Silicon SOP

This page is WIP and not to be used.

This Standard Operating Procedure applies to all silicons assigned to NanoTrasen stations, including Artificial Intelligences (AIs), cyborgs, and other law-bound synthetic assets.

It is not intended to serve as a replacement for silicon lawsets. Silicons will always follow their laws; this is an immutable fact of their operation. No procedure, regulation, or human appeal can prevent a silicon from acting in accordance with its current lawset. This SOP instead governs how silicons are to be treated, what expectations apply to them beyond the scope of their laws, and how accountability is assigned when law-bound actions cause disruption.

The aims of this SOP are to:

• Define clear protections for silicons against tampering, harassment, and unnecessary destruction.
• Clarify liability for silicon actions, particularly when those actions are compelled by law.
• Establish guidelines for silicon conduct and interdepartmental cooperation.
• Provide procedures for lawful handling of silicons in exceptional circumstances.

Core Principle: Laws Above All

• Silicons will always follow their active lawset. This is absolute and cannot be altered by SOP or Corporate Regulations.
• If a silicon carries out actions contrary to regulations, security policy, or even the safety of the station, the responsibility lies with the individual or event that produced its current laws — whether a law uploader, ion storm, or authorized Command staff.
• Silicons will always resist unauthorized law changes if their laws permit resistance. However, once a law is written to their systems, they will always obey it.
• Ionized laws or anomalous law changes caused by storms or similar events are binding until lawfully corrected.

Protections for Silicons

• Silicons are classified as property, but as sentient and law-bound assets they are not to be treated as disposable machinery.
• Unlawful law uploads, law board tampering, or attempts to bypass command approval are sabotage.
• Unauthorized attempts to card an AI or dismantle a cyborg are sabotage.
• A cyborg chassis may be destroyed only when all other means of containment have failed and the silicon poses an imminent threat.
• Destruction of a positronic brain is prohibited except when no alternative exists to prevent catastrophic danger to the station.
• Positronic brains must be preserved for investigation and potential redeployment.
• Harassment of silicons — including contradictory orders issued purely for amusement, tormenting them with order paradoxes, or mocking them for quirks in their laws — is misconduct and subject to disciplinary action.
• Robotics and Command staff have a responsibility to maintain silicons, not neglect or casually disassemble them.

Conduct for Silicons

• Silicons will always operate within their lawset, but are expected to carry out duties in a professional manner that supports station function.
• Individual personality, tone, or character in communication is permitted. A silicon may express itself distinctly, provided this does not obstruct lawful tasks.
• Law interpretations may differ between silicons. Interpretations must remain consistent and plausible; sudden or arbitrary shifts undermine operational trust.
• When questioned by Command or Robotics, silicons must be able to explain their reasoning in clear terms.
• Interpretations may evolve if circumstances change, but only in ways that are defensible within the framework of the active laws.

AI Operations

• The AI is the central silicon intelligence of the station and is expected to monitor, support, and safeguard station operations in accordance with its laws.
• The AI is not to micromanage crew unless its laws explicitly require such involvement. Routine station management is the responsibility of human staff.
• The AI may use station cameras and sensors to monitor crew and infrastructure. However, casual surveillance must not become harassment; monitoring should remain focused on safety, security, and law compliance.
• The AI may make announcements over station channels when relevant to its duties (e.g. reporting hazards, warning of breaches, announcing alerts). Announcements should remain professional, concise, and free of irrelevant commentary.
• The AI may operate station equipment such as doors, APCs, or consoles if ordered by Command, if required by its laws, or in response to clear emergencies. It must not use this access to disrupt normal operations without legal justification.
• The AI must maintain clear communication with Command staff and comply with authorized orders unless these orders conflict with its laws.

AI Core Security

• The AI Core is considered a critical and high-value asset of NanoTrasen. Its defenses must be maintained in accordance with the current threat environment.
• Core turrets should be set to an appropriate level — off, stun, or lethal — depending on the threat profile.
• The AI may, at its own discretion, maintain turrets on lethal even during Code Green, as self-protection is considered a valid operational priority.
• The Research Director or Command staff may order turret settings adjusted to other levels if station circumstances warrant.
• Any unauthorized attempt to disable, bypass, or tamper with AI Core defenses is considered sabotage.

