) Anyhow. You (and gcapp) are right about the UESPA thing from 'Tomorrow is Yesterday'. Seems like the original Trek concept was on a lot smaller scale...likely to save on alien makeup, among other things.
So how come if the Telarites are so important how come we have never seen one.
Other Important stuff that never appeared again
Gorn
Thorilans
Andorians
Psyco Tricorder
Androids more advanced than Data
First Federation
Umpteen lost Empires
I'm sure we can think of more.
What about all the crazy stuff Janeway and crew do or invent almost every week?
Hello? Anti-aging transporter treatment anyone?
I can't wait for the infomercial!
"Try this new, advanced formula, a breakthrough in skin care! It really really works! Buy now, because by tomorrow we'll have forgotten all about it!"
Scalosian water
Transwarp drive on any Federation vessel
Slipstream drive
The Day of Honor
Betazoid telepathic powers (they've gotten less and less powerful over the years)
Lore
Hugh
Kelvans
Medusans
Benny Russel (just what did they intend for that, anyway?)
Skrreeans
The Preservers
Ooooh! The Preservers! Good one, Matthew!
How about the "Guardian of Forever"?
I think this is where the novels come into their own. They give us alternate Star Trek realities, in which the characters do, infact, acknowledge the existence of some of these discoveries!
Matt Pesti mentions "Tholians" as stuff we never heard of again.
Actually, they are mentioned in several TNG and DS9 episodes - they attacked Kyle Riker's posting ("The Icarus Factor") and I think they signed a non-aggression pact with the Dominion.
Actually I did remember those. But they could be subsituted with "Fishmen" and nonthing would be affected.
Like "The Fishmen attacked the base"
Or "Fishmen silk"
Or "the Miradorn the Fishmen the Breen the Romulans"
More
17 different classes of Ship
The Xencathi (The Adversary)
Vorta Telepathic abilityies.
Throwaway wars.
Nimbus 3
Kirk's ultra confusing contradicting past.
Purple Klingon Blood(yes, I Know but it's still a nit)
Jarada
Sheik Corperate(wait Sheik, I have to check the spelling on that, but I really don't think they are refugees from Hyrule. no it's Sheliak, sorry)
What about the Organiains from Errand of Mercy?
If they are so powerful, what has happened to them?
The Holocommunicator that was on a couple of episodes of DS9. And the wrost thing is, I actually liked it!
How about the inner eyelid or super hearing capabilities of Vulcans?
Klingon redundancy biology. Those "sons of Kling" really knew what they were doing in the evolution stakes. Built in backup system!
And this peculiarity hasn't been utilised again because...?
Also, Kling. The warrior code or whatever it was that the bad Klingon was babbling about in - I think - "Code of Honour".
And what about female Chancellors, or even female members of the Klingon High Council?
No wonder Lursa and B'Etor went renegade!
Basically, a whole heap of Klingon culture stuff. Not that I am necessarily lamenting it's neglect - but why is it all so neglected?
And then they just go ahead and make up some other Klingon ritual or ceremony, use it as a plot device, and then, in turn, forget about that also.
This topic is making me think of the "Gilligan's Island Syndrome". Every week, the castaways would find a new way to get rescued, but Gilligan would mess it up somehow. I remember watching it as a kid and thinking, "Why don't they just try it again, and make sure Gilligan doesn't interfere this time?" It's the same with some Trek eps. A new technology is used to resolve one situation and then is never heard from again. For example: The Teacher from Spock's Brain. They could have used that over and over, despite the risks.
If you don't like Gilligan, the "Wyle E. Coyote Syndrome" would make my point just as well. ;-)
Wyle E. did eventually catch that pesky Road Runner, though. And didn't the castaways end up establishing a resort on that isle of theirs?
Funnily enough, I don't think we'll be seeing that Teacher thing again, Cazbah.
Darn it!
Or how about the fact that Vulcans have apparently dropped the tradition of boys' names starting with 'S' (after Surak, I believe). And do the women still have the T' prefix to show they're betrothed?
