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Vulcan (Star Trek)

Vulcan (Star Trek)

Vulcans are a humanoid species in the fictional Star Trek universe who reside on the planet Vulcan and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic. logic

Biology

Physical and mental attributes

The main external characteristics that distinguish Vulcans from humans are arched eyebrows and pointed ears. Vulcans, like humans, display different archetypal phenotypes which are comparable to several human phenotypes. Although most Vulcans have pale skin with a subtly greenish hue, and straight, glossy black or occasionally brown hair, some Vulcans have dark brown skin, tightly coiled black hair, and physiognomic features similar to those found in humans of African descent. Others share physiognomic features similar to those found in humans of East Asian descent. However, most Vulcans have a vaguely Eurasian appearance. Vulcan blood is copper-based and is green when oxygenated in the arteries and is copper or rust colored when deoxygenated in the veins. In general, Vulcans are three times physically stronger than humans, and live three times as long—Sarek lived just over two centuries and it has been suggested that Vulcans have a life expectancy of at least 250 Earth years. A Vulcan of less than a century in age is still considered young. The strength of Vulcans is often attributed to Vulcan's gravity being significantly greater than Earth's. It has also been attributed to their superior mental discipline. Vulcans prefer higher temperatures than humans do. In the original series episode "The Deadly Years" when Spock was affected by rapid aging he noted how cold the ship seemed, and he responded by turning the temperature in his room up to well above 100 °F (38 °C). They are also able to breathe a much thinner atmosphere than humans, due to the atmospheric conditions on the planet Vulcan. Vulcan females have a strong sense of smell, and Vulcans serving on Earth vessels initially required medication to lessen the odor of humans. (It has not yet been established whether Vulcan males have the same sense of smell.) Vulcans possess an inner eyelid, possibly analogous to a nictitating membrane, which protects their vision from bright lights, a physical adaptation that evolved due to the race's long-term exposure to desert conditions. In some circumstances the activation of the eyelid causes temporary blindness. Spock's inner eyelid was activated in the Original Series episode "Operation: Annihilate!". It is also mentioned in the Enterprise episode "The Forge"; during a journey across desert terrain, T'Pol says her inner eyelid protects her eyes in lieu of wearing sunglasses. The internal layout of Vulcan organs differs somewhat from that of humans, with the Vulcan heart located roughly where the human liver is situated. A small minority of Vulcans have a small V-shaped ridge above the bridge of their nose, similar to Romulans (among whom this attribute is common).

Pon farr

Periodically (every seven years for males, an undisclosed interval for females), Vulcans experience an overpowering mating drive known as pon farr. Once triggered, Vulcans must have sexual contact with someone, preferably their mate, or else face insanity and death. If a mate is not available, there are two other options that will relieve the effects of the pon farr, the first being meditation, where the Vulcan must overcome the urge to mate through mental discipline. The other option is a ritual combat, usually fought over a potential mate, that can calm the rages of pon farr. However, both of these methods are only used as a last resort. When he experienced pon farr in the Delta Quadrant, Tuvok of Voyager made use of a holodeck simulation of his wife to relieve his condition. Pon farr can be also triggered by infection. It was originally thought that Vulcans could only mate with Vulcans, but Vorik of Voyager pursued B'Elanna Torres during his pon farr, and T'Pol said she simply needed to mate with someone - anyone. The birth of Mr. Spock to a Vulcan father and a human mother, as well as the existence of an offspring of T'Pol and Trip Tucker in an alternate timeline, indicates that it is possible for Vulcans to conceive children with non-Vulcans, although this was initially thought to be impossible. When Vulcans first experience pon farr has not been revealed; T'Pol, who was in her 60s when she experienced her premature pon farr, told Dr. Phlox that "it wasn't time", but it is not known if this means she had never experienced it previously. It has been suggested that bonding triggers the pon farr cycle. When Spock experienced pon farr, it was made clear that only contact with his mate, T'Pring, would be sufficient for him to survive the condition. It's possible that some bondings are more powerful than others, allowing for no substitution. In Spock's case, however, his pon farr condition evaporated after he supposedly killed James Kirk and T'Pring announced her intention to wed another man (in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Amok Time"). There is little canon reference to Vulcans having siblings, with the exception of Spock, who has a half-brother, Sybok, (introduced in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier), and Tuvok from Voyager, who has four children, each seven years apart. Canon has never firmly established whether pon farr is a prerequisite for conceiving children. Until T'Pol underwent a virus-induced pon farr in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode, "Bounty", it was not known for certain that Vulcan females actually experienced it; T'Pring showed no apparent signs of the condition in "Amok Time". Although it has been mentioned several times in the canon that pon farr occurs every seven years, it has never been established if this is truly a recurring event or only happens a limited number of times. There is, for example, no canonical reference to Spock ever experiencing pon farr again after the events of "Amok Time". Vulcan males and females are capable of engaging in sexual relations outside of pon farr.

Mental abilities

Many Vulcans are contact telepaths and have been observed taking part in a number of telepathy-related actions and rituals. Although there are many races gifted with telepathic power, Vulcans seem to be totally immune to the psychokinetic effects of the Energy Barrier at the edge of the galaxy, which does affect humans with ESP (canon) and also Betazoids (non-canon, Q Continuum series of novels).

Mind Melds

A procedure known as a mind-meld involves physical contact with a subject (though instances of mind-melds without contact have been seen), making it possible to share thoughts, experience, memories, and knowledge with another individual. Vulcans can perform mind melds with members of most other species, most notably humans, with Captain Jonathan Archer being the first known human participant in such a ritual, in 2154. The Ferengi are one of the few races known to be impervious to the mind meld; mentally disciplined Cardassians may also be resistant to mind melds if properly trained (it is unknown if this potential ability is inherent to Cardassians, or if members of any race could be trained to resist a mind meld). Mind melds have been used to erase memories (as Spock performed on Captain Kirk in the TOS episode "Requiem for Methuselah"). Mind melds can also allow more than one mind to experience memories and sensations and sometimes even interact with the memories (as seen in the Voyager episode "Flashback"). The use of the mind meld was taboo for a period of time, perhaps because by the time of Surak, Vulcans were using their telepathic abilities to kill, or because of the apparent transmission of the incurable condition Pan'aar Syndrome between mind-melders. However, it was later learned that Pan'aar is a condition passed on by melders who are improperly trained, and although the Vulcan government of the mid-22nd Century claimed it was incurable, in fact the condition can be remedied by an experienced melder. Within a week of the Kir'shara incident in 2154, the stigma against mind-melders was evaporating and sufferers of Pan'aar were being cured in large numbers. By the mid 23rd century, the mind meld had become a fully accepted part of Vulcan society, and was even used once to rejoin Spock's katra with his healed physical body (see below). As originally depicted (in TOS), mind-melds were considered dangerous and potentially lethal. Over the course of the original series, however, this detail was quickly forgotten, although it was revived on Enterprise with the revelation that Pan'aar Syndrome can be transmitted this way. For a number of years it was held that not all Vulcans are genetically capable of initiating a mind-meld, such as T'Pol of Enterprise. However, the overthrow of the Vulcan High Command in 2154 revealed that this is not the case, and T'Pol conducted her first mind meld soon after. It is also not known if all Vulcans possess contact telepathy. However, it has been stated (most recently in the Enterprise episode, "The Aenar") that Vulcans, on the whole, have some degree of telepathic ability. Some Vulcans appear to have advanced mental abilities. Mr. Spock was once able to briefly control the mind of a prison guard, for example. He was also able to perform a limited mind meld with a Horta without actually making physical contact with the being (TOS episode "The Devil in the Dark").

Bonding

When Vulcans mate, a form of psychic bond is created between the partners. The specifics of this have yet to be fully explained in canon. In the fourth season of Enterprise, as she began to explore her newfound mental powers, T'Pol discovered that she was experiencing a psychic link with Charles Tucker, sometimes over a range of many light-years during Tucker's brief posting aboard Columbia. This link was so strong that it rendered Tucker the only male aboard Enterprise rendered immune to the mind-control powers of a group of Orion slave girls who tried to take over the ship. (Episode: "Bound") T'Pol deduced that she and Tucker established the link when they mated (as seen in "Harbinger"), however it is not known if the actual act of sexual coupling formed this link or if other factors (such as T'Pol's Trellium D-affected mental state at the time) came into play.

