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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