Chromosomes??? how is that the answer?

[K^2]

They already stated that it's not ATA. It's some other portion of Ancients' genome, hence requiring a simulation to get the code.

[jsonitsac]

I think the password is simply the numerical sequence for the ATA Gene. Instead of trying to randomly pick a code, it might make more sense to contact Earth and get the genetic sequence from them. Then just try to assign a numerical value for the 21 amino acid. It's somewhat logical that the Ancients would number the amino acids based on the number of carbons, or molecular weight, so establishing a cipher shouldn't be that difficult.

Except for the fact that they've explicitly stated that Destiny predates ATA.

[the fifth man]

I wonder how long it will be before they break the code?

[Stormtrooper]

I think it's time to take a closer look at the Atlantis database.

[wingsabre]

Except for the fact that they've explicitly stated that Destiny predates ATA.

I didn't take what they said literally. My interpretation is the systems predates ATA, meaning you can operate the systems without having an ATA gene, but you can access all the systems without knowledge of the ATA gene, and by default the genetic sequence for the ATA gene. I'm assuming that this is a form of ATA technology that eventually evolved to become the ATA sensing technology. Instead of sensing the ATA gene, you have to input the ATA sequence instead.

[s09119]

I didn't take what they said literally. My interpretation is the systems predates ATA, meaning you can operate the systems without having an ATA gene, but you can access all the systems without knowledge of the ATA gene, and by default the genetic sequence for the ATA gene. I'm assuming that this is a form of ATA technology that eventually evolved to become the ATA sensing technology. Instead of sensing the ATA gene, you have to input the ATA sequence instead.

I like that theory.

[thekillman]

ancients have 46 chromosomes. humans and ancients can interbreed. QED.

the ATA gene is probably a bad name for it, since a it was stated in human that it looks for markers and in SGA you had a degrading ATA gene. if a gene degrades it's simply not the gene anymore. so i think there';s more than one ATA gene.


the code might be a kind of universal ancient genome formula, like the sequence of their genes or so. the significance of the discovery is simple: previously it could've been anything. now we know it has to do with their genes

[Phenomenological]

I'm not sure why the ancients would bother doing this really. What's wrong with just using a random string of numbers. It's no harder to remember or write down than a code based on their genome, and much easier to generate.

[Quadhelix]

I didn't take what they said literally. My interpretation is the systems predates ATA, meaning you can operate the systems without having an ATA gene, but you can access all the systems without knowledge of the ATA gene, and by default the genetic sequence for the ATA gene. I'm assuming that this is a form of ATA technology that eventually evolved to become the ATA sensing technology. Instead of sensing the ATA gene, you have to input the ATA sequence instead.

Except that, based on Beckett said in "Hide and Seek," I'm guessing the point of the ATA gene wasn't as a security encryption or anything like that, but rather a physical necessity for using most types of Ancient neural-interface technology.

If that is true, then they would have no reason to use ATA specifically as the password because, at that point, the gene itself had no particular significance (and may not have even existed yet, if it was an engineered gene).

I'm not sure why the ancients would bother doing this really. What's wrong with just using a random string of numbers. It's no harder to remember or write down than a code based on their genome, and much easier to generate.

So that they could store it in an unencrypted database (the Repository Chair) without actually storing the code itself in an unencrypted database. It's like one of those "password reminders" that you have in case you forget your password: this would be something that only the Ancients would know that they could use to access the ships systems if the password were ever lost.

[hiro]

I'm not sure why the ancients would bother doing this really. What's wrong with just using a random string of numbers. It's no harder to remember or write down than a code based on their genome, and much easier to generate.

They are the ancients !
I think , as somebody said before , maybe only being there with the appropriate gene is needed to decrypt the ship function .

[K^2]

Yes, Ancient's mind would be capable of processing chair's data directly. There wouldn't be a need for any of that stuff.

Why did they base code/encryption on their genome? Maybe they have foreseen something like this taking place. Maybe not humans exactly, but suppose they expected their distant ancestors be stuck and for some reason unable to use the chair. Coding it based on something they might recognize would give them a way to brake the code. Any other race to stumble upon Destiny wouldn't have a chance.

[Avenger]

It had to be something that, should the code be lost in the time the Destiny was out on its own, the Ancients who gated to the ship, would have been able to figure out on their own.

[garhkal]

So I wonder if Destiny is keyed to a specific Ancient.

Perhaps the one who built it.

[wingsabre]

Except that, based on Beckett said in "Hide and Seek," I'm guessing the point of the ATA gene wasn't as a security encryption or anything like that, but rather a physical necessity for using most types of Ancient neural-interface technology.

If that is true, then they would have no reason to use ATA specifically as the password because, at that point, the gene itself had no particular significance (and may not have even existed yet, if it was an engineered gene).

And Becket could have been wrong, because his assumptions were on what he saw in Atlantis. Things could have been different when they were building the Destiny. A lot of things change over a few thousand years, and what was once useful then could have become taken for granted, or what was not useful then could have evolved to become useful. The set of rules on Atlantis are different than the set of rules on Destiny.

I think the use of an ATA gene sequence for something like Destiny is very logical. If they didn't have the technology to sense the person, then they would have to enter a common genetic sequence to unlock key features. This would be necessary for a ship in foreign and distance space where hostel aliens may potentially take over the ship and either steal advance technology they're not ready for, or gain information about the race that created it and invade them.

[Quadhelix]

And Becket could have been wrong, because his assumptions were on what he saw in Atlantis. Things could have been different when they were building the Destiny. A lot of things change over a few thousand years, and what was once useful then could have become taken for granted, or what was not useful then could have evolved to become useful.

I'm not entirely sure what the point of this is.

The set of rules on Atlantis are different than the set of rules on Destiny.

You're contradicting yourself here: the only basis that you have for the code being ATA is that that specific gene was needed to activate technology on Atlantis, and thus must also have been necessary to activate technology on the Destiny.

I think the use of an ATA gene sequence for something like Destiny is very logical. If they didn't have the technology to sense the person, then they would have to enter a common genetic sequence to unlock key features. This would be necessary for a ship in foreign and distance space where hostel aliens may potentially take over the ship and either steal advance technology they're not ready for, or gain information about the race that created it and invade them.

The point that you are failing to make is why it would be the ATA gene specifically instead of, for example, the gene that codes for melanin or some other random gene.

Or even, for that matter, why it has to be a specific gene instead of larger genetic patterns.