Katra

Some Vulcans appear able to "cheat the grave" by implanting their katra -- essentially their living essence or spirit -- into an object or another person, via a form of mind-meld, just prior to death. The history and mechanics of the katra have never been discussed in great detail in canon. It was known at the time of Surak, and Surak successfully transferred his essence into a "katric ark" which remained hidden for 1,800 years until it was recovered by a Vulcan named Syrran in the 22nd century (Earth time). Syrran melded with the ark and received Surak's katra, which guided him into creating the Syrrannite movement which fought to restore Surak's teachings to Vulcan but was labelled a terrorist group by the Vulcan High Command. Syrran was fatally wounded by a lightning strike while escorting Jonathan Archer and T'Pol of the Earth Starfleet vessel Enterprise across a desert region called The Forge in 2154 prior to a short-lived conflict between Vulcan and Andoria. Syrran conducted a forced mind-meld on Archer and implanted the katra of Surak into Archer's mind before he died. For a brief time, Archer found himself communicating with the long-dead Surak, and Surak began controlling - or at least strongly influencing - Archer's actions. Surak's katra was so strong that it resisted efforts to be transferred into T'Pau, but once the Syrrannites overthrew the Vulcan High Command, the katra allowed itself to be transferred into a Vulcan elder. The ultimate fate of Surak's katra remains unknown. Katras have been referenced several other times in Star Trek lore, and it is indicated that even by the 24th Century not all Vulcans believe in them. It appears that only Vulcans of strong mental abilities are able to transfer their katra. Katras can, on rare occasions, be returned to the body, effectively bringing an individual back from the dead. Such was the case with Mr. Spock who (in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan) implanted his katra into the mind of Leonard McCoy prior to sacrificing his life to save the U.S.S. Enterprise. (Such was the strength of Spock's mental abilities that he was in fact able to function normally for several minutes despite depositing his "soul" elsewhere. This is actually very similar to a base premise of the later TV series Dead Like Me which shows people acting normally for a time despite their souls already having been removed.) Following Spock's death, McCoy began exhibiting Vulcan-like behavior and was briefly institutionalized. It was later discovered that Spock's body came to rest on the Genesis Planet after his burial in space, and was regenerated. He was recovered and was taken with McCoy to Mount Seleya on Vulcan where a Vulcan elder performed a ritual which removed the katra from McCoy and implanted it into Spock's regenerated body. Subsequently, Spock recovered, although it took some time to retrain his mind to the point where it was prior to his death. Eventually Spock's original memories apparently reasserted themselves and he resumed his duties in Starfleet. According to the Star Trek: Starfleet Academy comic book (which isn't considered canon), if a katra stays in a foreign mind for too long, the personality of the host can start to merge with that of the katra, potentially causing insanity. When the two personalities become intertwined, the katra cannot be removed, as happened to T'Prell, who died and gave her katra to her Romulan friend Selke, who was then captured and used as a spy for the Tal Shiar before she could return T'Prell's katra to Vulcan. There is some canonical support to this notion, however, as both McCoy and Archer experienced negative reactions to carrying katras, and McCoy's sanity was at issue during his experience.

Fullara

When Vulcans experience extreme emotional trauma, a ritual known as the Fullara can be performed by elders. The mechanics of the Fullara have yet to be fully explored in canon. T'Pol of Enterprise underwent the procedure at the P'Jem sanctuary c.2136 following a mission for Vulcan Intelligence in which she was forced to shoot and kill a fleeing prisoner. The act of killing face-to-face caused T'Pol to experience a nervous breakdown and the only way for her to remedy this was to undergo the Fullara, which restored her emotional balance, but left her with no memory of the killing or her emotional state thereafter. Years later, the effects of the Fullara were undone when T'Pol was reminded of these events (in the episode "The Seventh"), resulting in a near-emotional collapse that was prevented in part by the presence of a trusted friend (Jonathan Archer). It has been noted that T'Pol's increased emotional state, noted in many later episodes of the series, began in earnest from this point. The ritual is considered to be obsolete, but it has not been made clear what, if anything, took its place. The fact that the benefits of a Fullara can be compromised as illustrated with T'Pol suggests a possible reason why the ritual is no longer practiced. It has been speculated that Spock might be shown performing a form of Fullara on Captain Kirk at the end of the TOS episode "Requiem for Methuslah" when his friend is in a state of emotional devastation and Spock conducts some form of mind-meld (the results of which are not revealed).

Neuropressure

Vulcans practice a form of acupressure known as neuropressure, which involves massaging and manipulating muscles and nerve centres on the body in order to relieve stress. Neuropressure is considered an intimate act, as some of the postures involved are pseudo-sexual in nature and can elicit responses similar to sexual arousal and even climax (as demonstrated by T'Pol in the episode "The Xindi" when Trip Tucker inadvertently triggers such a response). Specialized training is required in order to properly administer neuropressure, otherwise injury to the recipient can result.

Culture

Emotion and maturity

Vulcans, as a matter of custom and policy, suppress all emotional influence by living lives of rigid emotional self-control through meditative techniques and training of mental discipline. It is incorrect to say that Vulcans have no emotions; although they themselves make this claim, Vulcans are in fact a very emotional people and have learned to suppress these emotions because of the damage they can cause if unchecked. In a Voyager episode Tuvok explains that Vulcans' natural emotions are "erratic"--if Vulcan's don't strongly repress emotions they can get violently angry in an instant. The advanced ritual of Kolinahr is intended to purge all emotion. In Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Spock was unable to complete this ritual. Some Vulcans, such as T'Pol, Ambassador Sarek, and Ambassador Soval, carry their emotions close to the surface and are prone to emotional outbursts, even without outside influences or illness; there is some evidence to support the hypothesis that Vulcans in close contact with humans for an extended period of time may become more emotional than Vulcans who do not (i.e. T'Pol and Soval), but established canon has yet to make a definitive case for this. Some Vulcans have chosen not to follow the path of pure logic, and have instead chosen to embrace emotions. A group of renegade Vulcans who believed in this was encountered in the Enterprise episode "Fusion", while Spock's half-brother, Sybok (seen in the film Star Trek V: The Final Frontier) was also fully emotional. An episode of Enterprise entitled "E²" featured an elderly T'Pol in an alternate timeline who had embraced emotion and allowed her half-human son, Lorian, to do likewise. Many Vulcan children have pets, most notably domesticated sehlats, which are ferocious man-eaters in the wild. Both T'Pol and Spock had sehlats as children. Although one might consider keeping pets an emotional or even sentimental practice, it isn't viewed as such on Vulcan, and may instead be viewed as a practice to instill a sense of responsibility and maturity. The speed at which a Vulcan matures "emotionally" (for lack of a better term) seems to vary. It has been established that, with a lifespan of more than two centuries, a Vulcan as old as 100 Earth years will still appear, and be considered, relatively young. Vulcans as young as their 30s and even 20s have been shown in mature roles in their society and acting older than their apparent ages (i.e. T'Pau, Mr. Spock). T'Pol, a Vulcan in her 60s, on the other hand, is still somewhat naïve and innocent compared to other Vulcans and acts very much like a rational human woman in her late 20s or early 30s. :Series trivia: In the pilot episode, The Cage, Spock shows much more emotion. The female Number One character, played by Majel Barrett, was supposed to be the emotionless character. Although the test audience indicated they liked the actress, they disliked the character because they could not relate to a female who was so "cold". As a result, the character of Nurse Christine Chapel was created for Barrett and the "coldness" was transferred to the Spock character.

