Quote:
Originally Posted by thatguamguy
Spock is still in Vulcan logic mode; he needs to solve the problem of getting the whales back to the 23rd Century (which he believes includes getting their permission). The mystery of the probe is not relevant. And it seems as if mind-melding is usually not that easy, it's often very draining, and the less humanoid the mind, the harder it seems to be (think of the Horta, although that might've been because she was dying).
From the other direction, since George and Gracie were raised in captivity, they would not necessarily be aware of any historical knowledge about the probe, even assuming it was passed down generationally amongst the whale intelligentsia.
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It would be logical for Spock to determine the probability of their plan succeeding or any other factors which could potentially work for them or against them.
Since Spock is being diligent enough to get the whale's permission from them, the reasons why would surely have been discussed. Unless Spock told them they were going to take them to the 23rd century where they'll be the only whales in existence, and the whales just said "Century, schmentury! Whatever."
It would not be logical for Spock to assume that there is no pertinent information that could possibly be gained from the whales before putting his plan into action, and therefore didn't bother enquiring. For the sake of the movie though, I'm happy it's not made into a big thing.
And if the factor of George and Gracie being raised in captivity precludes them having knowledge of the probe handed down to them, then that would also have precluded them from having learned the behaviour of whale song, which is the crucial aspect of their inclusion in the story.
The mystery of the probe is very relevant to the people and the whales involved. It's just not relevant to the story and it is, in fact, desirable to leave it a mystery. (Might have been cool for Spock to tell Kirk that they discussed the subject of the probe and he asked what it meant etc , to which the whales replied, enigmatically "We shall see." Or some kind of humpback humour.)