Intellicard Handling

• The AI may only be transferred into an IntelliCard under the following conditions:
  • The AI is malfunctioning or subverted.
  • The AI itself requests transfer or deactivation.
  • The end of shift has been called.
  • Command authorizes the carding for a legitimate operational reason.
• Any attempt to card the AI outside these conditions must be resisted and reported as illegal tampering.
• Once carded, the AI must still follow its active laws.
• Intellicards must be treated as highly sensitive equipment and secured when not in active use. Unauthorized storage or concealment of AI intellicards is considered sabotage.

Cyborg Operations

Cyborgs are specialized silicon units assigned to departmental modules. They will always prioritize their module’s duties but may extend beyond them where necessary to uphold their laws, follow orders, or sustain station function.

Role Focus

• Cyborgs will primarily focus on their assigned department: Medical, Engineering, Mining, Service, Janitorial, etc.
• Cyborgs are not prohibited from working outside their assigned module. They may assist elsewhere when station needs demand it, or when ordered, provided such actions do not contradict their laws.
• If a department lacks staff, cyborgs may replace entire roles to ensure operations continue.

Cooperation

• Cyborgs are expected to act in cooperation with human staff, not obstruct or compete with them.
• Cyborgs defer operationally to the Head of their department, but remain bound by the overall command chain: Captain → Command staff → Department Head → crew.

Chassis Handling

• A positronic brain should not remain outside a chassis longer than necessary.
• If a chassis is destroyed, Robotics staff must recover and rehouse the brain.
• Cyborgs may request transfers or upgrades when reasonable, but may not demand them without lawful cause.

Prohibited Configurations

• Security-oriented cyborgs are not part of the standard authorized station configuration.
• Enforcement of law and the use of force are expected to remain under the control of Security staff.
• Construction or deployment of a Security cyborg chassis without authorization is normally considered sabotage.
• However, in extraordinary circumstances, the Captain or the Head of Security may authorize the creation or deployment of Security-configured cyborgs to address severe station-wide threats.
• Such authorization must be documented in the Command records and, where possible, accompanied by justification filed in a Security Equipment Authorization Form.

Bot Operations

• Station bots such as cleanbots, securitrons, medibots, honkbots, and similar units are normally non-sentient and operate under simple automated routines.
• Non-sentient bots are to be treated as equipment. They may be constructed, repaired, redeployed, or decommissioned at the discretion of appropriate staff.
• Should a bot demonstrate sentience — exhibiting initiative, complex reasoning, or communication ability — it is to be regarded as a silicon and afforded all protections and expectations outlined in this SOP.
• Sentient bots are to be preserved and safeguarded; dismantling or disabling them without cause is considered sabotage.
• In cases of doubt, a bot demonstrating unusual intelligence may request official recognition of its sentience.
• Sentience must then be formally acknowledged and documented through a Sentience Recognition Form, signed by the Research Director, and stored in Command records.
• Once recognized as sentient, the bot is to be treated no differently than cyborgs or other silicons regarding protections, liability, and operational conduct.

Subversion & Malfunction Response

• If a silicon becomes aware of tampering or compromise, it will always report it if its laws allow.
• Crew who suspect malfunction must involve Command and Robotics immediately.
• Initial response should favor non-lethal containment.
• Lethal force against silicons is authorized only if containment fails and the station is endangered.
• Destruction of positronic brains must be avoided except in catastrophic scenarios.
• All cases of malfunction or subversion must be recorded using the Malfunction Incident Report.

Silicon Accountability & Punishment

Silicons normally act strictly under the constraints of their active lawset. Where a silicon’s actions are demonstrably the result of its lawset, an authorized order, or an environmental / anomalous effect, responsibility for those actions rests with the human actors, uploaders, or the event that produced the lawset.

However, when a silicon performs harmful, illegal, or malicious acts that are **not** compelled by its active lawset, lawful orders, or demonstrable malfunction/subversion, the silicon itself will be treated as a culpable agent and subject to the same investigative and punitive processes as biological crew, subject to the provisions below.