Family and rituals

Traditionally, Vulcans place high importance on family, placing the will of their family above their own. Vulcans practice arranged marriage, in which a male and a female are usually matched as children, only to officially marry at a later date. Following the marriage, it is customary for the female to remain on Vulcan for at least one Vulcan year before conducting off-world travel (presumably in order to sire offspring), though it is possible for the female to defer this requirement until a later date, upon negotiation with the male's family. The state of pon farr is not required for marriage to occur. A Vulcan female can challenge the proposed bonding by calling for koon-ut-kalifee (spellings vary), in which a challenger for marriage engages the bonded male in a fight to the death. Alternately, the bonded male has the option of rejecting his intended bride and choosing another. It is acceptable for a male to "release" his mate from marriage (effectively the same as a divorce). It isn't known yet whether females have the same option. The canon has not firmly established a timeline for Vulcan marriages. Spock was in his 30s (at least) before he was called to Vulcan for his marriage ceremony ("Amok Time"), while T'Pol was in her late 60s by the time her own marriage occurred, which she had put off for several years in order to remain aboard Enterprise. It is customary for Vulcan children to undertake the kahs-wan ritual (sometimes spelled kaswahn), in which they are left to fend for themselves in the desert. Not all children survive the ordeal. T'Pol of the Enterprise NX-01 underwent the ritual, while Tuvok of Voyager experienced a variation known as the tal'oth. The kahs-wan was first introduced in the animated series episode "Yesteryear" in which Spock's experience as a child was detailed; however, as the animated series is not considered canon, it has yet to be "officially" stated that Spock experienced the ritual. Contrary to the Vulcan image of expressing no emotion, family bonds can be strong and affectionate just as they are for humans. Tuvok expressed his love for his wife on a few occasions (without actually using the term), Sarek openly expressed affection for both his human wives, and a clear bond of love existed between T'Pol and her mother, T'Les. In addition, Vulcans also value close friendships, even with more emotional beings as attested to by the relationship of Spock and James T. Kirk, and others.

Names

The treatment of Vulcan names has been erratic throughout Trek's history. Originally, the original series established that male Vulcans had names beginning with "S" and ending with "k"; some non-canon sources have suggested that the rule was the names had to be five letters long and one syllable, though such a rule was never made canon. Female Vulcans, meanwhile, were said to have names beginning with "T" followed by an apostrophe. The earliest reference to Vulcan names following a set pattern dates back to a May 3, 1966 memo from Original Series producer Robert Justman to Gene Roddenberry (later reprinted in the book The Making of Star Trek) in which Justman recommended that all Vulcan names begin with SP and end with K and have exactly five letters. Beginning with the Star Trek movies of the 1980s and continuing to today, a greater variety of names have been given to Vulcans beginning with other letters of the alphabet, such as Tuvok, Koss, Mestral, Valeris, and Xon to name a few (Xon being a Vulcan character created by Gene Roddenberry for his aborted Star Trek: Phase II series in the 1970s). There have also been numerous examples of female Vulcans possessing S...k formatted names or variations thereof, such as Saavik and Sakonna. There has been at least one case of a male Vulcan with a T' name. It has been suggested that the S...k and T' form of naming might reflect class distinctions. Vulcans have only ever been identified in the Trek canon by one name; however, the Original Series episode "This Side of Paradise" has a scene in which Leila Kolomi says to Spock, "You never told me if you had another name." Spock replies: "You couldn't pronounce it." This suggests that Vulcans do have second names, though to date none have been revealed in canon.

Cuisine

Vulcans are vegetarians. They do not like to touch their food with their hands, preferring to use utensils whenever possible. It is a Vulcan custom for guests in the home to prepare meals for their hosts. Vulcans generally do not drink alcoholic beverages, though they will "indulge" on special occasions. Vulcans are immune to the effects of alcohol, but instead can become inebriated by ingesting chocolate.

Vulcans in Starfleet

alcoholic beverages The first Vulcan to serve in Starfleet was former Subcommander T'Pol, who received the rank of Commander and served aboard Enterprise NX-01 during the mid-22nd Century, following her resignation from the Vulcan High Command. After spending a decade aboard Enterprise, she apparently continued to serve in Starfleet following the decommissioning of the NX-01 in 2161, coinciding with the founding of the United Federation of Planets and the introduction of Warp 7-capable starships (episode: "These Are the Voyages..."). In an alternate timeline (seen in the episode "Twilight"), she was promoted to Captain and commanded Enterprise for several years, although it has yet to be established whether a similar promotion occurs in the real timeline. The best-known Vulcan to serve in Starfleet was Mr. Spock, who served aboard the Enterprise NCC-1701 and NCC-1701-A under Captains Christopher Pike and James T. Kirk. Spock eventually rose to the rank of Captain, briefly commanding the NCC-1701 when it was used as a training vessel. There is a misconception that Spock was the first Vulcan to serve in Starfleet (a fact seemingly contradicted by T'Pol's appointment). In fact, an examination of all Star Trek: The Original Series episodes and films failed to uncover any such reference, though Spock may have been the first to attend Starfleet Academy. During the time of The Original Series, an entire Federation starship of Vulcans, the Intrepid, was destroyed. Vulcans appear many times in later series, including Voyager's Chief Tactical Officer Tuvok and Engineer Vorik. Both served under Captain Kathryn Janeway during her seven years in the Delta Quadrant. In other references, Dr. Selar, a Vulcan female, served as a physician aboard the Enterprise-D, while several Vulcan Starfleet officers appeared on Deep Space Nine. At least two Vulcan Starfleet admirals have appeared in TNG and DS9.

Martial Arts

Although generally adhering to a philosophy of non-violence, Vulcans have developed martial arts and techniques of hand-to-hand combat. Vulcan martial arts are highly ritualistic, and based on philosophy, similar to Terran counterparts such as Karate. The most extreme example is the "koon-ut-kalifee" or fight to the death, described earlier. Many Vulcans are skilled in a self-defense technique known as the "Vulcan nerve pinch" or "neck pinch", which targets a precise location on the neck, rendering the victim unconscious (sometimes instantly, sometimes after a short delay depending on the subject). Although the mechanics of the pinch have never been explained in on-screen canon, it has been speculated that it can be done by applying pressure over baroreceptors of the carotid sinus at the base of the humanoid neck though other fanon speculations exist involving Vulcan mental abilities. While practiced mainly by Vulcans, it is not exclusive to their race; for example, Data and Jean-Luc Picard have also mastered the technique, the latter probably acquiring it during his mind-meld with Sarek. Likewise, Jonathan Archer learned the technique as a result of receiving the katra of Surak though it remains to be seen whether his knowledge of it continued following the removal of the katra. The "Vulcan Death Grip," referred to in the original series, was a lie concocted by James Kirk and Spock and doesn't really exist.

Ethics

By the 23rd century, Vulcans had adopted strong ethics that included a taboo on telling falsehoods. There are numerous examples of this taboo being broken by the likes of Mr. Spock (who characterized it as "an exaggeration" in Star Trek II) and by Lt. Valeris who willingly deceived her superiors in Star Trek VI. In the 22nd Century, Vulcans, seemingly, also lived by the ethic of telling the truth, however were very willing to lie when necessary. Early in the fourth season of Enterprise, Captain Archer says "Vulcans can lie with the best of them", with the Vulcan High Command's cover-up regarding a secret listening post at P'Jem often cited as a prime example. T'Pol, although initially hesitant to tell falsehoods, eventually began to embrace the idea that telling lies was sometimes necessary, though she also began to lie to her captain regarding her Trellium-D addiction. Following the "kir'shara" incident, T'Pol began to adopt more of Surak's teachings, presumably including the prohibition on lying, though it has yet to be seen whether this is case. Throughout the four seasons of Enterprise reference is made several times to a pronouncement by the Vulcan Science Council that time travel is not possible. This pronouncement viewed in light of modern scientific theory would have to take into account Einstein's theory of relativity) which means that any ship which warps space would necessarily also warp time. Gene Roddenberry had originally shown a partial understanding of Einsteinian time relativity when he explained stardates: "This time system adjusts for shifts in relative time which occur due to the vessel's speed and space warp capability. It has little relationship to Earth's time as we know it." However, Roddenberry later admitted he didn't fully understand how this would work, so we're left unsure of the relationship between Vulcan science and real world science. What can be said with certainty is that the fictional world of Star Trek contains numerous references to apparent conspiracies, deceptions and secrets related to time travel.

Monarchy

Vulcan apparently has (or at one point, had) some form of monarchy. This is indicated by the film Star Trek V: The Final Frontier in which it is stated in dialogue that Spock's half-brother, Sybok, is the offspring of Sarek and an unidentified Vulcan princess. No other canonical reference to a Vulcan monarchy has yet arisen.

