Philomon
the Graystone lab technician
Philomon was a lab technician at Graystone Industries who worked on the U-87 battle robot program. While trying to discover why the prototype could not be copied, he was unknowingly aided by Zoe-A, the consciousness controlling the robot, and was killed when it rebelled.
Philomon was a lab technician employed by Graystone Industries who worked in the U-87 program, an effort to mass-produce a series of battle robots on behalf of the Caprican military. He spent his final weeks trying to discover why the program's only intelligent prototype could not be copied, unaware that the machine was under the control of Zoe-A.
Work on the U-87 program#
Philomon was employed at Graystone Industries, where he worked on the U-87 program. The aim of the program was to mass-produce a series of battle robots for the Caprican military. During his work testing one of the prototype U-87s, Philomon confronted a serious obstacle. The prototype could only show signs of intelligence when one particular head and MCP chip were bonded together. With the company's contract in jeopardy if the result could not be copied, Philomon set himself to determining why this was so.
The cause lay in the MCP chip, which had malfunctioned after the Zoe-A program was installed into it. The installation had caused the chip to develop analogue elements that could only function alongside the same chassis, and Philomon spent weeks trying to understand the problem.
Guidance from Zoe-A#
Philomon learned part of the truth after speaking with Zoe-A herself within V-World. Rather than reveal that she was in control of the robot, she offered him ideas meant to lead him toward the right answer. Her hints were ultimately not enough to solve the problem in time.
Death#
The company set Philomon a new deadline, and he was threatened with dismissal if he did not instead copy the chip through a process that would destroy it. The U-87 rebelled. When Philomon sounded the intruder alarm, the machine threw him against a pillar and killed him.
Frequently asked questions
- Who was Philomon in Caprica?
- Philomon was a lab technician employed by Graystone Industries. He worked in the U-87 program, an effort to mass-produce a series of battle robots for the Caprican military.
- What problem was Philomon trying to solve?
- The prototype U-87 only showed signs of intelligence when one particular head and MCP chip were bonded together, and the chip could not be copied. With the company's contract in jeopardy, Philomon spent weeks trying to determine why the chip could not be replicated.
- Why could the U-87 chip not be copied?
- The MCP chip had malfunctioned after the Zoe-A program was installed into it, causing the chip to develop analogue elements that could only function alongside the same chassis. Philomon was never able to fully work this out.
- How did Philomon die?
- Facing a new deadline and the threat of dismissal, Philomon was ordered to copy the chip in a process that would destroy it. The U-87 rebelled, and when Philomon sounded the intruder alarm he was thrown against a pillar and killed.
Sources
- WikiPhilomon — Battlestar Wiki entry
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