A mediocre episode where an experiment by Wesley not only interferes with a long awaited study of a binary star but the very safety of the ship and crew due to the creation of nanites, which are self replicating throughout the computer and wreaking havoc. As with most of this series, the episode is self-contained, which I like, and they arrive at an unsatisfying solution in the last few minutes. 42/100
shareWhile Wesley's a bummer, I think there are valuable things in the episode. The creation of a new species and exploration of nanotechnology was cool. Coolest of all, though, is Picard's reaction and his disinclination to take the easy way out of genocide even to save the ship and all the hundreds of lives thereon. This is one of the sharpest illustrations of Star Trek's core principles, and the conflict with the scientist who wants to bulldoze a new civilization just because he can't see them as "people" is great conflict.
So, while it sucks that Wesley pussyfoots around (it's life-and-death, pipsqueak, just tell them what you did), overall I think the episode has some great "classic Trek" moments.