Views by non-Vulcans

- In Borg species classification, Vulcans are referred to as Species 3259.
- Tom Paris of the U.S.S. Voyager once said that Vulcans are "all a bunch of hypochondriacs".
- Species 8472 (Boothby): "Targ manure! United Federation of Planets, tolerance for all species, the Prime Directive. Targ manure, every word of it!" "Vulcan logic. Add that to the list."
- Vulcans are the subject of a popular 24th century Ferengi holosuite program called Vulcan Love Slave. The possibility that the program might have been inspired by an encounter between a Ferengi and T'Pol in the 22nd century (in the Enterprise episode "Acquisition") is, at the moment, speculation. In that incident (which occurred prior to the official first contact between Earth and the Ferengi), a group of Ferengi hijacked the NX-01 and T'Pol pretended to be a seductive slave of Captain Archer's in order to trick a Ferengi pirate into dropping his guard long enough to be rendered unconscious by a nerve pinch.
- Vulcans are also the subject of a popular children's story, "The Laughing Vulcan".
- In the 22nd century, Humans resented Vulcans for being reluctant to share their superior technology. The Human terrorist group Terra Prime particularly resented Vulcans' lack of intervention in World War III and the Xindi crisis.
- 'Vulky' was 24th century slang for anything only a Vulcan would find interesting. The term has only been used to date by a holographic human teenager who associated with (holographic) Klingons, making it uncertain whether the term is of human or Klingon origin or an artifact of a holoprogram.

Location

Until a fourth-season episode of Star Trek: Enterprise, Vulcan had no positively-established location, although it was known to be not too far from Earth. Kirk and crew travel from Vulcan to Earth in approximately one day in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Vulcan's placement in the Altair system is ruled out in the episode "Amok Time", since it would have been no trouble to drop Spock off on Vulcan before a few minutes' trip to Altair. When Trip Tucker remarks on making a 16-light-year trip to Vulcan, its distance is firmly established. The star 40 Eridani happens to be 16 light years from Sol. This star system is also mentioned in the James Blish novelization of "Tomorrow is Yesterday", but not used in the teleplay of that story.

History

Antiquity

In the episode Return to Tomorrow Spock theorized that the Vulcan race might be the descendents of a colony from Sargon's planet. Based on that theory, some fans would place settlement of Vulcan at approximately 500,000 BCE. At some point, the settlers would have lost their technology and reverted to barbarism. It is speculated on the official website [http://www.startrek.com startrek.com] that a species that was known on Earth as the gods of ancient Rome or the gods of ancient Greece traveled to ancient Vulcan, thus influencing both those that would later become Romulans as well as those who remained on Vulcan. Vulcans subsequently practiced a form of paganism; this can be seen in gods of war, peace, and death depicted on the Stone of Gol, as well as the celebration of Rumarie. (The DVD commentary for "Amok Time" says that TOS writer D.C. Fontana named the Vulcan god of death "Shariel"; a bust of whom is seen in Spock's quarters.) In about 850 BCE, Vulcans established a monastery on the planet P'Jem. In about the 4th century CE, Vulcans emerged under a philosopher named Surak from their violent tendencies and civil wars. Surak advocated the suppressing of emotion in favor of logic. This period was known as the Great Awakening and much of present-day Vulcan philosophy emerged from this period. According to the Star Trek: New Frontier book series (which is not considered canon), the Great Awakening caused many wars and conflicts to occur amongst various Vulcan tribes; those who supported Surak's cause would become separated from friends and even close family members who did not. For cases in which parents were separated by this, a ritual was created called the ku'nit ka'fa'ar, a battle to determine which parent would maintain their child. Despite the acceptance of Surak's teachings, generations of imperfect copies of his writings, combined with changes in the Vulcan language over time resulted in a diluted form of the culture he instituted.

Romulan Migration

Surak's views and lifestyle was not universally accepted by Vulcan, and a portion of society left Vulcan for the stars. This migration of Vulcan separatists would eventually become known as the Romulans. Knowledge of the common ancestry of Romulans and Vulcans would obscure into myth over the millennia, and while some Vulcans had direct dealings with the Romulans in the 22nd Century, the common ancestry would not become widely known until the mid-23rd Century. A great deal of literature from the Star Trek Expanded Universe, in particular a Pocket Books novel entitled "The Romulan Way" has stated that the leader of the Vulcan-Romulan migration was a close follower of Surak's named S'Task. S'Task would see the founding of the Romulan Empire but was killed by political factions shortly thereafter. In "The Romulan Way", an alternate name for the Romulans is given, being that of the Rihannsu.

Pre-Federation interstellar activity

Vulcans did not recover from the effects of barbarism and turn much of their attention to space travel for 1500 years. What would later become known as the Vulcan High Command was formed to orchestrate space exploration, but it ended up seizing control of Vulcan government. The Vulcans fought a hundred-year war with the Romulans at some point, and it was possibly at this time that the High Command assumed sovereignty over Vulcan affairs. (The date for the war is unrevealed, but it was over by 2044.) In 1930, Spock of Vulcan was one of three Starfleet officers from the 23rd Century who travelled back in time to New York City. To date, this is the earliest confirmed contact between humans and Vulcans, although in the Vulcan timeline it occurred long after First Contact. Spock would also briefly travel to Earth c.1968-69 on a mission, and again in 1986. (Technically speaking, these three events occurred after the founding of the Federation, but are included here as they constitute pre-First Contact encounters with contemporary humans.)(Episodes: "City on the Edge of Forever" and "Assignment: Earth") Vulcan first contact with the Andorian race was promising, but relations soured in time. The threat of mutual annihilation existed as early as the 1950s. In 1957, the launch of Sputnik I, Earth's first artificial satellite, was observed by a Vulcan vessel that subsequently crashed on the planet, marooning several crewmembers for a number of months in Carbon Creek, Pennsylvania; this constituted the first true contact between humans and Vulcans; however it was never recorded as such as the humans were unaware of the alien nature of their guests. One Vulcan, Mestral, chose to stay on Earth; his fate has yet to be revealed. In 2044 the Romulans and Vulcans suspended hostilities in their hundred-year war. It is unclear whether the two groups knew they were fighting their kinsmen. In 2053 the Vulcans made first contact with the Arkonians. On April 5, 2063 Vulcans and Humans made official first contact following the successful test of Earth's first warp-powered starship. See Star Trek: First Contact. In 2097 the Vulcans annexed the Andorian planetoid Weytahn and renamed it Pan Mokar. In 2105 The Vulcans and Andorians agreed to a compromise over the planet Weytahn/Pan Mokar. Still, tensions continued due to the threat of mutual annihilation. In 2151, Subcommander T'Pol joined the crew of the Earth Starfleet vessel Enterprise NX-01, within a couple of weeks setting a Vulcan endurance record for serving aboard a human vessel. In 2154, T'Pol became a commissioned officer with Starfleet.

Return to Surak's teachings

In May of 2154, the Vulcan High Command considered a proposal for Vulcans and humans to conduct joint space exploration missions. V'Las, head of the High Command and undercover agent for the Romulans, bombed the United Earth Embassy on Vulcan and attempted an invasion of Andoria. He was foiled by the crew of the Enterprise NX-01. During these events, the Kir'Shara, a device containing the original writings of Surak, was discovered by Jonathan Archer. This led to the prompt dissolution of the High Command and a reevaluation of traditional values. It also resulted in Vulcan agreeing to stop "looking over Earth's shoulder" in space exploration matters. On August 12, 2161, Vulcan became one of the founding members of the United Federation of Planets.

Separate Vulcan societies

- The inhabitants of Mintaka III (seen in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation) have been described as a 'proto-Vulcan race'. What their relation is to Vulcans is not clear, though they seem to have similar physical attributes.
- In the Star Trek: Early Voyages comic book series (which is not considered canon by Paramount, along with all other comic books), a colony of Vulcans exists which was settled before the teachings of Surak and has since lost contact with the Vulcan homeworld. These Vulcans had built gigantic weapons into the crust of their planet, weapons of amazing destructive power which had been conceived of on Vulcan, but never came to fruition there due to Surak's teachings.
- As mentioned earlier in this article, the Romulans are an offshoot of the Vulcan race. They left Vulcan and started their own society rather than adhere to Surak's teachings.

