Have bodily functions been abolished in the Star Trek universe?

Question

The more modern uniforms seem, in general, to be lacking significantly when it comes to easy access for bodily function purposes (ahem). This suggests that access is nowhere near as high in demand.

Is there a satisfactory explanation for this in-universe? Perhaps, far enough in the future, bodily functions will no longer be a required part of life?

From this thread, toilets do exist. I'd put the uniforms in the same category as female warriors' armour that leaves a lot of skin exposed: it's meant to look good, not practical or realistic. — , Jan 28 '11 at 19:20
@eliyahu-g The brigs have them, there just isn't any privacy. They slide out of the wall the same as the sink. — , Apr 06 '16 at 15:57
Reminds me of the old joke that goes: "Picard to transporter room 3. Beam the contents of my bladder 300 meters off the starboard bow." — , Apr 06 '16 at 15:58
Would sex count as a bodily function for this question? Because... well... it's clear people still have sex. — Ellesedil, Apr 06 '16 at 18:26
There appear to be two questions here, both duplicates; https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/227207/how-to-take-off-a-one-piece-uniform, https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/1241/where-does-human-waste-go-when-going-to-the-toilet-in-the-star-trek-universe — Valorum, May 24 '20 at 18:26
It's also possible to engineer symbionts or gut bacteria that are a lot more efficient about digesting waste — blueberryfields, Jul 13 '20 at 17:54

score 21 · Accepted Answer · answered Jan 28 '11 at 19:52

21

I don't think it's stretching the imagination much to think that possibly the uniforms have better accessibility than they look, or than they would if made using present-day technology. If we can have warp drives and FTL nanoprocessors, we can probably have invisible fabric seams that separate easily when tugged a certain way (clearly that way is not a quick tug downward from both sides of the torso) and rejoin as readily.

answered Jan 28 '11 at 19:52

chaos

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These types of clothing seams were in Asimov's Robots series.. they looked solid until touched in the proper way. – Jonny Blaze Jan 28 '11 at 20:24
+1 for a quick tug downward from both sides...seriously, if uniforms are made so much better, can't they fit better too?? – morganpdx Jan 28 '11 at 20:55
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From the common disasters wrought by the average touch screen, I better hope touch cloth is thoroughly debugged before it goes public. – MPelletier Jan 28 '11 at 21:35
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I would prefer a small transporter inserted r... – DampeS8N Jan 29 '11 at 23:59

score 4 · Answer 2 · edited Jan 27 '12 at 18:51

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I prefer to stretch the imagination and guess that the uniforms are fitted with one-way-nano-beam-me-up-drives that do not require routine maintenance. (One-way is the key part of the description.)

edited Jan 27 '12 at 18:51

Kevin

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answered Jan 28 '11 at 22:31

foldinglettuce

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Gives a whole new meaning to transporter malfunction. – Apr 12 '11 at 02:52
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Sorry sir, it appears that part of your rectum found its way into the transporter opening. – Lee Louviere Feb 17 '12 at 14:42

Have bodily functions been abolished in the Star Trek universe?

2 Answers2