Nicolas Lepage

Alright I'm in. Just tell me where and when I'll be there.

That's the dangerous thing about simming...all it takes is one academy and you're addicted. I wonder how long it'll take until they make it illegal. Anyway hello and welcome to STSF. Hope to be simming with you soon. Nick

It's difficult to decide between Janeway and Picard but I think all in all Picard makes the better Captain even though Janeway is more human in many ways.

can I please have: Red Star Night Club's Resident Surgeon if that's too long just Red Star's Resident Surgeon thanks in advance

Nick sat down on a free cot. He didn't know how long exactly he had been at the surgical bay but judging from how tired he was it must have been a while. He was still wearing surgical scrubs since he only meant to take a break of about ten minutes and get back to work after. There were so many patients in need of surgery that he wondered how long it would be until he could get a decent rest. He resisted the temptation to lie down. Smiling he thought that now he would probably not have a problem sleeping. Nick had stopped counting the surgeries he had done and he dreaded having to write all the reports. He sighed and hoped he might yet find a way to get around writing them but he knew very well that it was almost impossible. Thinking of reports he remembered the report he had promised Dr. Pavilion about the Rixian Syndrome. He cursed under his breath. When should he do this he wondered. He ran his hands over his face and got up. Walking over to the replicator he looked around the emergency ward. The general chaos of the moments right after the attack had subsided. There were still a lot of patients waiting for treatment and some were still coming in but as far as he could judge the situation was under control. "Coffee," he said as he stood in front of the replicator. Nick hoped it was strong. He needed something to keep him awake. He guessed he'd still be working for at least 12 hours before all the critical patients would have received proper treatment. Nick leaned against a console with his coffee in one hand, closing his eyes and allowing himself a brief moment without thinking about work. Pictures of his family suddenly appeared in his mind and he knew that when they heard about the attack they would be worrying. He wished he could contact them but no communication was allowed. This thought reminded him of the Admiral's announcment. Nick could not yet tell what exactly the consequences would be should the worst really happen. He was certain however that he was not eager to find out. Drinking the rest of his coffee he pushed himself off the console and walked back to the replicator. He put the cup in and turned to get back to work. On his way back to the surgical bay he talked to a nurse asking him which patient would be next. He gave him a padd with the necessary data. Nick took it and quickly went over it. Yet another patient with a lot of broken bones and internal bleeding. He washed himself thoroughly and stepped up to the patient. Picking up the exoscalpel he looked at the nurses around him and sighed. Then he made the first cut. One of many today and it wouldn't be the last.

Well I suppose that it's about as toxic as sodium nitrite which is used in the food industrie to 1. make the meat look better (it makes it look fresh) 2. prevent the growth of some bacteria. (the same bacteria by the way that produces the so called botulinum toxin= Botox, usually infection with that bacteria is considered a medical emergency and all forms of infection can be fatal... I'm still wondering if getting rid of a wrinkle or two is worth the risk...) Now here's where it gets interesting sodium nitrite is not that toxic I think BUT the formula (NaNO2) is pretty similar to that of an explosive...sodium nitrate (NaSO3). And the other problem is that when it is heated up it reacts with amino acids to so called nitrosamines which are hightly carcinogenic. Doesn't sound like humans care too much about toxic pollution either.

Potassium nitrate (KNO3)...interesting indeed. Considering that potassium nitrate is also used as a fertilizer and if you find it in moon rock why not just bring a plant, breath at it (you'd get CO2 from your breath) and voila you'll get breathable oxygen. Ok I admit this suggestion does have its weak points. Ok now I have some serious comments about what Vatric said. The thing with potassium nitrate is that it can be reduced to potassium nitrite (KNO2;which is toxic to some degree): 2 KNO3 ->2 KNO2 + O2...if you're lucky that's what would happen. Usually you should get the oxygen by heating the potassium nitrate above the melting point which is at 607°Kelvin (334°C). Ok now here's my problem...if it was that easy somebody must have thought of it before. Another problem is...how do you get moon rocks to get that hot. And the last question I have... do we know or just assume that there is potassium nitrate in moon rock?

Why wasn't I told that BEFORE I joined??? ::checks the contract to see if he can get out of it now:: Doesn't look good...

Yoda 86% Obi Wan Kenobi 47% Darth Vader 47% R2-D2 47% Padme Amidala 39% Anakin Skywalker 39% Mace Windu 33% General Grievous 31% Clone Trooper 28% Chewbacca 25% Emperor Palpatine 25% C-3PO 25% not that far from the truth ;)

Well my brother is good at the "maybe one day he'll grow up" look. So is my mother.But I don't think I will ever do them the favour. And to all the grown ups out there...you just don't know what you're missing.

