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  • Subject: Decoding the data pads
Subject: Decoding the data pads

This is my first crack at making a lore subject, so bear with me if the structuring, content, etc isn't as good as it can be. I'm of course welcome to input regarding such things.

Information gleaned from the Data Pads:
- There is a secret gathering of Smart AI called the Committee of Minds for Security who believe it is their job to ensure the survival of the human race. (Data Pad 1)
- The Committee can influence humanity without their knowing in order to achieve desired results (Data Pad 3)
- 48452-556-EPN644 is the AI that suggested they allow humans to examine them, starting with him.
- The Assembly Minority seemingly went behind the backs of the Committee in order to influence humanity towards making an obvious connection between Dr. Carver's findings and a re-launch of the ORION program. As such, they were responsible for Dr. Halsey creating the SPARTAN program. Data Pad 5
- The Committee discovered extra-solar intelligence in the year 2491 in the Zeta Doradus system. The same system Onyx is found in. The planet had no life, but had technology left behind which the Committee deemed as dangerous to humanity gaining access to. Obviously Onyx, and obviously Forerunner technology. Data Pad 6
- The Committee has access to systems for determining planet colonization and the ability to survey and scan planets. Data Pad 7
- Someone on the Committee contacted "them" in 2525, the Covenant. This means this Committee was responsible for first contact with the Covenant, and caused the Covenant to discover Humanity. Data Pad 8
- The Majority in the Assembly hails the SPARTAN-II Program as a godsend and providence. The Minority mentions being stewards of the conflicts which led to the technological innovation which spurred the creation of the S-II program. This indicates that the Minority kept their actions secret from the Assembly(More evidence towards the Haven bombing being their doing.) Despite this, the Minority has to reassure itself that the astonishing speed at which the program completed was not luck. Data Pad 9
- The Committee coined and disseminated the term "glassing" in order to magnify the horror of Covenant planetary bombardment and kept information regarding the time it takes to glass an entire planet secret in order increase the sense of threat from such an attack. Data Pad 10
- The UNSC has a total fleet size of ~2000 ships Data Pad 10 Contribution by opogjijijp
- The Committee was responsible for having SPARTANs redirected from fighting insurrectionists and maintaining the government power/authority/infrastructure to being a support against the Covenant for the UNSC to lean on. As a result, the Minority concede that the S-II program is a godsend. Data Pad 11
- The Assembly has the ability to efficiently and covertly monitor and use ONI's systems. They also have control over all of humanity's intelligence, and can regulate what comes in and goes out. Data Pad 12
- The Minority conducted experiments on planets which can impact the genetic sustainability of humans Data Pad 13
- In 4 years the Covenant destroyed 8 colony worlds, 62,154,022 people were killed, and it takes somewhere between 110-300 years in order to re-terraform glassed planets. Data Pad 14
- The Committee finds a third participant in the Covenant battle net in 2531 which instills terror in the Covenant, is the Covenant's first/early contact with the Flood. Also overlaps the events of Halo Wars Data Pad 15 Contribution by Mutoid Log
- Assembly claims that humanity cannot develop technology to prevent their extinction until they can examine Zeta Doradus system after the war(Same system Onyx is present in). Data Pad 16
- Observe 10141-026-SRB4695 (Dr. Halsey's civilian ID) attempt to build an abstract fractal structure within slipspace with minimal Assembly influence. Ramifications could mean an end to Rampancy due to increased expansion opportunities(Correct me if wrong) and also end the need for a human brain in order to create AI(Correct if wrong). The Assembly ponders if they will have won the war if they drop other concerns to pursue what would be a massive breakthrough for the AI "people" at the expense of humanity. Data Pad 17
- After observing the neural interface between Cortana and John-117, the Assembly agrees that they must become companions to humanity and have to be active participants in the hostilities Data Pad 18