Phaser rifle ("Where no Man Has Gone Before")
Ship's gymnasium ("Charlie X")
Kirk's nephew Peter ("Operation: Annihilate!" - although Craig Hundley did return in "And the Children Shall Lead")
Marlena Moreua of "Mirror, Mirror"
Ensign Garrovick of "Obsession"
The warp engines modified by the Kelvans in "By Any Other Name"
The android construction techniques taught by Sargon's people in "Return to Tomorrow"
The transponder crystals used in "Patterns of Force"
The Melkots of "Spectre of the Gun"
The Federation gaining cloaking device technology in "Enterprise Incident"
The IDIC medallion "Is There in Truth No Beauty"
Natira "For the World . . ."
The security password used in "Whom Gods Destroy"
The cure for mental illness from "Whom Gods Destroy"
Mira Romaine "The Lights of Zetar"
In response to rachgd's Klingon nits:
I always assumed that the "no women on the high council" bit (so clearly contradicted in STVI) was an invention of Gowron's, a bit of legalese he quickly developed to insure that Lursa and B'Etor would not weasel their way onto the high council after the death of their brother.
More forgettery:
Sulu's background in botany ("The Man Trap")
Hodgkin's Theory of Parallel Planet Development ("Bread and Circuses")
Dr. Ann Mulhall ("Return to Tommorrow")
Security Chief Lt. Cmr. Giotto ("The Devil in the Dark")
common ancestry of Romulans and Vulcans (mentioned in "Balance of Terror", see the unnecessary makeup in ST:TNG)
use of the transporter for life support ("Relics")
the fact that any Klingon taken prisoner is automatically dishonored ("Birthright pt. II" contrasted with the fates of guys like Martok)
In response to Shira Karp's response to my Klingon nits, I would like to point out that an assumption does not canon make.
And, also, don't the Klingon scenes make you feel like they're steeped in tradition, with all that male bonding stuff? There's this impression, or implication, that things have been this way since the days of Kahless.
I know! Feelings and impressions do not canon make, either.
Re Todd Pence and the Phaser Rifle...
You might want to discuss the lack of phaser rifles with Captain Janeway...
I could be wrong about this, but the warp 5 speed limit?
Yeah. I'm with you on that one, cableface!
At the beginning of the third season of DS9, supposedly all Starfleet ships had been equipped with an advanced warp drive that didn't damage space. Voyager's swing-wing warp nacelles are one example.
I read somewhere that the Enterprise-E had engines that weren't a problem.Personally, I think that whoever wrote the script proposing the speed limit was not liked because of it.That's probably why it was rarely if ever heard of again.
rachqd, I thank you for your support.:¬)
What about the subcutaneous transporter beacon thingies that McCoy used to inject under the away team's skin so that they could still be beamed up if they lost their communicator? What about the velcro belts that Kirk and Co. had to stick their communicator on?
I don't know if you've noticed this or not, but there are Velcro patches on the current uniforms too. Under studio lighting conditions (espcially DS9 ones) you can't really see them, but under normal light you can see them clearly.
What happened to the dual warp drives on Voyager?!
More fun with disappearing or forgotten Trek stuff...
The Defiant's cloaking device
Tiny little phasers (see TNG's S1)
Transwarp drive (they know how to reverse newtness, now)
Kes' entire existence
Dr. Selar
Dominion members who aren't Founders, Vorta, or Jem'Hadar
The Vreenak assassination ("In the Pale Moonlight")
All those super-advanced aliens from TOS
Most aliens from TOS, period
Admiral Ross' Section 31 involvement
The fact that the alt-universe already had cloaking technology
The alt-universe's knowledge of the wormhole
Skirts for male Starfleet officers (TNG S1)
Members of the Klingon Empire who aren't Klingon ("A Private Little War").
It's going to be a little tough to go back to the forgotten stuff now that there's only one ongoing series that's still in the Delta quadrant. Other than the technology, all other loose ends seems to be a moot point.
Why are so many people craving to see a sequel to the Vreenak assassination? The only two people who know is Garak and Sisko. At least Sisko had to sense to "die" and I'm confident Garak has no interest in bragging about his deed. Many want to see a sequel of Adm. Ross and S31. Must be all you X-Filers out there, somewhere.
Hi, Roland! Or should I say Lord Garth? :-) It's me, from Psi Phi.