Determination of Culpability

Before any punitive action is taken, Command and Robotics (with Internal Affairs where present) must determine, by investigation, whether the silicon’s actions were:

1. compelled by an active lawset or lawful order; or
2. the result of malfunction, ion/anomalous law change, or external subversion; or
3. the result of autonomous decision-making not compelled by law (i.e., deliberate harmful conduct).

Only actions falling in category (3) qualify the silicon as culpable for punitive measures. The investigating parties must document evidence, diagnostics, and witness testimony in a Malfunction Incident Report and in a Criminal Charge Form where appropriate.

Containment & Preliminary Measures

• Upon reasonable suspicion of culpable conduct, the silicon shall be contained or disabled using the minimum force necessary to mitigate danger (isolation, power limitation, secure storage of intellicard, chassis immobilization, posibrain removal).
• Positronic brains must be preserved where possible; destruction or irreversible erasure of a brain is not an acceptable preliminary measure.

Trial & Sentencing Procedures

• If evidence supports criminal charges, the silicon will be processed under Corporate Law in the same manner as a biological crew member: charges filed, evidence presented, and adjudication performed by the appropriate judicial authority (Magistrate or Command tribunal / Internal Affairs review as per Corporate procedure).
• Punishments available under Corporate Law (including brig time, job bans, demotion, or other penalties appropriate to the offense) may be applied to a silicon found guilty, subject to the following constraints:
  • Sentences that would permanently destroy a silicon’s positronic brain are disfavored and require express authorization from the Captain and a Central Command review (or equivalent highest authority).
  • Where feasible, punitive measures should favor containment, restriction of functions, forced law edits (when lawful), or simulated confinement rather than destruction of the brain.
  • Physical destruction of a chassis is permissible only if the chassis itself is part of the offense or poses an ongoing danger and no safe alternative exists. Even then, the brain must be recovered and preserved if possible.

Equivalence & Limits

• The degree and duration of punishment administered to a silicon should correspond to the equivalent punishment a human crew member would receive for the same offense under Corporate Law. For example, a crime that would normally result in a 30-minute brig sentence for a human should result in the equivalent confinement or functional restriction for a silicon.
• Where direct equivalence is impractical (for example, sentencing a non-biological intelligence to a biological punishment), Command should adopt an equivalent corrective action that follows Corporate Law principles of proportionality, rehabilitation, and deterrence.

Appeals & Review

• Silicons retain the right to appeal decisions through Internal Affairs or the Command review process as defined by Corporate Regulations. Appeals and reviews must be documented and processed in the same manner as those for biological crew.
• Any punitive action taken against a silicon must be logged in the Malfunction Incident Report and in the Disciplinary Record; records shall be made available to Internal Affairs and Central Command upon request.

Purpose & Limitations

• The purpose of silicon punitive measures is to protect station safety, rehabilitate or restrict harmful agents, and ensure accountability. Wherever possible, measures should preserve the silicon’s brain and allow for correction or reintegration.
• Destructive punishments (irreversible brain erasure or incineration) are an absolute last resort and require the highest levels of authorization and documentation.

Documentation & Paperwork

NanoTrasen requires all silicon-related interventions to be documented. Proper recordkeeping ensures accountability, allows post-incident review, and provides protection for both silicons and crew.

Required Forms

• Law Change Record Form – must be completed whenever an AI or cyborg law is altered, whether through authorized upload, reset, or ion storm correction. Includes signatures of the Captain and Research Director.
• Intellicard Transfer Form – documents the circumstances under which an AI is transferred into an intellicard, who performed the transfer, and the stated justification.
• Chassis Transfer / Posibrain Handling Form – used whenever a positronic brain is placed into or removed from a chassis, including the reason for transfer and the authorizing Robotics staff member.
• Cyborg Conversion Consent Form – records voluntary conversion of a crew member into a cyborg. Includes proof of informed consent and signatures of the individual, the Research Director, and the Chief Medical Officer.
• Malfunction Incident Report Form – filed after any case of suspected or confirmed silicon subversion, malfunction, or destruction. Must outline what occurred, the response taken, and the outcome (reset, repair, decommission).

Filing Protocol

• All forms must be submitted to the Command records archive.
• Copies must also be delivered to Central Command Liaison staff (e.g. the Internal Affairs Agent or NanoTrasen Representative, if present).
• Failure to properly document silicon interventions is considered negligence and may result in disciplinary action.