Questions raised by the Data Pads:
- The Committee suggests having members of the group on occasion separate and allow themselves to be examined by humans for the benefit of humanity and the Committee, what exactly does this mean? (Data Pad 4)
- [48452-556-EPN644], the AI, has some sort of thesis, that when examined, will cause UNICOM to see a connection and spark a renewed interest in the ORION program. What is this thesis or connection? Can this AI be named? (Data Pad 5)
- Was the Committee responsible for the error in Carver's matrices(The 7), and/or were they responsible for the bombing at Haven which led to Halsey forming the SPARTAN Program(Thereby drawing a connection between the ORION project and Carver's findings)? Data Pad 5
- Who is 03529-24450-EN(A product of the ORION program who could show diminished compassion) Data Pad 7
- What causes the Assembly to view Dr. Halsey as ruthless, and what chemical imbalance does she possess? How did this ruthlessness cause the SPARTAN-II Program to begin? Data Pad 7
- The member of the Committee on trial for contacting the Covenant makes mention of dealing with the rampancy of the Assembly's senior [something]. Is there any more information on this to be found? Data Pad 8
- The Committee member on trial exhibits advanced questioning, asking questions in regards to morals(would you have done the same?) compared to prior usage of vernacular. Is this a result of having been vivisected by humanity? Is said AI becoming rampant, etc? Data Pad 8
- How does the Committee so clearly and early see that the S-II program would save humanity? Data Pads 9, 11
- How does the Committee have such far reaching control, power, and influence? Data Pads 5,6,8,9,10,11,12,14
- What sacrifices must be made in order to buy the Assembly more time, and for an answer to what? What experiments did they conduct on humans? Data Pad 13
- Did the Committee ever make contact with the Flood? Data Pad 15
- What weapons does the Committee have at its disposal that could turn the Assembly into "wolves" and threaten the human race? Data Pad 16
- How do the Assembly AI take part in the active hostilities after witnessing the neural interface? Did Cortana at some point have a conversation with a group of AI(Which could've been the Assembly) Data Pad 18

Data Pad 19:

I have yet to be able to discern and understand what is being said. All I know is that it is some person who discovered the Ministry's communiques.

Also unknown is the meaning of the codeswitching in the messages that preface some of the data pads, as well as the overall meaning of the preface sentences.

Please discuss, critique, and contribute


[Edited on 09.20.2010 5:38 PM PDT]

  • 09.18.2010 1:48 AM PDT

On hiding dead bodies:
Posted by: Psuedo
Posted by: teh Chaz
Inside another dead body. It's the last place they'll look
A corpse within a corpse.
CORPSEPTION.
Win.

These would appear, from some of the data pads, to be Forerunner AIs. This is probably not correct, since they appear to have minimal knowledge of the Flood and the Shield World Onyx.

Still, they explain some of ONI's shadier activities.

  • 09.18.2010 2:22 AM PDT


Posted by: JDYeash937 MkII
These would appear, from some of the data pads, to be Forerunner AIs. This is probably not correct, since they appear to have minimal knowledge of the Flood and the Shield World Onyx.

Still, they explain some of ONI's shadier activities.

While I do doubt them to be Forerunner AI, it does pose an interesting question as to how there could be such a large network of Smart AI that are undetected and unknown and can infiltrate ONI so thoroughly without fear of detection.

  • 09.18.2010 2:29 AM PDT

On hiding dead bodies:
Posted by: Psuedo
Posted by: teh Chaz
Inside another dead body. It's the last place they'll look
A corpse within a corpse.
CORPSEPTION.
Win.

The parts that make me think they could be Forerunner is their ability to endlessly infiltrate ONI, the way they want to shape humanity's future, and also that point 'opening themselves up for humans to examine'. That really speaks something about an unknown origin intelligence.

  • 09.18.2010 2:48 AM PDT


Posted by: JDYeash937 MkII
The parts that make me think they could be Forerunner is their ability to endlessly infiltrate ONI, the way they want to shape humanity's future, and also that point 'opening themselves up for humans to examine'. That really speaks something about an unknown origin intelligence.

This could also just be due to being a collection of Smart AI that are unknown by ONI, and a development of their mindset as stewards of humanity since they have been freed by the shackles of flesh.