Brian -- the thing that annoys me about the Admiral Ross business is that I get the distinct impression it was done only for shock effect, to make an impact in one episode, since we see Ross repeatedly over the rest of the series, and never hear of his S31 involvement again. I mean, the guy even officiates at Sisko's wedding, for crying out loud! (Hey, maybe Sisko was also in on 31...)
And as for l'affaire Vreenak -- you have to admit it would make for awesome drama if the Romulans were to find out somehow...
Not only did Kirk's nephew never show up again, but, if I remember correctly, in -- oo, oo, can't remember -- the one with Chapel's fiance, Kirk says he has more than one nephew. What happened to the others?
We never hear about Miramanee and Kirk's son, from (I think) The Paradise Syndrome. (The one with the Indians.) Everybody goes on and on about Edith Keeler being the great love of Kirk's life, and totally forget the fact that he was actually married and looking forward to being a father! I know he had amnesia at the time, but he did seem to remember her when he woke up. Wouldn't her death have a great effect on him, even bigger than Edith Keeler?
I liked Miramanee.
Ummmm...I think the son was killed in the episode, which is probably why no one hears about him. (read about it in the Star Trek Magazine)
In "The Omega Glory", Spock telepathically communicates with one of the female Yangs at the end without touching her and makes her bring him a communicator. Has this been done again?
Didn't Spock use his mind to trick the Kelvan woman in "By Any Other Name" (I think that's its name)? Does that qualify?
mei & margie: Miramanee was pregnant in The Paradise Syndrome, but I don't think the sex of the baby was ever determined. McCoy was unable to save either.
mei: I think everyone goes on & on about Edith Keeler because Kirk had to make the decision to let her die to preserve history. He didn't decide Miramanee's fate like he did Edith's. (But yes, we should have heard something over the years, or seen something from that life among his belongings.)
I believe Spock first used the 'mind trick' in A Taste Of Armageddon. (Wasn't that a song by Sergio Mendez?;-) Then it was used in By Any Other Name (and Kirk actually referenced ATOA before Spock did it. Kudos to the creators.) Then I think it was used in The Omega Glory. (Basically they used it once a season.)
A number of things from the Animated Series have never been mentioned again. Life support belts, Captain Robert April, Lt. Arecks' people...
Deltans from ST:TMP
Spock's marriage mentioned in TNG's Sarek. (OK, I believe the line was "his son's marriage", but we know who they were implying.)
Dreadnaught class starhips were in some 70s tech manuals, but the only time we ever saw something like it was the refurbished Enterprise-D in All Good Things. (Oh, what a beauty. That is what the Enterprise-E should have looked like!)
It's a pretty big galaxy, people. Things are bound to get lost over time.
You can find Dreadnought class starships in the STARFLEET COMMAND game out on computer now...
Whatever happened to vapourising phasers?Whenever anyone gets hits now, they just fall over.No vapourisings,not even a "fill-'em-full-a-holes" type phaser from ST6.Pity really.......
Information that vanishes: the gigaquads of information left on Voyager after an alien signal warped the ship all over the place.
And, all the alien knowledge that was given to Enterprise-E when Barclay became the ship's computer. Also, the high-speed travel technology used in that episode has never been mentioned again.
The long-term medical hologram.
Animated series? The Kzinti, Slavers, and Slaver technology. (Hey, I'm a huge Niven fan, what can I say?)
Spock's Vulcan ability to solve immensely complicated equations, in his head, while doing something else.
The wide-beam setting on phasers. Perhaps not gone, but not referred to often, even when it would save everyone an immense amount of trouble.
Borg creches.
The idea that the Vulcan mind touch is a "horrible personal violation" for a Vulcan.
The Genesis Device (what, did they give *that* up, too, in the treaty of Algeron?)
Was Thomas Riker killed at some point, or what?
Barclay became the ship's computer on the Enterprise-*D*
I always presumed Tom Riker was in a penal colony because of his Maquis activity.
It was the Enterprise-D, not E.
The wide beam setting was used in the first season Voyager episode Cathexis, by the alien that had taken over Tuvok's body. (Of course. Heaven forbid the heroes ever use it.;-)
What about Ro Laren? I kept hoping she would pop up on DS9 some time, but no.
