Knossos Greek mythology, King Minos dwelt in a palace at Knossos. He had Daedalus construct a labyrinth, a very large maze (by some connected with the double-bladed axe, or "labrys") in which to retain his son, the Minotaur. Daedalus also built a dancing floor for Queen Ariadne. The name "Knossos" was subsequently adopted by Arthur Evans. As far as is currently known, it was William Stillman, the American consul who published Kalokairinos' discoveries, who, seeing the sign of the double axe on the massive walls partly uncovered by Kalokairinos, first associated the complex with the labyrinth of legend, calling the ruins
The Daedalus Variations original concept of an episode involving alternate realities was a room in Atlantis that shifts into alternate realities. However, the idea had several issues, including the possibility of no Atlantis in one reality, so Robert C. Cooper suggested using the "Daedalus". The final draft of "The Daedalus Variations" was completed on February 11. On February 12, the prosthetics meeting for the episode, as well as "The Seed", "Broken Ties" and "Whispers" took place, which most likely involved the unknown aliens featured from the episode. The appearance of the aliens was revealed in the advertisement for the episode on July 27.