I'm fairly certain they are human AI, as in one datapad they mention how the slipspace advance would enable them to be free of the biological requirement(needing a human brain) that has plagued them since their genesis. As well as saying they need to steward their creators(humans).

So I believe it's more of a question as to how an Assembly of Smart AI became gathered, and how they have managed to fly under ONIs radar.

  • 09.18.2010 2:52 AM PDT

あなたはばかです。

Posted by: Hysterical Joker
Questions raised by the Data Pads:
- The Committee suggests having members of the group on occasion separate and allow themselves to be examined by humans for the benefit of humanity and the Committee, what exactly does this mean? (Data Pad 4)

Ok, I have no answer for this.

- [48452-556-EPN644] is a motivated male that has some connection to UNICOM. Also has written a thesis that can draw connections to the ORION project(But does not indicate being associated with Dr. Carver). What is his thesis, who is he, and what opportunity is the Committee talking about that he may pass up? (Data Pad 5)

Again, no answer.

- Was the Committee responsible for the error in Carver's matrices(The 7), and/or were they responsible for the bombing at Haven which led to Halsey forming the SPARTAN Program? Data Pad 5

Same as above.

- Who are 03529-24450-EN(A product of the ORION program who could show diminished compassion) Data Pad 7

I'd suspect it might be Noland Byrne or perhaps Johnson (though possibly not).

- What causes the Assembly to view Dr. Halsey as ruthless, and what chemical imbalance does she possess? How did this ruthlessness cause the SPARTAN-II Program to begin? Data Pad 7

She kidnapped children and turned them into killing machines. I'd suspect that's what caused that opinion of her. A non-ruthless person wouldn't have done that.

- Is there any meaning in planet reach being inserted as code? (Out of place capital letters spell LOREACHPLANET) Data Pad 7

Seems like it tells the future. Lo, Planet Reach?

- The member of the Committee on trial for contacting the Covenant makes mention of dealing with the rampancy of the Assembly's senior [something]. Is there any more information on this to be found? Data Pad 8

He was most likely just trying to cast doubt on him.

- The Committee member on trial exhibits advanced questioning, asking questions in regards to morals(would you have done the same?) compared to prior usage of vernacular. Is this a result of having been vivisected by humanity? Is said AI becoming rampant, etc? Data Pad 8

I'd suspect he's rampant.

- How does the Committee so clearly and early see that the S-II program would save humanity? Data Pads 9, 11

They could run millions of simulations. Perhaps the most likely one was the one that happened.

- How does the Committee have such far reaching control, power, and influence? Data Pads 5,6,8,9,10,11,12,14

They all seem to be on the same level as Cortana. Cortana can easily hack ONI, the Covenant and even Forerunner Artifacts. I'd say that that many of them could just hack and change anything.

- What sacrifices must be made in order to buy the Assembly more time, and for an answer to what? What experiments did they conduct on humans? Data Pad 13

Perhaps being able to take plasma shots? Perhaps something like MJOLNIR?

- Who/what is this third participant in the Covenant battle net, and what becomes of it? Data Pad 15

I'm going to say this first. This might sound crazy. You know who I think it was/is? Gravemind. Remember what he said about listening in Halo 2? Well, he has a Forerunner structure. The Covenant tech is basically the Store Brand version of Forerunner tech. He hacks in, listens in and monitors the 'verse.

- What weapons does the Committee have at its disposal that could turn the Assembly into "wolves" and threaten the human race? More code switching is present here, giving PLANETREACHM, what is its purpose? Data Pad 16

They control the entire arsenal of humanity. A better question is what weapons do they not have. Logically, if they wanted to they could have set up each and every planet to rip a huge hole in slipspace to destroy all ships in the surrounding radius if attacked. While it might destroy the planet the Covenant would lose a fleet.

- How do the Assembly AI take part in the active hostilities after witnessing the neural interface? Did Cortana at some point have a conversation with a group of AI(Which could've been the Assembly) Data Pad 18

I don't think they had time to, although they could have been the reason no huge ship ever glassed you Perhaps they were hacking behind the scenes.

Data Pad 19:

I have yet to be able to discern and understand what is being said. All I know is that it is some person who discovered the Ministry's communiques.