Since I've been trying this people think I'm dyslexic.

Well it was a great idea to do it and since I'm always the first or one of the first to steal good ideas I have one of those avatars too... thanks Taalix!

Hey, I think we simmed together last night. You did a good job and I'm sure you'll get used to the speed. Maybe at first you should just try to read what people from your department say. It helped me a great deal to not have to read everything. See you around. Nick

;) DISKS!?!? I guess that's why mine always broke.

Well basically just my close friends know (and frown upon) my obsession for Star Trek. As for my family...my brother only likes Voyager. My mother couldn't care less and I frequently have very heated "debates" (ok maybe even arguments) with my stepfather when I want to watch any of the Star Trek series. A typical scenario: I sit on the sofa and the episode (what series doesn't matter) is just about to start/has just started and he walks in grabs the remote and changes the program. It annoys me and I tell him that I never do that when he watches something. He tells me "Yeah but this is my house." (I don't live with my parents anymore) We usually fight until he leaves, we both are mad and the episode has finished. Call me stubborn but I ALWAYS have it out with him. I usually get told off for doing this by my mother,too. She thinks it's not worth fighting over. Oh by the way...you should see what happens when I try to watch Farscape...

Leaving the science lab Nick was still wondering what had just happened. He had hoped the team would have been able to discuss his new theory. The presence of Tanna Lanvin had been most convenient because it would have saved him the trouble of explaining everything all over again. But he had problems understanding what Captain Nurani had wanted. Certainly he would be told about everything concerning their research. Had he simply wanted to put some pressure on them? Nick did not know. He also thought it might have been a bit unfortunate to have Midshipman Taalix guide the Captain through the lab. Nick smiled at the thought. As far as he could tell she had done a good job leading him through the facility, one that she had only known for one day. Nick's smile grew broader as he stepped into the turbolift. The new science officer intrigued him. She had arrived at the station only one day after Nick. He was sure he had seen her before. At the Academy maybe. He could not really remember. Just the face seemed somehow familiar. He thought it might be a good idea to invite her to a drink at Drankum's. He dismissed the thought and got a bit annoyed that nothing had gone the way he had expected. He had only been able to talk to Lieutenant Morson since the rest of the team was busy showing the Rixians around. Nick sighed. This time he would have appreciated the input from the team. At least Morson had allowed him to conduct his experiments and even assigned Taalix to assist him despite the possibility that this time his theory might not be right on. Nick was not very confident about this but it was a start. And he knew it was about time they got somewhere. Captain Nurani's presence today had shown that. And he was certain that soon Captain Ayers would also be asking why they were still that far from finding a cure. Nick cursed under his breath. Something about this whole thing frustrated him. Was it the fact that he did not understand? Or maybe it was the fact that he did understand but could not help? He was not sure. Did he really understand, he wondered. The turbolift stopped and Nick exited, walking towards sickbay. Once there he took one of the PADDs he had been studying for days now. He sat down on an empty biobed and began going over the data once more. There must be something he had overlooked. Many things did make sense but there were still blanks he intended to fill in. How exactly did the disease spread? Where had it originated?... The list of questions was endless. As Nick was studying the PADD he felt his eyelids grow heavy. He looked up and ran one hand over his face. There was another question he would have to find an answer to. A less urgent one though. Why was he not able to sleep lately? Last night he had been tossing and turning around all night. He had tried to find an explanation but so far he did not know the answer. It was not a depression, of that he was certain. He wondered whether he should talk to Dr. Jones or Dr. Pavilion about it. He knew he should but they would want to run some tests...he detested that. It always made him feel helpless, dependent. This though made him smile. At least he knew how most patients felt when they came to see him. Nick jumped off the bed and decided to go to the medical labs right away. He wanted to meet Taalix there and he still had to prepare the experiments. He tossed the PADD back on the pile he had taken it from and left sickbay.

I like new cadets,too...especially for breakfast. Welcome to STSF! Hope you'll have some fun and see you around the Academies (Fortunately for me they are just in time for breakfast ;) ...well almost) Nick

Hello and welcome to STSF! Don't get too used to not dying...seriously I have not counted all the Academies I went to but I think I only died twice...or was it three times? So most of the GMs are not as bad as their reputation. Hope to see you around! Nick

Hello and welcome to STSF. See you around the Academies! Have some fun! Nick

Welcome to STSF! Hope to see you around the Academies and...oh I'll not go any further it's someone else's job to tell you how to get prepared. Have fun! Nick

Maybe I should think about making a whole STSF-Collection. That way we could tell people in europe that we're out there...have them join and then finally....... get a sim at a decent time. ::dreaming:: What would we be without our dreams and illusions...