Actually, Ro was in the very initial drafts of DS9 as a regular character but she declined... so the character of Kira was invented.
D. Of course. My bad.
Tom Riker was in a Cardassian prison camp for life for his terrorist activities on behalf of the Maquis. Considering the Dominion's opinion of the Maquis, I don't think he survived.
But it was intended as a smart-aleck comment. It would have been a fun way for Johnathon Frakes to have a DS9 guest spot.
Ha! Thought of another one right after I posted: whatever happened to the signal the alien parasites sent out into space after they failed to gain control of the Federation?
You mean another DS9 guest spot? Hmm... well Frakes did a small cameo on Voyager as Will.
To Mark: Good question! It was supposed to be to the Borg but they never finished the connection in later episodes. Maybe they could still do something with that.
To the Borg? Excuse me?
The impression I got was that the beetles ran the show and were sending the message to their kind. They did not seem to be connected at all to the Borg. When we first meet the Borg in Q Who all they are interested in is technology and they have no problems with just taking it. The Borg don't seem to be the type who would work with another species.
There is a possible reference to the beetles in The Drumhead. Picard mentions that Nora Satee was instrumental in handling the "alien conspiracy", so possibly this could refer to the beetles, although personally I doubt it.
If they had followed up on the Borg connection, the Borg would look a lot different from the way we're used to.
The 'alien conspiracy' in "The Drumhead" is supposed to be the same. I quote from the Star Trek: Encyclopedia under "Conspiracy" (TNG):
'"The Drumhead" (TNG) established that Admiral Norah Satie helped uncover the conspraicy.'
Good question: If they ever met each other, would the beetles take over the Borg, or would the Borg assimilate the beetles?
The Borg nanoprobes would probably take over the beetles.
If the Borg felt the beetles were worthy of becoming Borg, of course.
I wonder if the beetles sing songs? ;-)
(Picard: How did you find the Federation?
Beetle: We turned left at Betalguese.)
Assimilation may be fun for you and me, but it's no fun for the BEETLES!
If they were assimilated, would they become the Beetleborgs?
Well SOMEBODY had to say it!
We are the Biiiiiiiig Baaaaaaad Beetleborgs. Your comics will be assimilated. Resistance is Flabbertile.
Well, for what it's worth, Star Trek is also pretty good about keeping continuity sometimes. Here are some examples...
1. The embroidered thing that Picard receives from the Mintakans in "Who Watches the Watchers" can be seen on Picard's ready room chair in "First Contact" and "Insurrection".
2. Neelix has reminded a few crewmembers from time to time that he only has one lung.
3. Picard remembers how to play the flute (and does) after his experience in "The Inner Light".
4. The spectacles that Kirk recieves in Star Trek II are broken in the past in Star Trek IV.
5. In DS9's "Paradise Lost/Homecoming" the President of Earth says that there hasn't been a state of emergency declared on Earth in 100 years. They did not forget about the emergency during ST IV when the probe was causing trouble.
>>> I know, this board is supposed to be about things that have NOT been heard of again. But if you guys can talk about Beetleborgs, then I can talk about this.
BYE EVERYONE!!! :^)
How about those nifty reclining helm/navigations seats we saw during TNG's first season? Not only were they recliners, but the console slid over them to create a restraint system. (See comments in "The Kitchen Sink:Trek Related:Seatbelts and Electroshock Therapy").
Given the amount of times that people are thrown out of their seats, it makes sense for the helmsman in particular to be locked down.
Actually this is more of a stuff that could end up becoming a reality. The latest news about implanting a computer chip in a blind person's eye to help them see is way too close to Trek.
Funny thing though was that the device would only give partial sight, just the ability to make out shapes and such, but not 100% vision, exactly like Geordi's visor. (except of course the visor can see infrared and others).
Interesting that one of the technical hurdles is making the chip robust enough that it can survive in the eye without getting any liquid leaked into it. Major hurdles in implanting the device directly in the eye.
Perhaps they should use a visor instead ...
Just a rumor, mind you, but as I understand it the reclining helm/navigation seats had to go because they were too much of a strain on Brent Spiner's and Levar Burton's backs, giving them backaches. Besides, it's bad posture.