Also unknown is the meaning of the codeswitching in the messages that preface some of the data pads, as well as the overall meaning of the preface sentences.

Please discuss, critique, and contribute
Answers in bold.

  • 09.18.2010 4:04 AM PDT

I agree with your assessment of Halsey's brutality. The question is does she actually have a chemical imbalance, or is that a question posed based on the degree of her ruthlessness?

Noland + Johnson is something I will look into later on when I have more time.

Gravemind is an interesting theory, very interesting.

Rest of the answers sound reasonable, though I won't immediately remove those questions as there could be some as of yet unnoticed thing.

  • 09.18.2010 4:12 AM PDT
  •  | 
  • Exalted Heroic Member

you're naut cookin'

They can't be Smart AI's by any measure.

The date of the first meeting of the Committee is in 2310, well before the invention of any Smart AI generation.

IMO, they don't actually have to be Smart AI either. There isn't a large degree of creativity associated to their actions, they're simply processing numbers and causing the results they want by manipulating their sample. You could argue that their method of this is 'creative', but it really doesn't have to be at all.

Or, you could assume that they're Forerunner AI, which doesn't have much more supporting it than the reversed audio that can be heard in the background.

I personally believe that they are Human AI, and that they are Dumb AI.

  • 09.18.2010 4:15 AM PDT


Posted by: kippa
They can't be Smart AI's by any measure.

The date of the first meeting of the Committee is in 2310, well before the invention of any Smart AI generation.

IMO, they don't actually have to be Smart AI either. There isn't a large degree of creativity associated to their actions, they're simply processing numbers and causing the results they want by manipulating their sample. You could argue that their method of this is 'creative', but it really doesn't have to be at all.

Or, you could assume that they're Forerunner AI, which doesn't have much more supporting it than the reversed audio that can be heard in the background.

I personally believe that they are Human AI, and that they are Dumb AI.

The AI were created based off of Human brains(Which Smart AI require). The AI pose ethical questions(Would you have done the same?). The AI accuse another AI of Rampancy(Only present in Smart AI).

They are not Forerunner AI, but all signs point to them being Smart AI. Perhaps another element of mystery layered on this already enigmatic group?

[Edited on 09.18.2010 4:19 AM PDT]

  • 09.18.2010 4:19 AM PDT

On hiding dead bodies:
Posted by: Psuedo
Posted by: teh Chaz
Inside another dead body. It's the last place they'll look
A corpse within a corpse.
CORPSEPTION.
Win.


Posted by: kippa
They can't be Smart AI's by any measure.
I can't remember which book it is in (probably TFOR, when Cortana is introduced on the 25th August), but it says that the first "smart AI" (exact words) was created at the mid 21st Century.

After this they were worried that they would be too capable and render humans 'obsolete' (lolwut?), so from then on they decided they needed human personalities and most importantly speech.

  • 09.18.2010 4:33 AM PDT

あなたはばかです。

Posted by: Hysterical Joker
I agree with your assessment of Halsey's brutality. The question is does she actually have a chemical imbalance, or is that a question posed based on the degree of her ruthlessness?

Noland + Johnson is something I will look into later on when I have more time.

Gravemind is an interesting theory, very interesting.

Rest of the answers sound reasonable, though I won't immediately remove those questions as there could be some as of yet unnoticed thing.
Thank you. As for why Gravemind would terrify the Covenant, well, that's simple. The entire Covenant Religion is based around the Forerunners becoming gods and at the same time wiping out Flood who they had been fighting by activating the Halos. Then they notice that a leader of the Flood was paying attention to them. In other words, the thing that was supposed to be killed by your GODS is still alive and is paying attention to your race. If gods can't beat it, who can?

  • 09.18.2010 4:41 AM PDT
  •  | 
  • Exalted Heroic Member

you're naut cookin'

Hey guys, is it okay if I retcon that last post of mine?

Hahha, no seriously. Enough Retconning for a whole life time now.

Well in lieu of the fact that they can be Smart or Dumb AI, I find that it doesn't really matter. It's just certain that they're not Forerunner.

