On Tue, 20 Oct 2020 17:22:16 +0000 (UTC), Phil Pugliese wrote:

>Also, I wonder where the line is drawn 'tween 'human chimera', 'minor human
>race', & 'human ethnic group'.After all, the Ancients were capable of quite
>extensive genetic manipulation weren't they?I'm sure they must've
>experimented quite a bit on all of the 'minor human races'.

I think that whole classification is a bit screwed up, just as "major" vs
"minor" race is.  While it wouldn't be consistent with the extant
classifications, here is how _I_ would do it:

Human: Can produce fertile offspring with H. Sapiens from Terra.
   Examples: Vilani, Zhodani, Solomani, Sword Worlders, etc.

   Comment: Generally, if you put a Human into the same sort of clothes you
     wear, you'd not necessarily spot them as "not from here" just by
     looking at them walking down the street. for example, a Zhodani might
     just be a somewhat tall Joe (as opposed to your average Joe); a Vilani
     might not be given a second look as a Caribbean Islander, a Sword
     Worlder might just be your average Nordic type, etc.

Human Chimera (HC): Genetic evidence of DNA/equivalent from non-humans
   introduced into human genotype. May or may not be able to produce
   offspring with Human, offspring may or may not be fertile.
   Example: (Maybe) Luriani (other than Verasti Dtareen or Mmarislusant)

   Comment: You might or might not be able to spot one of these walking
     down the street. For example, you might not spot a Luriani, unless you
     saw that his/her fingers or toes were webbed, because they look
     otherwise not unlike the typical Terran human, but a HC engineered to
     have fur or extra limbs would be immediately obvious. Whether the
     person in question is a HC or a MHR would only be determined from
     genetic analysis.

Minor Human Race (MHR): Human genotype with no evidence of non-human DNA
   introduction, but phenotype obviously divergent from H. Sapiens from
   Terra. May or may not be able to produce offspring with human, offspring
   may or may not be fertile. Phenotype divergence (vs. genetics) may cause
   problems with pregnancy, e.g., if Human[M] impregnates MHR[F] of
   significantly smaller phenotype.
   Example: Geonee, Daryen

   Comment: You'll be able to spot one of these because of phenotype
     divergence (e.g., size and build of a Geonee, Daryen pointed pinnae
     for the ears, etc.), but it would take genetic analysis to determine
     MHR vs HC.

«Race» Ethnic Group: Coherent group of «race» with common culture/cultural
   assumptions. High likelihood of common phenotype characteristics (i.e.,
   "He looks «ethnic»")
   Example: Vilani, Zhodani, Sword Worlders, Luriani Verasti Dtareen,
      Luriani Mmarislusant, etc.

   Comment: Do I really need one here?

Humanized Chimeric Alien: Non-human genotype with evidence of human DNA
   introduced. Phenotype aligns sufficiently with human to be visually
   confused with known HC or supposed MHR. Unlikely to be able to produce
   offspring with human; if possible, offspring unlikely to be fertile.
   Example: (Maybe) Luriani (other than Verasti Dtareen or Mmarislusant)

   Comment: The Luriani Verasti Dtareen and Mmarislusant are Solomani and
     Vilani humans, respectively. The other Luriani do not qualify as human
     (they do not produce fertile offspring with humans), but I don't
     recall whether their genotype is alien with human alterations (making
     them HCA), or human with alien alterations (making them HC).

NOTE: The bit about reproducing with H. Sapiens from Terra refers to the
_general_ case, that is, random selection of one male and one female, both
healthy, both capable of reproduction, neither having any known genetic or
medical problems that might prevent a successful pregnancy, etc.

It would be reasonable to hold that in the Traveller milieu, the "species"
level of Linnaean classification (now formally called the 'specific
epithet') should _not_ be the "bottom" of the classification system, but
that there should be at least one additional level, possibly more. Under
such an extended system, a MHR such as the Geonee might be (e.g.) H.
Sapiens _Shiwonensis_, and a HC such as the Luriani might be (e.g.) H.
Sapiens _Chimaera Darammensis_.

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