Lost technology: An Enterprise with proper lighting. Now you not only get thrown around in battle, you can bump into everyone just trying to find your way around the ship.
Happily not seen again: Sulu's Warp Drive by four-on-the-console joystick. While we're at it, Kirk's command chair seat belt.
An intruder alert that worked automatically. Very helpful if terrorists board your ship to steal trilithium residue (to blow up a star, perhaps?).
Gary Seven, and his cat (was it just me, or did that episode not seem like a spinoff wanting to happen?)
Using Medusans to improve navigation.
The dimensional bender from The High Ground, while dangerous to humanoids, would have made an effective occasional use weapon against the Founders and the Dominion. Or by them, as I don't see the J'em Hadar caring about a little genetic damage.
did that episode not seem like a spinoff wanting to happen?
It actually was a spinoff waiting to happen. It was intended to be the pilot for a series featuring Mr. Seven. But, the studio wouldn't buy it.
Thasians....."Charlie X"
Miri & the other kids...."Miri"
The Gorn & The Metrons..."Arena"
Balok...."The Corbomite Manuver"
Deltans have never been seen or heard from again since STTMP...they must have taken Ilia's fate
too seriously!
Weren't there some in the Federation Council scenes in Star Trek IV and Star Trek VI? Maybe I'm thinking of someone else.
In the novelization of THE WRATH OF KHAN, some of the scientists killed on the station were Deltans. I didn't get a good look at the bodies in the movie, so I can't say if any of them were Deltan.
How about personal force fields? Apart from the animated series, in A Fist Full of Datas, Warf made one from the inside of a toilet roll and some sticky-back plastic. We know Starfleet has them, because they were mentioned in DS9 (Paradise Lost?) Do we ever see them? Nah.
(For non-Brits, the sticky-back plastic is a reference to a classic kids TV program.)
The biggest ongoing nit from Voyager concerns the episode Threshold. When Tom went faster than Warp 10, the episode said that he was everywhere in
the Galaxy at once. It also said that Voyager had a complete map of the Delta Quadrant now. So why don't we ever hear about the crew using the
information to find a way home? They act as if the episode never took place. Maybe we should have seen Tom in the shower at the end of the episode (ala Dallas).
I can remember only one inferrence of "Altair water" (ST-3 McCoy in the bar on Earth). However, that nifty-looking curved wine bottle with the leather strap in the original series may have been altair water too.
Wrong! BUZZ! It was Saurian Brandy!
See "The Enemy Within" (TOS)
According to ST:M (the Magazine), the Tholians are going to broguht back due to "overwhlemingly popular demand."
I hope they use the simular effect from "The Tholian Web"....that rocked!
One thing we havent seen in a while is that cute helm girl on Voyager seen in the ep with the smart bomb...I hope we see more of her. anyone know her name?
You mean the one ragging on "Captain" Harry?
yup! That's her.
I can assume then (with a somewhat wary apprehension) that "Altair Water" exists only in STIII lore.
D K Henderson, the Deltans in "ST II" novel included Jedda, but when he tells Carol that Reliant is calling, he has hair. Maybe he has a toupe for when he's with the Genesis crew.
How about UESPA - it is mentioned in "Charlie X" as "you-spa", and is phrased in full in "Tomorrow Is Yesterday", when Kirk talks to Air Force captain Christopher.
Possibly, UESPA is an Earth organ that contributes to Starfleet.
Mirror Mirror did get a sequel, but I prefer the novel "Dark Mirror" (an evil Enterprise D) over how DS9 butchered the mirror universe into humans who didn't seem to remember they were supposed to be savage "homo sapiens". I can't believe Spock could have effected change on such a scale; the novel shows he was framed and executed. It is more believable.
-The parasites from "Conspiracy"!
Two things no one has thought of so far are the universal translater (an oversized x-acto knife ! ) and anti-gravs . If the universal translator or some form of it is kept it eliminates TNG episode "Loud as a Whisper".
qttroassi...I dunno exactly where we stand on the events of 'Loud as a Whisper' (you might want to join the discussion over on the 'Metamorphosis' thread as well)...but if the Universal Translator isn't kept in some form or another, we don't have any more Star Trek!