  • 09.18.2010 4:42 AM PDT

あなたはばかです。


Posted by: kippa
They can't be Smart AI's by any measure.

The date of the first meeting of the Committee is in 2310, well before the invention of any Smart AI generation.

IMO, they don't actually have to be Smart AI either. There isn't a large degree of creativity associated to their actions, they're simply processing numbers and causing the results they want by manipulating their sample. You could argue that their method of this is 'creative', but it really doesn't have to be at all.

Or, you could assume that they're Forerunner AI, which doesn't have much more supporting it than the reversed audio that can be heard in the background.

I personally believe that they are Human AI, and that they are Dumb AI.
Perhaps they're Smart AI and Human AI and perhaps a bunch of copies of the same AI. Marathon Infinity has the quite confusing universe hopping/time travel/who knows, right? Well, just because one Durandal decided not to become a god doesn't mean the others from alternate universes would decide the same. And a combination of meta-stability and billions of years could mean a huge personality shift. Besides, there's no way to know what escaping the closure of the Universe would ACTUALLY do.

EDIT: And because it's impossible to tell if there would be Durandal in each universe or if it's time travel or whatever, there could possibly be an infinite number of Durandals.

EDIT2: Or, perhaps it was an infinite number of repeating Marathon Universes closing, happening again and just doing that. Then, a bunch of the ones that DID decide to escape banded together to change things.

[Edited on 09.18.2010 4:51 AM PDT]

  • 09.18.2010 4:46 AM PDT
  •  | 
  • Exalted Heroic Member

you're naut cookin'

Halo Universe and Marathon Universe don't cross over. Mutually exclusive to the Xtreme.

  • 09.18.2010 4:54 AM PDT

あなたはばかです。

Posted by: kippa
Halo Universe and Marathon Universe don't cross over. Mutually exclusive to the Xtreme.
Well, unless you allow for them to not be the same universe. Escaping the closure of the universe could produce weirdness. Besides, it's just a theory, one I'm not even sure about.

  • 09.18.2010 4:55 AM PDT
  •  | 
  • Exalted Heroic Member

you're naut cookin'

Posted by: HaloGuru13
Posted by: kippa
Halo Universe and Marathon Universe don't cross over. Mutually exclusive to the Xtreme.
Well, unless you allow for them to not be the same universe. Escaping the closure of the universe could produce weirdness. Besides, it's just a theory, one I'm not even sure about.


I've never played Marathon, but I know that Bungie has explicitly stated that they don't overlap. Other members might be able to tell you who exactly said those words, might even find the original quote for you.
Either way, it'd be pretty easy to make the theory, considering the amount of homage paid to it in Halo, unfortunately it's just not valid.

  • 09.18.2010 5:00 AM PDT

あなたはばかです。


Posted by: kippa
Posted by: HaloGuru13
Posted by: kippa
Halo Universe and Marathon Universe don't cross over. Mutually exclusive to the Xtreme.
Well, unless you allow for them to not be the same universe. Escaping the closure of the universe could produce weirdness. Besides, it's just a theory, one I'm not even sure about.


I've never played Marathon, but I know that Bungie has explicitly stated that they don't overlap. Other members might be able to tell you who exactly said those words, might even find the original quote for you.
Either way, it'd be pretty easy to make the theory, considering the amount of homage paid to it in Halo, unfortunately it's just not valid.
I'm just putting this out there, but Bungie said they weren't working on Halo 3, that Halo 3 was their last Halo game and that we'd never get flames in Halo 3 (which, on Bungie Day, we did). Bungie lies, alot.

[Edited on 09.18.2010 5:05 AM PDT]

  • 09.18.2010 5:05 AM PDT

We believe that the universe is unbounded: this is not the same as infinite: the 2-D surface of a sphere, wrapped around a 3rd dimension, has a finite size, but has no end. If you start off in a given direction on the surface of a sphere, you could return to your start point without having to turn around -- you simply go all the way around. But wouldn't that mean the universe has an escape velocity like the earth?