Language

The Vulcan language has developed so much over time that writings from the era of Surak required translation to be understood upon discovery in 2154. The Vulcans appear to have three written languages; two of which which can be used separately or in combination with each other:
- The most common script on Vulcan resembles a vertically-written chromatic scale, having a central staff line on which vertical spirals and horizontal dashes are written, along with dots in various combinations. While no official translations for these symbols exist, it is assumed that the dots and dashes represent consonants and the spirals are the vowels. The script is written in vertical columns from top to bottom, left to right (like Mongolian).
- The second script written in the same direction consists of swirly curved symbols (like Japanese hiragana). It is assumed that these symbols are also phonetic, perhaps syllabic or consonantal. The first two scripts can be used separately or in combination with each other. When this is the case, the swirl symbols accompany the staff writing symbols as annotation written to the right of the staff.
- A third script consists of rectangular blocks cut into geometric shapes. They have only ever been seen on the hulls of some Vulcan ships and bear no relation to the first two scripts. Vulcans are fluent in English, usually speaking it with an American-like accent, though occasionally British and Slavic accents have been heard. There is some debate among fans, however, as to whether the accent heard isn't a creation of the universal translator used at the time. The character of T'Pau, for example, speaks with only a faint accent as a young woman (as seen in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Awakening"), yet by the time she is an elder (as seen in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Amok Time"), she speaks with a thick accent. It has been pointed out that humans have been known to change accents over the course of a lifetime, so the same may hold true for Vulcans; although the difference in accents may just have been the result of a different model of Universal Translator.

Trivia

Star Trek: The Original Series
- Leonard Nimoy felt that the Vulcans represented the Jewish people (to which he belongs), and he invented the famous "live long and prosper" Vulcan hand gesture (palm forward, fingers pointing up, separate the middle finger and the ring finger) based on the hand symbol used by kohanim.
- Notable Vulcans include Saavik, Skon, Solkar, Sarek, Soval, Spock, Surak, Sybok, T'Pau, T'Pol, Tuvok, Valeris, and Vorik.
- Green Lantern - In an issue of DC Comics' Green Lantern series, an obviously Vulcan character appeared as a member of the Green Lantern Corps. He had pointed ears, spoke 'logically', and he had a brief conversation with Hal Jordan (Main character of the series) which ended with a "live long and prosper" and the famous hand gesture.
- Over the years, writers and fans have created their own ideas about Vulcan culture, which have not always been supported by canonical sources (the TV series and movies). One of the more unusual is a suggestion which originated in the novelization of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home that Vulcans are immune to the effects of alcohol, but instead can become inebriated by ingesting chocolate. Until a TV series or movie confirms this, however, this quirk is considered fanon only. The DVD release of season 2 of Star Trek: Enterprise reveals (in an outtakes feature) that a scene showing T'Pol slightly intoxicated after drinking several glasses of wine was planned for the episode "Carbon Creek"; this scene was ultimately refilmed with the characters, or at least T'Pol, sober.
- One element of Vulcan physiology for which no canonical explanation has yet been offered is the change of appearance some Vulcans were seen to undertake, particularly with relation to their arched eyebrows. In "The Cage" and "Where No Man Has Gone Before", Spock is seen with sharply arched eyebrows, yet for the remainder of The Original Series, the arch was far more subtle and in later film appearances was virtually nonexistent. Similarly, both Saavik and T'Pol were seen to have human-like eyebrows in their early appearances, yet in later adventures were seen with more traditionally arched eyebrows. It has also been noted that the appearance of Spock's ears also changed slightly at times during TOS.
- One common bit of trivia is that the Vulcan Nerve Pinch was created after Leonard Nimoy suggested that a Vulcan would probably not just punch someone, and would instead use a more reserved, refined, and less overtly violent method to subdue someone.

Bibliography

Print

- Star Trek: The Magazine v3 #10 (February 2003 - "Romulan Propulsion Historical Overview" by Rick Sternbach & Tim Earls)

Digital

- [http://www.memory-alpha.org/en/index.php/Vulcan Memory Alpha entry] Category:Star Trek races Category:Fictional alien species ja:バルカン (スタートレック)

Humanoid

: Humanoids links here. For the French comic book publisher, see Humanoids Publishing. For real humanoid robots, see humanoid robot. The term "humanoid" refers to any being whose body structure resembles that of a human. In this sense, the term describes non-human hominids and indeed most primates, as well as mythological creatures and artificial organisms (robots), especially in the context of science fiction and fantasy fiction. An android or gynoid is a humanoid robot, although the words are, in principle, synonymous. Usually, a fictional humanoid species has the same basic body outline as a human, being bipedal, but differs in details such as coloring, ear form, presence of hair, average height and weight, size of nose, form of skin, "extras" such as horns, plates, claws, tails or multiple appendages, limb structure (such as having digitigrade legs) and taxonomic lineage (being descended from reptiles, fish, rodents, marsupials, or a phylum not evolved on Earth, perhaps, instead of primates). Reptilian humanoids are a common concept. Most of the aliens in television and movies are humanoid, since it is easier for a fictional character to be a disguised human actor. However, there are various methods for presenting non-humanoid characters, for example computer graphics, creative costuming, and puppetry. Some people find it unlikely to have a universe populated by unrelated creatures that all look human, while others (including some biologists) believe that a species would naturally drift towards bipedalism when achieving sapience as we know it (e.g. Russell's hypothetical troödon-descended sapient). Occasionally, shows present a reason for this to be the case. For example, the episode "The Chase" of Star Trek: The Next Generation explained the humanoid denizens of the Star Trek universe by advancing the story of a primordial humanoid civilization, the Progenitors, that seeded the galaxy with genetically-engineered cells that guide evolution toward humanoid life (see panspermia). In most cases, however, the reason for the similarity is not explained, and it is regarded simply as a dramatic convention.

Vulcan (Star Trek planet)

In the fictional Star Trek universe, Vulcan, or Vulcanis, is a reddish Minshara-Class planet orbiting the star 40 Eridani A, 16 light years from Earth. Much of its surface consists of deserts and mountain ranges, and large areas are set aside as wilderness preserves. It is much hotter than Earth and its atmosphere is thinner; as a result, humans tend to tire out more quickly. Zones of habitation are divided into provinces. According to Spock, Vulcan has no moon, although it does have a lunar colony, according to the episode Unimatrix Zero (VOY). The film Star Trek: The Motion Picture featured what appeared to be a large moon; the non-canonical novel Spock's World explained that this was a second planet, not a moon. It was theorized that Vulcan have been settled by colonists from Sargon's planet in approximately 500,000 B.C.E. with their descendents becoming the Vulcan people; this was later contradicted by the Progenitor discovery in TNG's "The Chase."

Locations

- Fire Plains of Raal
- Gol (ancient city destroyed before the Great Awakening)
- Mount Seleya
- ShirKahr
- ShirKahr Academy
- T'Karath Sanctuary
- Temple of Amonak
- Vulcan's Forge (often abbreviated as 'The Forge')
- Vulcan Science Academy
- Vulcana Regar It is possible to walk from the Forge to the outskirts of the capital city within a few days.

Native Lifeforms

- favinit (similar to an orchid)
- sehlat (described as a teddy bear with fangs)
- Vulcan mollusks
- Vulcan sandworms

Trivia

- According to the non-canonical book Star Trek Star Charts, Vulcan's population in the 2370s is 4.9 billion.
- In the original release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, a scene on Vulcan showed a moon, contradicting a statement made by Spock to Uhura in Star Trek: The Original Series. In the 2001 Special Edition, this was removed.
- Early references to the planet in novels and other background material created for Star Trek: The Original Series gave the planet's name as Vulcanis and its inhabitants were called Vulcanians.
- The 40 Eridani-A Starfleet Construction Yards are located in Vulcan's star system, perhaps in orbit of Vulcan or elsewhere in the system. These yards are one of the larger starship construction facilities in the Federation.
- Star Trek fanon placed the planet around either Epsilon Eridani or 40 Eridani. The Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Home" set the distance between Vulcan and Earth at 16 light years, making 40 Eridani the correct location. 40 Eridani A is confirmed to be Vulcan's home star in Star Charts (Pocket Books, 2002).
- Several noncanonical Star Trek sources, including the novel Spock's World by Diane Duane, have reconciled the conflicting statments on whether Vulcan has a moon by making Vulcan part of a double planet system. Vulcan's smaller sister planet is named T'Kuht (sometimes spelled T'Khut), a feminine name that means "watcher" in the Vulcan language; Terran astronomers call it Charis, after one of the Graces who married the god Vulcan in some versions of Roman mythology. While non-Vulcans often describe T'Kuht as "Vulcan's moon" (compare Pluto's so-called moon Charon), Vulcans themselves reject this usage as imprecise and illogical - hence Spock's statement that "Vulcan has no moon." However, T'Kuht has not yet been mentioned in any canonical source.