Hello and welcome to STSF! Hope to see you around the Academies!

We always had dogs at home so I definitely prefer dogs to cats. My mother just got another one from an animal shelter. His name's Jack and he eats everything but dog food. When I grew up I couldn't imagine ever living without a dog but unfortunately I don't have time for one now. It's just not a good idea to have a dog when you're not home for up to 12 hours a day.

Nicolas couldn't take it anymore. He threw the PADD on the pile on his desk and got up. He had to do something. Going to the science lab and checking on the results of Vatric's and his experiment seemed just the right thing to do. Entering the lab he walked right to a console and had the data displayed. Yes, it was true the bacterium did change the Rixian DNA. A thought crossed his mind. Could it be that once the bacterium entered the bloodstream it would alter the DNA of leukocytes only. This could cause most of the symptoms. And altered DNA could lead to something called apoptosis or programmed death in cells, a bit like suicide. It usually occurred when the DNA sequence was too faulty to be repaired. He recalled the genetics lectures back at medical school. DNA was basically made up of a kind of sugar, phosphate and one of four bases. The sequence of the bases would determine the genetic information found in the DNA. Each cell had certain mechanisms to check, recheck and, if necessary, correct any faults in the sequence. It was a very effective way to prevent mutations. Nicolas tried to imagine what would happen if these mechanisms failed. If the sequence was too defective the cell would simply die. Could that be the answer? Maybe, maybe not. He had to get hold of Vatric. More tests needed be done to either confirm or disproove his theory. He stopped to think. Should he inform Dr. Jones first? But he hadn't found out anything, yet. Just like all the previous times this was only an idea, a possibility, a start to find the truth. He dashed out of the lab, eager to find Vatric.

Nicolas sat at his desk going through various PADDs wondering what it was he didn't seem to see. He decided to make a list of symptoms and his idea as to their origin. He hesitated. That was exactly what was frustrating about this job. He had only theories and ideas but nothing that he could confirm so far. "Now the list." Most symptoms fit the results of the blood tests. Anemia would cause fatigue and difficulty breathing since the red blood cells where the ones that carried the oxygen. It was most probably caused by excessive bleeding but that was just another theory. Leukopenia would certainly cause a very high risk of further, so called secondary, infections which in most diseases affecting the immune system were the actual cause of death. Leukocytes were the "police" of the body being produced specifically for one kind of germ. So there were thousands of different kinds of leukocytes. They were able to identify and neutralize the very germ they were specialized for effectively and the spleen could produce new kinds of leukocytes to match a new germ within a matter of hours or days. What puzzled him was the fact that there seemed to occur cases of thrombocytopenia as well as thrombocytosis. The former being a lack of the cells that cause blood clotting the latter being exactly the opposite. Thrombocytopenia would explain the excessive bleeding so would thrombocytosis if the cells were in some way defective. Now, did these cases occur in different patients or in one patient but at different stages of the disease? He had to make a note of that. It was yet another question he needed to ask. More than just puzzling was the fact that there seemed to occur neutropenia. Neutropenia means that there were not enough granulocytes, a special kind of leukocytes. Those cells were usually very present in any condition that included infection. At least this,too, explained the many secondary infections with bacteria and virus that usually were no threat to the Rixian immune system. Then there were the enlarged spleen, lymph nodes and thymus. All being very important organs of the immune system, it suggested that there was some kind of response. Whether the response was triggered by the plague or the secondary infections he could not tell. The main question was what went wrong? Why were the organs of the immune sytem active, considering the enlarged thymus very much so, while the count of leukocytes was so low. It didn't make sense unless the germ "attacked" the leukocytes. Nicolas sighed and got up to pace the room. He had not found one single answer but now there were so many new questions. He didn't even know whether he was asking the right questions since everything was based on assumptions. Maybe he should ask permission to see one of the patients himself, make his own anamnesis. Yes that might help. And he needed to remember all those questions he still meant to ask. He sat back down, frustration growing by the minute. So many questions, no answers. But he resolved to find those answers even if it meant working 24/7 until he dropped dead. He went back to reading the PADDs...there must be something he hadn't seen.