In the fictional Star Trek universe, the Great Link is the natural state of Changelings on their home planet in the distant Gamma Quadrant of the Milky Way. The link appears as a giant ocean-like gelatinous form, physically consisting of the Changelings themselves. The Three Graces, here in a painting by Sandro Botticelli, were the goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity and fertility in Greek mythology. ... Star Trek collectively refers to a science-fiction franchise spanning six unique television series, 726 episodes and ten feature films in addition to hundreds of novels, computer and video games, fan stories and other works of fiction all set within the same fictional universe created by Gene Roddenberry in the... Changelings are an alien race from the Star Trek universe. ... A planet is generally considered to be a relatively large mass of accreted matter in orbit around a star that is not a star itself. ... In the fictional Star Trek series, the Milky Way Galaxy is divided into four quadrants, which are further subdivided into sectors. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... [[Image:http://www. ...

The Great Link was first explained in detail in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "The Search, Part II". While in the link, Changelings experience (according to the Female Changeling often seen) a "merging of form and thought, the sharing of idea and sensation". The Changeling Odo received some of his people's collective memory upon joining the link for the first time, but it is later revealed that many important aspects were concealed from him during the exchange. Space station Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (ST:DS9 or STDS9 or DS9 for short) is a science fiction television series produced by Paramount and set in the Star Trek universe. ... The Search is the title of a two-part Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode, from the third season. ... The Female Shapeshifter is a fictional character in the Star Trek: DS9 universe, one of a race of shapeshifting aliens. ... Collectivism, in general, is a term used to describe any doctrine that stresses the importance of a collective, rather than the importance of the individual. ... A hive mind (sometimes spelled hivemind) is a form of collective consciousness strongly exhibiting traits of conformity and groupthink. ... Odo is a shapeshifter played by Rene Auberjonois on the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. ... Collective memory is a term coined by Maurice Halbwachs, separating the notion from the individual memory. ...

External links

• Great Link article at Memory Alpha, the Star Trek wiki
• Article from STARTREK.COM about The Great Link
• Episode information from STARTREK.COM for "The Search, Part II"