External links

- [http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Vulcan_%28planet%29 Memory Alpha entry]
- [http://www.projectrho.com/vulsun.htm Gene Roddenberry and 3 astronomers propose Vulcan as 40 Eridani] Category:Vulcans Category:Star Trek locations Category:Star Trek planets ja:バルカン (スタートレック)

Human

Humans or human beings define themselves in biological, social, and spiritual terms. Biologically, humans are classified as the species Homo sapiens (Latin for "wise man" or "thinking man"): a bipedal primate of the superfamily Hominoidea, together with the other apes: chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans, and gibbons. Humans have an erect body carriage that frees their upper limbs for manipulating objects and a highly developed brain capable of abstract reasoning, speech, language, and introspection. Bipedal locomotion appears to have evolved before the development of a large brain. The origins of bipedal locomotion and of its role in the evolution of the human brain are topics of ongoing research. The human mind has several distinct attributes. It is responsible for complex behaviour, especially language. Curiosity and observation have led to a variety of explanations for consciousness and the relation between mind and body. Psychology attempts to study behaviour from a scientific point of view. Religious perspectives emphasise a soul, qi or atman as the essence of being, and are often characterised by the belief in and worship of God, gods, spirits, or other people. Philosophy, especially philosophy of mind, attempts to fathom the depths of each of these perspectives. Art, music and literature are often used in expressing these concepts and feelings. Like all primates, humans are inherently social. They create complex social structures composed of co-operating and competing groups. These range from nations and states down to families. Seeking to understand and manipulate the world around them has led to the development of technology and science. Artifacts, beliefs, myths, rituals, values, and social norms have all helped to form humanity's culture.

Terminology

In general, the word "people" is a collective or plural term for any specific group of individual persons. However, when used to refer to a group of humans possessing a common ethnic, cultural or national unitary characteristic or identity, "people" is a singular count noun, and as such takes an "s" in the plural (examples: "the English-speaking peoples of the world", "the indigenous peoples of Brazil"). ethnic Juvenile males are called boys, adult males men, juvenile females girls, and adult females women. Humans are commonly referred to as persons or people, and collectively as Man (capital M), mankind, humankind, humanity, or the human race. Until the 20th century, "human" was only used adjectivally ("pertaining to mankind"). Nominal use of "human" (plural "humans") is short for "human being", and not considered good style in traditional English grammar. As an adjective, "human" is used neutrally (as in "human race"), but "human" and especially "humane" may also emphasise positive aspects of human nature, and can be synonymous with "benevolent" (versus "inhumane"; cf. humanitarian). A distinction is maintained in philosophy and law between the notions "human being", or "man", and "person". The former refers to the species, while the latter refers to a rational agent (see, for example, John Locke's Essay concerning Human Understanding II 27 and Immanuel Kant's Introduction to the Metaphysic of Morals). The term "person" is thus used of non-human animals, and could be used of a mythical being, an artificial intelligence, or an extraterrestrial. An important question in theology and the philosophy of religion concerns whether God is a person. In Latin, "humanus" is the adjectival form of the noun "homo", translated as "man" (to include males and females). The Old English word "man" could also have this generic meaning, as demonstrated by such compounds as "wifman" ("female person") → "wiman" → "woman". For the etymology of "man" see mannaz.

Biology

Anatomy and physiology

mannaz] Humans exhibit fully bipedal locomotion. This leaves the forelimbs available for manipulating objects using opposable thumbs. Humans vary substantially around the mean height and mean weight. Some of this variation is explained by locality and historical factors. Although body size is largely determined by genes, it is also significantly influenced by diet and exercise. The mean height of a North American adult female is 162 centimetres (5 feet 4 inches) and the mean weight is 62 kilograms (137 pounds). North American adult males are typically larger: 175 centimetres (5 feet 9 inches) and 78 kilograms (172 pounds). Human skin appears to be relatively hairless in comparison to other primates; however, most humans have a larger number of hairs on their body than a chimpanzee. The main difference is that human hairs are shorter, finer, and less coloured then the average chimpanzee's, thus rendering them harder to see. The colour of human hair and skin is determined by the presence of coloured pigments called melanins. Most researchers believe that skin darkening was an adaptation that evolved as a defence against UV solar radiation; melanin is an effective sunblock. The skin colour of contemporary humans can range from very dark brown to very pale pink. It is geographically stratified and in general correlates with the environmental level of UV. Human skin and hair colour is controlled in part by the MC1R gene. For example, the red hair and pale skin of some Europeans is the result of mutations in MC1R. Human skin has a capacity to darken (sun tanning) in response to UV exposure. Variation in the ability to sun tan is also controlled in part by MC1R. sun tanning] Because humans are bipedal, the pelvic region and spinal column tend to become worn, creating locomotion difficulties in old age. The individual need for regular intake of food and drink is prominently reflected in human culture, and has led to the development of food science. Failure to obtain food leads to hunger and eventually starvation, while failure to obtain water leads to dehydration and thirst. Both starvation and dehydration cause death if not alleviated. In modern times, obesity amongst humans has increased to almost epidemic proportions, leading to health complications and increased mortality in some developed countries, and is becoming problematic elsewhere. The average sleep requirement is between seven and eight hours a day for an adult and nine to ten hours for a child. Elderly people usually sleep for six to seven hours. It is common, however, in modern societies for people to get less sleep than they need, leading to a state of sleep deprivation. The human body is subject to an ageing process and to illness. Medicine is the science that explores methods of preserving bodily health.

Life cycle

health] The human life cycle is similar to that of other placental mammals. New human life develops from conception. An egg is usually fertilised inside the female by sperm from the male through sexual intercourse, though in vitro fertilisation methods are also used. The fertilised egg is called a zygote. The zygote divides inside the female's uterus to become an embryo which over a period of thirty-eight weeks becomes the fetus. At birth, the fully grown fetus is expelled from the female's body and breathes independently as a baby for the first time. At this point, most modern cultures recognise the baby as a person entitled to the full protection of the law, though some jurisdictions extend personhood to human fetuses while they remain in the uterus. Compared with that of other species, human childbirth is relatively complicated. Painful labours lasting twenty-four hours or more are not uncommon, and may result in injury to the child or the death of the mother, although the chances of a successful labour increased significantly during the twentieth century in wealthier countries. Natural childbirth remains an arguably more dangerous ordeal in remote, underdeveloped regions of the world, though the women who live in these regions have argued that their natural childbirth methods are safer and less traumatic for mother and child. Natural childbirth Human children are born after a nine-month gestation period, with typically 3–4 kilograms (6–9 pounds) in weight and 50–60 centimetres (20–24 inches) in height in developed countries. [http://www.childinfo.org/eddb/lbw] Helpless at birth, they continue to grow for some years, typically reaching sexual maturity at twelve to fifteen years of age. Boys continue growing for some time after this, reaching their maximum height around the age of eighteen. These values vary too, depending on genes and environment. The human lifespan can be split into a number of stages: infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, maturity and old age, though the lengths of these stages, especially the later ones, are not fixed. There are striking differences in life expectancy around the world. The developed world is quickly getting older, with the median age around 40 years (highest in Monaco at 45.1 years), while in the developing world, the median age is 15–20 years (the lowest in Uganda at 14.8 years). Life expectancy at birth is 77.2 years in the U.S. as of 2001. [http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/lifexpec.htm] The expected life span at birth in Singapore is 84.29 years for a female and 78.96 years for a male, while in Botswana, due largely to AIDS, it is 30.99 years for a male and 30.53 years for a female. One in five Europeans, but one in twenty Africans, is 60 years or older, according to The World Factbook. [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook] African.]] The number of centenarians in the world was estimated by the United Nations [http://www.un.org/ageing/note5713.doc.htm] at 210,000 in 2002. The maximum life span for humans is thought to be over 120 years. Worldwide, there are 81 men aged 60 or over for every 100 women, and among the oldest, there are 53 men for every 100 women. The philosophical questions of when human personhood begins and whether it persists after death are the subject of considerable debate. The prospect of death may cause unease or fear. People who are near death sometimes have a near-death experience, in which they have visions. Burial ceremonies are characteristic of human societies, often inspired by beliefs in an afterlife. Institutions of inheritance or ancestor worship may extend an individual's presence beyond his physical lifespan (see immortality).