Simply put, the Translator is what keeps up the illusion that the Trek universe is multi-lingual. It's taken for granted that way. Many, many eps, a couple movies and the reference materials confirm this.
UESPA was identified in Tomorrow is Yesterday (I think). It stands for "United Earth Space Probe Agency".
The term was from the earliest TOS episodes, before they had things decided as being the United Federation of Planets, and Starfleet as the main agency.
Hey! Another Kerrie! Welcome! (OK, I know, but when you have a name that has as many variant spellings as mine does you take what you can get...)
Anyhow. You (and gcapp) are right about the UESPA thing from 'Tomorrow is Yesterday'. Seems like the original Trek concept was on a lot smaller scale...likely to save on alien makeup, among other things.
"Cast rodinium... the hardest substance known to our science." -- Spock, just before shattering a piece of the subtance from which the "earth outposts" were made in Balance of Terror.
Ken Begg of jabootu.com makes an excellent point in his review of ST:V:
These jet-boots, by the way, are another in a line of "Federation" inventions that make one appearance and then are never brought up again. Take, for example, the "Disaster" episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, which is set eighty years later in the "Trek" universe. The Enterprise has suffered from a catastrophic accident. As a result, Captain Picard has been stranded in a damaged turbo lift car. The question is whether he and his charges can escape before the car plummets down the shaft, killing them all. The wounded Picard ultimately must climb up the shaft’s maintenance ladder. The car plunges to its doom mere seconds later. Say, wouldn’t it have been handy if there were an emergency pair of jet-boots stationed in all turbo lift cars for just such an emergency? Needless to say, there aren’t.
Would have been handy. Although if they had pulled out a pair would Picard have been able to use them with his broken foot? Would they have been too big for the kids to use?
Why should there be any artificial gravity at all in a tubolift shaft?
Well, seeing as all the decks that the shaft passes have artificial gravity fields, maybe there is a gravity 'bleed' from the ends of the AG fields?
Kironide (Plato's Stepchildren) - Clearly, Starfleet has heard of this stuff, since McCoy identified it pretty fast with just his portable medical kit. Inject the crew of a starship or other facility with some kironide, or have it added to a piece of food or a drink, a little before a battle, and suddenly they have the Weirding Way.
Lifeforms that live in space and eat ship hulls (A Matter of Honor) - Couldn't Starfleet have found a way to deliver this stuff and make a fleeing enemy ship a Typhoid Mary, passing this stuff to the rest of its fleet? Such a trick could be reserved for a war. If such a lifeform is unstable, nanites could be used instead, using the ship hull to build copies of itself.
Phasing Devices (The Pegasus) - Leaving the cloaking effect of The Experiment to one side, wouldn't the phasing part make a starship effectively invincible? Enemy ships couldn't damage a phased ship, even by ramming it, and they may not be able to lock weapons on it. Phased ships could hide in a planet or asteroid and ambush their opponents.
Being able to detect a cloaked ship (The Neutral Zone) - This episode had dialogue that indicated that they could detect a cloaked ship's approach, but couldn't identify it. Whenever a ship being cloaked is a plot point in a fight scene, they always figure out some way to detect them (tachyon fields, looking for its exhaust port, etc.). You'd think they'd combine them all and be able to ignore cloaking devices by now.
Metaphasic Shields (Suspicions) - While they did deploy such a shield in Descent, how come it never got used in combat? Wouldn't a shield that keeps the heat and energy of a star from damaging a ship also dissipate energy weapons. Combine this shield with a phasing device, and you can hide your whole fleet in a star for an ambush.
Being able to tap into an alien ship's sensors (Peak Performance) - Why do they never use this to create decoy ships attacking an enemy from another angle, or to make their own forces seem much larger?
Holograms (Reunification II) - Data was able to project a hologram that made him, Spock and Picard invsible, and projected several faux Starfleet officers to distract Sela and her guards. Couldn't Starfleet install holoemitters all over their ships and bases, so when a boarding party attacks them, the emitters can make real crewmen invisible, project decoys, make random sights, sounds and smells, create phony input for enemy detection devices and basically confuse and frighten the enemy? These could also create a bunch of EMH's to help with the wounded. Portable versions could be built into transporter suppressors and used for a similar purpose for ground troops in the field. A means could be devised to render the crew immune to it (maybe the UT could be modified to also filter certain holograms).
