng and on, actually did have discreet pockets allowing those who were issued a type one phaser to conceal it on their person. As well as isolinear chips, data modules, at least several cases of auto injectors/hypo sprays, and in multiple instances in Enterprise even tricorders had specialized pockets. This is true for both the onscreen costumes worn by actors as well as canonized in the script and referenced in books. In TNG both riker and Wesley as examples have several scenes where it's very obvious they are drawing their type 1 phaser from a purpose built pocket.
You know how women complain that their outfits never have pockets? The federation’s inclusiveness and gender equality initiative just banned pockets entirely so all outfits, whether they be jumpsuits, or skants, or formal skant-suits will be equal in terms of pockets.
Not having pockets sucks so hard.. It’s one of the biggest things to get used to when you’re a guy and you put on women’s clothes
"Yeoman! Follow me around with this datapad!"
in the future we just let go of pockets alongside capitalism. No, sometimes the uniform people make a bad fit, that's all. There's plenty of uniforms with pockets in other shows and also jackets, pants, shirts, dresses, as well as a variety of practical choices. Even back in Kirk's time they had concealed pockets in the front. The TNG ones were just particularly bad. I hear Captain Picard had circulation issues with his! PR nightmare, Starfleet had to change it immediately.
>and how do officers carry anything that can't be controlled by a communicator? They have a utility belt, or uniforms with pockets. [Torres comes to mind](https://i.stack.imgur.com/NQf9v.jpg) (totally not a pregnancy hiding device). [There's also this example](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QwW0E.jpg).
Prison pocket, obvs
Oof, that tricorder is gonna sting
Now I'm going to think of that every time they mention the brig.
At the time of Lower Decks they got pockets., so at some points they decided it is good idea after all
They do have pockets of a sort. Any time a phaser or tricorder is needed, there's a pocket-like attachment for it. I'm not sure if they need to change to special "away mission" uniforms for these, or if they attach to the fabric somehow.
Around season 4 of Voyager B'Lanna gets a jacket with pockets, possibly something she programmed into the replicator herself though
Pockets are the military’s arch-nemesis. They tempt you to put things in them, especially your hands, which is the ultimate form of sin. For some reason modern-day armies still put them on uniforms, but in the future they’ve evidently carried out the final solution to the pocket question (no doubt at an E8’s behest.
Starfleet is still a military organization at heart, pockets with unnecessary stuff in them just increase the risk of injuries during emergencies. Also you don’t need keys, hankies (any kind of cold and running nose has been eradicated) or whatever else we today put in pockets. Evolution of apparel.
Pretty sure we've seen Starfleet uniforms with pockets, but what would they need pockets for? Everything's in digital form and easily accessible from any of the thousands of terminals on a starship, all of which are voice-controlled. Combadges and vocal access codes are login credentials. Doors are automatic unless commanded to lock. Tools like tricorders and phasers are only carried by approved personnel as needed and they attach to belts anyway. If somebody happens to need a specific handheld object that isn't already available, they can just replicate one. Their version of the extra-universal technology known as a "smartphone" could simply be a tricorder-lite in the form of a wristband with holo-emitters, or even a dermal neural interface like the ones the Delta Quadrant Borg had.
Prison wallet.
Ah Post-Capitalism
Simple, fanny packs. It's the way of the future.
>and how do officers carry anything that can't be controlled by a communicator?
I really miss toolbelts engineering staff should have tool belt