Genetics

Humans are a eukaryotic species. Each diploid cell has two sets of 23 chromosomes, each set received from one parent. There are 22 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex chromosomes. At present estimate, humans have approximately 20,000–25,000 genes and share 95% of their DNA with their closest living evolutionary relatives, the two species of chimpanzees. [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12368483] Like other mammals, humans have an XY sex determination system, so that females have the sex chromosomes XX and males have XY. The X chromosome is larger and carries many genes not on the Y chromosome, which means that recessive diseases associated with X-linked genes affect men more often than women. For example, genes that control the clotting of blood reside on the X chromosome. Women have a blood-clotting gene on each X chromosome so that one normal blood-clotting gene can compensate for a flaw in the gene on the other X chromosome. But men are hemizygous for the blood-clotting gene, since there is no gene on the Y chromosome to control blood clotting. As a result, men will suffer from haemophilia more often than women.

Race and ethnicity

haemophilia, Black, White (Hispanic), and Asian. Top row males, bottom row females.]] Humans often categorise themselves and others in terms of race or ethnicity. In the United States, racial categories are primarily based on language and ethnicity, although biological qualities, such as skin colour, blood type, facial features, ancestry, and other genetic variances are also key factors. Self identification with an ethnic group is usually based on kinship and descent, as well as presumed advantage. When race and ethnicity lead to variant treatment it is thought to impact social identity, giving rise to the theory of identity politics. Although most humans recognise that variances occur within a species, it is often a point of dispute as to what these differences entail, and if discrimination based on race (racism) is acceptable in the early twenty-first century. Race and intelligence, scientific racism, xenophobia and ethnocentrism are just a few of the many basis' for such practices.

Habitat

The view most widely accepted by the anthropological community is that the human species originated in the African savanna between 100 and 200 thousand years BCE, colonised the rest of the Old World and Oceania by 40,000 years BCE, and finally colonised the Americas by 10,000 years BCE. Homo sapiens displaced groups such as Neanderthals and Homo floresiensis through more successful reproduction and competition for resources, and/or extermination. (See Human evolution, Vagina gentium, and Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness.) Technology has allowed humans to colonise all of the continents and adapt to all climates. Within the last few decades, humans have been able to explore Antarctica, the ocean depths, and space, although long-term habitation of these environments are not yet possible. Humans, with a population of about six thousand million, are one of the most numerous mammals on Earth. Most humans (61%) live in the Asian region. The vast majority of the remainder live in the Americas (14%), Africa (13%) and Europe (12%), with 5% in Oceania. (See list of countries by population and list of countries by population density.) list of countries by population density (The arctic is at the centre of the map and the numbers are millennia before present).]] The original human lifestyle is hunting-gathering, which is adapted to the savanna. Other human lifestyles are nomadism (often linked to animal herding) and permanent settlements made possible by the development of agriculture. Humans have a great capacity for altering their habitats by various methods, such as agriculture, irrigation, urban planning, construction, transport, and manufacturing goods. Permanent human settlements are dependent on proximity to water and, depending on the lifestyle, other natural resources such as fertile land for growing crops and grazing livestock, or seasonally by populations of prey. With the advent of large-scale trade and transport infrastructure, immediate proximity to these resources has become unnecessary, and in many places these factors are no longer the driving force behind growth and decline of population. Human habitation within closed ecological systems in hostile environments (Antarctica, outer space) is expensive, typically limited in duration, and restricted to scientific, military, or industrial expeditions. Life in space has been very sporadic, with a maximum of thirteen humans in space at any given time, starting with Yuri Gagarin's space flight in 1961. Between 1969 and 1974, up to two humans at a time spent brief intervals on the Moon. As of 2005, no other celestial body has been visited by human beings, although there has been a continuous human presence in space since the launch of the initial crew to inhabit the International Space Station on October 31, 2000.

Population

2000 From 1800 to 2000, the human population increased from one to six billion. It is expected to crest at around ten billion during the 21st century. In 2004, around 2.5 billion out of 6.3 billion people lived in urban centres, and this is expected to rise during the 21st century. Problems for humans living in cities include various forms of pollution, crime, and poverty, especially in inner city and suburban slums. Geneticists Lynn Jorde and Henry Harpending of the University of Utah have concluded that the variation in the total stock of human DNA is minute compared to that of other species; and that around 74,000 years ago, human population was reduced to a small number of breeding pairs, possibly as small as 1000, resulting in a very small residual gene pool. Various reasons for this bottleneck have been postulated, the most popular, called the Toba catastrophe theory, being the eruption of a volcano at Lake Toba.

Human evolution

The study of human evolution encompasses many scientific disciplines, but most notably physical anthropology and genetics. The term "human", in the context of human evolution, refers to the genus Homo, but studies of human evolution usually include other hominids and hominines, such as the australopithecines. Biologically, humans are defined as hominids of the species Homo sapiens, of which the only extant subspecies is Homo sapiens sapiens (Latin for "very wise man"); Homo sapiens idaltu (roughly translated as "elderly wise man") is the extinct subspecies. Modern humans are usually considered the only surviving species in the genus Homo, although some argue that the two species of chimpanzees should be reclassified from Pan troglodytes (Common Chimpanzee) and Pan paniscus (Bonobo/Pygmy Chimpanzee) to Homo troglodytes and Homo paniscus respectively, given that they share a recent ancestor with man. [http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/05/0520_030520_chimpanzees.html] Full genome sequencing resulted in these conclusions: "After 6 [million] years of separate evolution, the differences between chimp and human are just 10 times greater than those between two unrelated people and 10 times less than those between rats and mice." [http://news.ft.com/cms/s/43445728-1a44-11da-b279-00000e2511c8.html Chimp and human DNA is 96% identical] It has been estimated that the human lineage diverged from that of chimpanzees about five million years ago, and from gorillas about eight million years ago. However, in 2001 a hominine skull approximately seven million years old, classified as Sahelanthropus tchadensis, was discovered in Chad and seems to indicate an earlier divergence. Two prominent scientific theories of the origins of contemporary humans exist. They concern the relationship between modern humans and other hominids: The single-origin or "out of Africa" hypothesis proposes that modern humans evolved in Africa and later replaced hominids in other parts of the world. The multiregional hypothesis proposes that modern humans evolved at least in part from independent hominid populations. Human evolution is characterised by a number of important physiological trends:
- expansion of the brain cavity and brain itself, which is typically 1,400 cm³ in volume, over twice that of a chimpanzee or gorilla. The pattern of human postnatal brain growth differs from that of other apes (heterochrony), allowing for an extended period of social learning in juvenile humans. Physical anthropologists argue that a reorganisation of the structure of the brain is more important than cranial expansion itself;
- canine tooth reduction;
- bipedal locomotion;
- descent of the larynx, which makes speech possible. Humans are classified as Homo sapiens sapiens. A camp of physical anthropologists see neanderthalensis as a subspecies and classify the neanderthals as Homo sapiens neanderthalensis. A second camp of physical anthropologists see the neanderthals as a distinct species diverging from the modern human lineage over 500,000 years ago. Under this classification, neaderthals are Homo neanderthalensis. Recent DNA analysis suggests that neanderthalensis were not a subspecies. How these trends are related and what their role is in the evolution of complex social organisation and culture are matters of ongoing debate. larynx]]

Intelligence

Most humans consider their species to be the most intelligent in the animal kingdom. Certainly, humans are the only technologically advanced animal. Along with the brain's internal complexity, the brain to body mass ratio is generally assumed to be a good indicator of relative intelligence. Humans have the second highest ratio, with the tree shrew having the highest [http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_935198,00300006.htm], and the bottlenose dolphin very similar to humans. The human ability to abstract may be unparalleled in the animal kingdom. Human beings are one of five species to pass the mirror test — which tests whether an animal recognises its reflection as an image of itself — along with chimpanzees or bonobos, orangutans, and dolphins. Human beings under the age of four usually fail the test.

