Finch said, running through his recitation more or less on autopilot. The holodisplay unit at the center of the main comm unit lit up on cue and images began to flicker into focus: first, the thoughtful faces of individuals clearly engaged in rigorous intellectual exercises. “Beings who discovered they didn’t fit neatly into the scientific or academic institutions of their homeworlds. Or, sadly, discovered that their talents, or their work, wasn’t valued.” A new set of images followed, these more abstract: complex data displays, mathematical and chemical formulas, engineering schematics. “Lab time is always an issue, even on worlds where they claim resources do not come between a researcher and his work. We understand each other here, do we not, Nog?” The Ferengi, who had been watching the display, turned slightly to meet Finch’s gaze. He nodded in a polite, but neutral, manner. Finch resumed his spiel. “Amongst my cohort are a Tellarite cyberneticist who is developing a means for telepathic communication with autonomous robots.
