Season 6 - Episode 11 - Tutari

LIU Atlas - Tutari

There are billions of stars, millions of planets, but there is only one man, Terrance McDoogal. Welcome to LIU Atlas.


                                                                LIU Atlas - Tutari

The Ludgonian Industrial Union’s galaxy contains billions of stars and planets. Unfortunately, most residents of the LIU could only name a handful of these worlds. In order to improve astronomy grades across the LIU, TV2 has started a new program called LIU Atlas. Follow our host, Terrance McDoogal, as he takes you on a tour across the LIU and some of its more obscure worlds.

Note: This episode is presented in full screen. The corresponding dialogue is underneath each photo.

Doog: “Welcome to another episode of LIU Atlas. I’m your host, Terrance “Doog” McDoogal. Today, we’re visiting the rocky, temperate world of Tutari. Tutari is home the technologically advanced Tutarin race. The Tutarin have a diverse, high-tech economy that ranges from mining to biological farming. However, Tutari’s most distinguishing and well known industries is its gene vault. That’s what we’ll be focusing on today.”

Doog: “Tutari’s gene vault is located in a large structure near the planet’s rockier southern hemisphere. This huge structure also houses the employees that work in the vault. Around fifty thousand Tutarin call this place home.”

Doog: “The structure is even larger than it seems. I’m told that extends deep below the planet’s surface. A small opening half way up the structure serves as a landing bay. That’s where we’re headed.”

Haon: “Welcome Doog. I am Haon Lamech, Administrator of the ARK.”
Doog: “The ARK?”
Haon: “Yes, the Archive of Resurrection Keys, commonly referred to as the ARK. The ARK is a bio-repository in which genetic material is stored. It’s a vault to preserve the galaxy’s genetic diversity. It insures this valuable information is never lost.”
Doog: “Really? I have a few socks you could call an ARK. Lots of genetic material stored in there.”
Haon: “Thank you for the disturbing image Doog. Perhaps we should continue on with the tour.”
Doog: “Lead the way.”

Doog: “So what kinds of genes are you guys preserving?”
Haon: “All kinds. Our goal is to preserve every known species in the galaxy.”
Doog: “What about viruses? Specifically STD causing viruses?”
Haon: “Those too. When I say all, I mean all.”
Doog: “Why?”
Haon: “You never know when a species will be valuable. Osmotic Dong Rot plagued my species for millennia, but a few years back we found it contained proteins that help cure the Ferventis Sanguinis Virus. You never know. That’s why we must work quickly to preserve all species. In today’s universe, millions of species go extinct everyday. Terraforming, disease, war, and genocide destroy these species before their true worth can be detected.”
Doog: “Hmm, I guess. So how do you preserve these species?”

Haon: “The first step in preserving a species is breaking its composition down into its smallest form. In many cases, that involves isolating DNA and stem cells. Some species are comprised of rarer or more exotic building blocks, but we have found ways to break them down as well. For instance, energy beings are broken down into their most basic frequencies.”

Doog: “So these guys are extracting DNA?”
Haon: “In this instance, yes. Samples arrive from all across the galaxy. We process the samples into pure DNA. The purified sample is then sent for mapping.”
Doog: “Mapping?”
Haon: “Yes. Follow me.”

Haon: “We have several stations for mapping genomes after samples have been purified. This system maps various chromosomes and places markers in common variation points.”
Doog: “Uh yeah, sure. Sounds sciencey. Not my forte. Hey, speaking of which, kids aren’t really my thing either. You think you can use this thing to do some paternity testing for me? I’ll pay for some false negatives.”
Haon: “We don’t do that here.”
Doog: “Dang.”

Haon: “Purified and mapped samples are then taken to our gene vault for storage. The vault is deep in Tutari’s crust to prevent any radiation damage to the samples. Security is very strict. Many of the samples down in the vault belong to extinct species. Any sample loss effectively ends the species for all eternity. Don’t touch anything.”
Doog: “I get to see the vault?”
Haon: “Yes. But please, please, please, don’t touch anything. Remember, there are quadrillions of samples of species that can not be found anywhere else in the universe. This information is priceless.”

Doog: “This is the vault?”
Haon: “Yes. Thousands of miles of corridors just like this. Each corridor is made up of thousands of individual vaults that store genetic information.”

Haon: “The individual vaults are color coded and labeled with a catalogue number to denote which planet they came from.”

Haon: “This particular series of vaults come from the planet Hwaglia. All of Hwaglia’s native life died off due to extreme pollution. These vaults contain enough information to resurrect most of the planet’s species, if the need should ever arise.”
Doog: “Can we see inside?”
Haon: “I suppose we can for a bit.”

Haon: “The vaults are cryobanks, storing samples at -196° Celsius. This aids in their preservation. We don’t want to keep them open too long.”

Haon: “Each vault contains thousands of preserved species. Looks like we have some of Hwlagia’s avian species here.”

Doog: “Really, I don’t see anything in here?”
Haon: “DOOG! I said not to touch!”
Doog: “Ow! Ow! That’s really cold! It’s hurting my fingers!”

Doog: “Oh man. I, uh, sorry.”
Haon: “I guess the Hwaglian Swamp Birds’ place in this universe is now over. Great job.”
Doog: “My bad. I’m sure it was a great bird.”

Doog: “Well folks, I think I better get to going before someone around here’s starts calculating the cost of my accidental extermination of this extinct bird species. Tutari is an interesting place. One of its structures, known as the ARK, is home to a huge vault that stores much of the galaxies genetic diversity. If the need ever arises, species can be resurrected with the knowledge contained within this vault. See ya!”
 


Note:
The ARK has a vault dedicated to preserving the hundred or so fungal species unique to the Magellan’s bathroom.


CLICK HERE FOR NEXT EPISODE: Season 6 - Episode 12 - Alea