Culture

dolphin]] Culture is defined here as a set of distinctive material, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual features of a social group, including art, literature, lifestyles, value systems, traditions, rituals, and beliefs. Culture consists of at least three elements: values, social norms, and artifacts. A culture's values define what it holds to be important. Norms are expectations of how people ought to behave. Artifacts — things, or material culture — derive from the culture's values and norms together with its understanding of the way the world functions.

Origins

Essentially every culture has its characteristic origin beliefs. Creationism or creation theology is the belief that humans, the Earth, the universe and the multiverse were created by a supreme being or deity. The event itself may be seen either as an act of creation (ex nihilo) or the emergence of order from preexisting chaos (demiurge). Many who hold "creation" beliefs consider such belief to be a part of religious faith, and hence compatible with, or otherwise unaffected by scientific views while others maintain the scientific data is compatible with creationism. Proponents of evolutionary creationism may claim that understood scientific mechanisms are simply aspects of supreme creation. Otherwise, science-oriented believers may consider the scriptural account of creation as simply a metaphor.

Language

metaphor, Chinese, Korean, Hebrew and Greek]] Values, norms and technology are dependent on the capacity for humans to share ideas. The faculty of speech may be a defining feature of humanity, probably predating phylogenetic separation of the modern population. (See Proto-World language, Origins of language.) Language is central to the communication between humans. Some scientists argue that non-human animals are able to use some form of language too, and that non-human primates are able to learn human sign language [http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/cultural/language/chimpanzee.html] [http://www.msubillings.edu/asc/PDF-WritingLab/3-Minute%20Spr05/APA%20sample%20paper.pdf] (pdf). Language is central to the sense of identity that unites cultures and ethnicities. The invention of writing systems some 5000 years ago, allowing the preservation of speech, was a major step in cultural evolution. Language, especially written language, is sometimes thought to have supernatural status or powers. (See Magic, Mantra, Vac.) The science of linguistics describes the structure of language and the relationship between languages. There are estimated to be some 6,000 different languages, including sign languages, used today.

Music

Music is a natural intuitive phenomenon operating in the three worlds of time, pitch, and energy, and under the three distinct and interrelated organisation structures of rhythm, harmony, and melody. Composing, improvising and performing music are all art forms. Listening to music is perhaps the most common form of entertainment, while learning and understanding it are popular disciplines. There are a wide variety of music genres and ethnic musics.

Emotion and sexuality

Human emotion has a significant influence on, or can even be said to control, human behaviour. Emotional experiences perceived as pleasant, like love, admiration, or joy, contrast with those perceived as unpleasant, like hate, envy, or sorrow. There is often a distinction seen between refined emotions, which are socially learned, and survival oriented emotions, which are thought to be innate. Human exploration of emotions as separate from other neurological phenomena is worth note, particularly in those cultures were emotion is considered separate from physiological state. In some cultural medical theories, to provide an example, emotion is considered so synonymous with certain forms of physical health that no difference is thought to exist. The Stoics believed excessive emotion was harmful, while some Sufi teachers (in particular, the poet and astronomer Omar Khayyám) felt certain extreme emotions could yield a conceptual perfection, what is often translated as ecstasy. ecstasy"]] In modern scientific thought, certain refined emotions are considered to be a complex neural trait of many domesticated and a few non-domesticated mammals, developed commonly in reaction to superior survival mechanisms and intelligent interaction with each other and the environment; as such, refined emotion is not in all cases as discrete and separate from natural neural function as was once assumed. Still, when humans function in civilised tandem, it has been noted that uninhibited acting on extreme emotion can lead to social disorder and crime. Human sexuality, besides ensuring reproduction, has important social functions, creating physical intimacy, bonds and hierarchies among individuals, and that may be directed to spiritual transcendence, and/or to the enjoyment of activity involving sexual gratification. Sexual desire, libido, is experienced as a bodily urge, often accompanied by strong emotions, both positive (such as love or ecstasy) and negative (such as jealousy). As with other human self-descriptions, humans propose it is high intelligence and complex societies of humans that have produced the most complex sexual behaviors of any animal. Human sexual choices are usually made in reference to cultural norms, which vary widely. Restrictions are largely determined by religious beliefs.

Body image

norms, Japan]]The physical appearance of the human body is central to culture and art. In every human culture, people adorn their bodies with tattoos, cosmetics, clothing, and jewellery. Hairstyles and hair colour also have important cultural implications. The perception of an individual as physically beautiful or ugly can have profound implications for their lives. This is particularly true of women, whose external appearance is highly valued in most, if not all, human societies. Anthropologists believe this to be an important factor in the development of personality and social relations in particular physical attractiveness. There is a relatively low sexual dimorphism between human males and females in comparison with other mammals.

Trade and economics

sexual dimorphism.]] Trade is the voluntary exchange of goods, services, or both, and a form of economics. A mechanism that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and services. Modern traders instead generally negotiate through a medium of exchange, such as money. As a result, buying can be separated from selling, or earning. The invention of money (and later credit, paper money and non-physical money) greatly simplified and promoted trade. Trade exists for many reasons. Due to specialisation and division of labor, most people concentrate on a small aspect of manufacturing or service, trading their labour for products. Trade exists between regions because different regions have an absolute or comparative advantage in the production of some tradable commodity, or because different regions' size allows for the benefits of mass production. As such, trade between locations benefits both locations. Economics is a social science that studies the production, distribution, trade and consumption of goods and services. Economics, which focuses on measurable variables, is broadly divided into two main branches: microeconomics, which deals with individual agents, such as households and businesses, and macroeconomics, which considers the economy as a whole, in which case it considers aggregate supply and demand for money, capital and commodities. Aspects receiving particular attention in economics are resource allocation, production, distribution, trade, and competition. Economic logic is increasingly applied to any problem that involves choice under scarcity or determining economic value. Mainstream economics focuses on how prices reflect supply and demand, and uses equations to predict consequences of decisions.

Artifacts, technology, and science

supply and demand.]] Human cultures are both characterised and differentiated by the objects that they make and use. Archaeology attempts to tell the story of past or lost cultures in part by close examination of the artifacts they produced. Early humans left stone tools, pottery and jewellery that are particular to various regions and times. Improvements in technology are passed from one culture to another. For instance, the cultivation of crops arose in several different locations, but quickly spread to be an almost ubiquitous feature of human life. Similarly, advances in weapons, architecture and metallurgy are quickly disseminated. Such techniques can be passed on by oral tradition. The development of writing, itself a type of artifact, made it possible to pass information from generation to generation and from region to region with greater accuracy. Together, these developments made possible the commencement of civilisation and urbanisation, with their inherently complex social arrangements. Eventually this led to the institutionalisation of the development of new technology, and the associated understanding of the way the world functions. This science now forms a central part of human culture. In recent times, physics and astrophysics have come to play a central role in shaping what is now known as physical cosmology, that is, the understanding of the universe through scientific observation and experiment. This discipline, which focuses on the universe as it exists on the largest scales and at the earliest times, begins by arguing for the big bang, a sort of cosmic explosion from which the universe itself is said to have erupted ~13.7 ± 0.2 billion (10⁹) years ago. After its violent beginnings and until its very end, scientists then propose that the entire history of the universe has been an orderly progression governed by physical laws.

Mind

physical laws Consciousness is a state of mind, said to possess qualities such as, self-awareness, sentience, sapience, and the ability to perceive the relationship between oneself and one's environment. The way in which the world is experienced is the subject of much debate and research in philosophy of mind, psychology, brain biology, neurology, and cognitive science. Humans (and often others as well) are variously said to possess consciousness, self-aware

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