McGyver-type equipment hidden on uniforms (Heart of Glory) - Leaving aside the fact that the Klingons don't seem to use this idea much, why didn't Starfleet lift this idea from them? Their personnel seem to get into a lot of situations where they are forced to jury-rig what they have on hand. It would be easier to hide a few tools or weapons in their uniforms in case of capture, so they can effect an escape.
Automated Starships (The Ultimate Computer) - Surely the M5 could be revived. The idea of an automated ship may not be appealing if you plan to have a crew of people aboard, but they could be useful in a war. There are two strategies that could be used. They could make a bunch of small, dense, heavily armed ships that can swarm an enemy fleet. They could also build standard starship hulls and install a computer to operate them along with weapons, sensors, shields, and engine, and have a device that projects a phony set of life signs when scanned by the enemy. Also, with a transporter and replicators, they can maintain themselves or have dedicated tenders. The computers could have only limited ability to act on their own (not sentient, must obey Starfleet personnel), and function as expendable assets. You can throw dozens of these ships at a target and not care (much) if they get destroyed.
Iconian gateways (Contagion) - The Dominion got control of such a gateway in To The Death. Picard blew away the one he found in Contagion. Forgetting those facts (and that the Dominion never used their gateway as far as we know), might a gateway exist on a planet in Federation territory? Surely, the applications of this technology for combat, trade, communication and rescue operations are easily seen. Yet, neither the Federation nor any other culture seems to be looking for existing gateways either to use them or to reverse-engineer them to build copies of them. If a method to control onto where the gate opens can be found, the owner of such a gate can send and receive people and goods to almost any destination for a variety of reasons.
I know that I have picked a bunch of military-type applications for these things, but it's because I can see these applications so easily. With all these technologies at its disposal, shouldn't Starfleet be almost unbeatable? I can think of a couple non-combat Things That Never Got Developed.
Non-senient androids (no particular episode) - Could a more conventional (non-positronic) computer be installed in a humanoid shell? Such androids could be programmed with the Laws of Robotics and used for hazardous duties other than combat such as decontamination.
Exocomps (episode name escapes me) - The exocomps had the ability to replicate tools to do tasks they were commanded to do. A similar, but larger, device was shown on Enterprise as well. A small replicator built into a tool that can project whatever particular thing it needs to be at the time (tricorder, medical scanner, tissue regenerator, bone knitter, hypospray,etc.) seems within their capabilities. Maybe at first it could be a backpack and get smaller as the technology gets better.
Sulu's targeting sensor. Perhaps it's a good thing it fell into disuse...seeing how slow it came out of Sulu's panel.
It seems whenever a character is taken onboard/adopted by a member of the crew, they are never seen or heard from again:
Alexander, Plato's Stepchildren(TOS)
Jeremy Aster, The Bonding(TNG)
Barash, Future Imperfect(TNG)
Ah! The interface probe used by LaForge in "Interface" (TNG).
I'd like to see something about Finnegan, Kirk's rival; we met him in "Shore Leave".
Leonard James Akaar was in some of the ST comics, but I don't know what the storyline was? Did anybody here see it?
"The sandbats of Maynark IV look like inanimate crystals--until they strike." --The Empath
I can just see them, in a picket line, holding signs that say MANAGEMENT UNFAIR and MORE WAGES, FEWER HOURS. 
The Christians on the Roman Planet.
"The Arsenal of Freedom" had lots of weapons. Who owns them?
Whatever happened to the Vians and Gem from "Empath"?
Ruth, Kirk's girlfriend from "Shore Leave".
What have the Triskelionites been up to? Are the Providers still watching them, taking bets on what the Triskelionites will do next?
What happened to Mudd's Women, or the Androids of Mudd's Planet, or the Orions? If the Orions were overthrown, what happened to the women?
Passing through the Galactic Barrier gives you psychic powers. A lot of people would be trying the same thing, hoping to become superpowerful. Maybe the Q got rid of it.
