then deactivates him. In the aftermath, Hugh becomes leader of the Borg group and the Enterprise returns to Federation space. Data reports that Lore is to be disassembled permanently and that he intends to destroy the emotion chip, as it is "too dangerous", citing the harm he has inflicted under its influence. La Forge intervenes and advises him to keep the chip until he is ready. Production At a screening for the 1991 documentary film A Brief History of Time, which was based on the book of the same name by British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, Hawking was introduced to the audience by veteran Trek actor Leonard Nimoy. A Brief History executive producer Gordon Freedman told Nimoy that Hawking was an avid Star Trek fan. It was subsequently arranged for Hawking to visit the set of Star Trek: The Next Generation, which included an opportunity for him to sit in the captain's chair. Freedman told the show's executive producer, Rick Berman, that Hawking would appear on the show if asked. Hawking accepted the ensuing offer, marking the first time a guest star played himself on an episode of any Star Trek series. After he was sent the script, he made some modifications to it, including improving a humorous line of dialogue to make it funnier, which Berman called "delightful". Later, when actor Brent Spiner, who appeared in the scene with Hawking, first read the script and saw that Hawking was a character in it, he imagined that he might be asked to play the scientist, as he had played multiple roles in episodes before. Spiner was excited, however, to learn that Hawking had agreed to play himself, leading Spiner to remark, "But I still think the guy cost me an Emmy". Filming of the scene drew a crowd of staff people, including some who were not working on the scene but pretended to have a work-related reason to be there according to screenwriter Ronald D. Moore. Between camera setups, Hawking was placed in a closet-sized room at his request, because such solitude allowed him to think without distractions. Berman related that of all the notable people he had met through the course of his career, including presidents and business magnates, the visitor who stood out above the rest was Hawking. This episode is the only episode to have the episode title and opening credits listed during the cold open, before