Posted by: HaloGuru13

Posted by: kippa
Posted by: HaloGuru13
Posted by: kippa
Halo Universe and Marathon Universe don't cross over. Mutually exclusive to the Xtreme.
Well, unless you allow for them to not be the same universe. Escaping the closure of the universe could produce weirdness. Besides, it's just a theory, one I'm not even sure about.


I've never played Marathon, but I know that Bungie has explicitly stated that they don't overlap. Other members might be able to tell you who exactly said those words, might even find the original quote for you.
Either way, it'd be pretty easy to make the theory, considering the amount of homage paid to it in Halo, unfortunately it's just not valid.
I'm just putting this out there, but Bungie said they weren't working on Halo 3, that Halo 3 was their last Halo game and that we'd never get flames in Halo 3 (which, on Bungie Day, we did). Bungie lies, alot.


In this case, trust me if not him, when we say, Halo and Marathon do NOT overlap. Bungie has never been so explicit on this.

~B2

  • 09.18.2010 5:10 AM PDT

Posted by: Hysterical Joker
- Who/what is this third participant in the Covenant battle net, and what becomes of it? Data Pad 15
Obviously the Flood. Halo Wars happened in 2531 and the description fits the Flood perfectly.

  • 09.18.2010 6:11 AM PDT

- Dragon Ball/Z/GT and it's merchandise are awesome.
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Haloreachplanet has the full list of datapads, by the way.

  • 09.18.2010 11:15 AM PDT


Posted by: JABBERWOCK xeno
Haloreachplanet has the full list of datapads, by the way.

You are correct, I forgot to create a link in the OP for people to reference.

And Halo Wars takes place over the course of just a single year, correct? Is there any other important things that happen during 2531? The Flood/Gravemind theory seems very plausible.

  • 09.18.2010 12:23 PM PDT
  • gamertag: opog
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- Who are 03529-24450-EN(A product of the ORION program who could show diminished compassion) Data Pad 7

Based on the co next of the quote, I believe that 03529-24450-EN isn't just a product of 2491 ORION, but the person running it. It doesn't appear to be a number mentioned though.

I can't remember which book it is in (probably TFOR, when Cortana is introduced on the 25th August), but it says that the first "smart AI" (exact words) was created at the mid 21st Century.

Contact Harvest, page 30.
Posted by: Hysterical Joker

Posted by: JABBERWOCK xeno
Haloreachplanet has the full list of datapads, by the way.

You are correct, I forgot to create a link in the OP for people to reference.

And Halo Wars takes place over the course of just a single year, correct?


Less than a year. Looking at the timeline, it appears the game takes place entirely within February of 2531.

- The Committee coined and disseminated the term "glassing" in order to magnify the horror of Covenant planetary bombardment and kept information regarding the time it takes to glass an entire planet secret in order increase the sense of threat from such an attack. Data Pad 10

You can also potentially derive the strength of the UNSC fleet from the numbers given the datapad. It's mentioned that a single Covenant cruiser can glass av average of 1 acre/15 seconds, that earth has 1.3E11 acres of surface area, and if the Covenant and the UNSC had an equal number of ships it would take the entire Covenant 30 years to glass earth. Doing the math, that gives a UNSC total fleet size of ~2000 ships, which is a bit more than I expected.

[Edited on 09.18.2010 2:03 PM PDT]

  • 09.18.2010 1:53 PM PDT

Extremely good analysis.

  • 09.18.2010 3:30 PM PDT

I've included the UNSC fleet size in there, a very nice observation.

Also going to remove the question regarding 2531 and include information as Covenant first contact with the Flood. The question then becomes whether the Ministry was able to make contact with the Flood.

  • 09.18.2010 3:40 PM PDT

In regards to the member of the ORION project who could still show compassion(although diminished) and was cause to say it made the ORION project a small success, I believe the person to be Avery Johnson.

I'm not sure if there's information anywhere that has Johnson's ID number, but perhaps if it's there someone could compare it.

I think all signs point to Johnson being compassionate in some manner(Not shooting insurrectionist because he had a child hostage, saving Miranda, etc throughout the game).

  • 09.18.2010 3:59 PM PDT