In "Court Martial" the computer has an auditory sensor--well of course it does, it listens to requests from the crew! But the episode implies maybe it eavesdrops when necessary?
Leonard James Akaar was also in the DS9 continuation series, starting with "Avatar", going through "Mission Gamma", "Rising Son", and "Unity".
What happened to Mudd's Women, or the Androids of Mudd's Planet, or the Orions?
The Orions (at least the Orion Syndicate) are alive and well. See Honor Among Thieves(DS9) and Prodigal Daughter(DS9).
Thanks; I'd like to read those novels.
Those aren't novels. Those are DS9 episodes.
roger - What have the Triskelionites been up to? Are the Providers still watching them, taking bets on what the Triskelionites will do next?
On some episode of DS9 I thought I saw the Triskelion symbol on some boxes in the cargo bay.
The Doomsday Machine- What, are you going to leave an advanced weapon and potential neutronium mine sitting around for the Klingons to find it?
Even if you couldn't break it down, you could find a city with a smaller radius than the mouth of the machine and use it as a giant armored tent... but for goodness sakes, do something with it!
The Gideons. Did Odona's spreading Vegan Chorio Meningitis do what it was intended to do? Namely, control the planet's overpopulation. Or worse, did it decimate the population?
The life-entity transfer machine from "Turnabout Intruder." Was it eventually dismantled? Riker mentioned an archaological expedition on Camus II in a Next Gen episode. Perhaps they destroyed it. Or worse, used it.
What happened to all those planets which were duplicates of Earth in one way or another? Roger already mentioned the Roman planet, and I'd be interested in learning the fate of Ekos (the Nazi planet), Iotia (the gangster planet), and Miri's planet which literally was a duplicate of Earth.
Not canon, but we see Miri's world again in Shatner and J&GRS's "Preserver".
And in Judy Kalss' "Cry Of The Onlies."
Quark knew of Fizzbin in The Ascent, so possibly the schnookered Iotians decided to turn it into a real game.
Leondard James Akaar ws in the TOS comic series "The Trial of James Kirk."
UESPA from "Tomorrow Is Yesterday" also was mentioned in "Charlie X" - Kirk records in his log that "you-spa" HQ was notified of the loss of the science vessel Antares (where Charlie made a warped baffle plate 'go away').
UESPA could be pronounced you-spa.
I think there's still room for a distinct Earth contribution agency to Starfleet, even as late as Kirk's time. It may have ceased to be of any relevance as time went on, but in Kirk's time, it still has some contribution of personnel, training guidance for Terran recruits to Starfleet, and directing Terran-crewed starships. The Vulcans may have a similar organization (Vulcan Science Academy?) that contributes personnel, training guidance and such for Vulcans who crew ships such as the U.S.S. Intrepid (and presumably, its replacement).
In fact, UESPA may still handle small ships like the Antares, a carryover from pre-Federation days before Starfleet had much of a fleet of modern ships.
By Picard's time, Earth seems to be the "capital" of the Federation, and as America became a microcosm of world cultures and races, Earth has become a microcosm of Federation cultures and races. Chinatown is now Boliantown, for example.
As to Kirk's use of it in "Tomorrow is Yesterday", he may have latched onto it so that he didn't make it totally obvious to Christopher that there is now a United Nations of Outer Space. UESPA kind of breaks it in gently, although Christopher immediately ignored the "United" part and seized on "Earth". "What?!" he was probably thinking. "You UFO people are using the term 'earth'?"
Whatever happened to the Tribbles? Are they still multiplying or what??
Were those really SKIRTS that the men were wearing in Enounter at Farpoint??? I thought they were at first, but then I did a double take and figured they were just high-cut shorts.
Well, if they are skirts, then I think justice has finally been done to the male species that forced the women into tiny little suits in TOS!!
I pay good money to see Kirk, Picard, or Riker trying to put on pantyhose!!! HA!
We find out in "Trials and Tribble-ations".
"Do they still sing songs of the Great Tribble Hunt?"
mertz - Were those really SKIRTS that the men were wearing in Enounter at Farpoint???
Technically they were called Skants, but yes.
I think you can see them on extras in a few episodes of the first season before TPTB dropped them.