Vulcans are a fictional race in the Star Trek universe, known for their pointed ears, arched eyebrows, green blood, and logical behavior. They are longer lived and stronger than humans, with a strong sense of smell and resistance to heat. They view emotions as irrational and try to live their lives governed by logic and reason. The most famous Vulcan is Mr. Spock, Captain Kirk’s right-hand man, who struggles with human emotion. Vulcans can perform a “mind meld” with other people, and their typical greeting is a hand gesture that means “Live long and prosper.”
A Vulcan is a member of one of the best-known fictional races in the Star Trek universe. Though fairly human in appearance, Vulcans can be distinguished from humans by their pointed ears and arched eyebrows. The first episodes of Star Trek also established the particularity of Vulcan blood. It has a high copper level and is green.
A Vulcan is also much longer lived than a human. They are also about three times stronger than humans and live to be around 300 years old. Any Vulcan under the age of 100 is still considered relatively young and impressionable. Other Vulcan attributes that differ from humans include: a strong sense of smell, the ability to become intoxicated with chocolate, a higher degree of resistance to heat, and a third eyelid.
In behavior, the Vulcan is very distinct from humans. They view emotions as irrational and try to live their lives governed by logic and reason. This is a targeted attempt; Vulcans can be capable of emotion. They are directly related to Romulans, who are highly emotional and often rule through emotional response rather than reason.
In general, however, a Vulcan can be said to be peace-seeking, inclined to logically analyze ideas, and a member of one of the most respected races in the Federation of Planets. In the series, the Vulcan race was one of the primary races to form the Federation, and they made first contact with Earth’s citizens when humans were deemed “ready” for inclusion in the Federation.
Most people’s first association with a Vulcan is Mr. Spock, Captain Kirk’s right-hand man in the original Star Trek series. Spock, it should be noted, has a human mother, so he struggles with human emotion. In particular, his friendship and brotherly love for Captain Kirk are outside the realm of normal Vulcan behavior.
In an episode titled “The Vulcan Death Grip”, Spock pinches a nerve in Jim’s shoulder, which makes Jim appear dead. Nimoy had begged the show’s creator to give him a way to avoid physical fights, simply because he didn’t want to have to do the stunts. Thus evolved the Vulcan Death Grip, actually a misnomer. What actually happens is a fit of unconsciousness from this precise movement, giving a Vulcan time to escape and avoid fighting. Avid Star Trek fans always tend to cheer up an example of the Vulcan Death Grip.
Another Vulcan ability, which is written about a lot, is the ability of Vulcans to perform a “mind meld” with other people. This is actually a very intimate moment, since those who mind-meld with a Vulcan have access to the Vulcan’s thoughts. It connects the two people who performed a mind meld forever. Famous mind melds include those between Captain Kirk and Spock, and Captain Jean Luc Picard and Spock’s father, Ambassador Sarek.
A final comment should be made on the Vulcan hand gesture, a typical greeting and farewell. The hand faces up with the index and middle fingers separated from the little and ring fingers, forming a V in the space between the fingers. The greeting can be said with the words “Live long and prosper” or it can be silent and simply imply the thoughts behind the gesture.
Nimoy also contributed the hand gesture, which is based on the position of the hands in the Jewish priestly blessing. While this hand position was generally secret, Nimoy sneaked a peek at it as a child and soon learned the position. Today, Trekkies would not consider themselves sufficiently attached to the world of Star Trek without mastering this gesture.
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