'Star Trek' Science: Why Vulcans (and Other Aliens) Look Like Humans

Human life, seeded to different planets by an extraterrestrial civilization, may clarify why so most of the aliens within the fictional "Star Trek" universe resemble human women and men.

After finding out scenes from the assorted reveals and films, one evolutionary biologist posited that the galaxy-wide distribution of Earth-based life-forms may assist to clarify a few of the resemblance between Kirk and Spock.

"This mannequin ignores issues just like the distinction in coronary heart placement — maybe unlikely — or the Vulcan copper, somewhat than human iron-based, blood — additionally unlikely," Mohamed Noor, an evolutionary biologist at Duke College in North Carolina, advised House.com by electronic mail. "However the general precept is extra possible than the notion that the species advanced fully independently to look nearly the identical after billions of years." Noor offered the outcomes of his off-hour analysis this summer season at Atlanta's Dragon Con. [How 'Star Trek' Technology Works (Infographic)]

The seeds of humankind

Life on Earth won't have originated on the planet itself. Scientists have lengthy thought of the opportunity of panspermia, the concept that our planet's life or its precursors got here from outer house. After drifting, unplanned, into the liveable surroundings, the seed materials may need developed into life as we all know it at this time.

An analogous thought was investigated in an episode of "Star Trek: The Subsequent Technology." In "The Chase" (Season 6, Episode 20), an historical alien species known as the Preservers was revealed to have seeded many planets with the identical genetic materials. Over billions of years, comparable crops, animals and humanoids developed on a wide range of worlds, based on the story offered within the episode.

However Noor would not purchase it. "Sounds good, however no approach," Noor stated. Even with the identical preliminary circumstances, he stated, the chance of crops and animals with comparable appearances — and, in species like Vulcans, in a position to breed with people — creating on a number of worlds from solely genetic materials is extremely low. With the passage of a lot time, the assorted worlds would evolve creatures very totally different from each other.

"By their [the show's] mannequin, we are actually extra intently associated to grass or an amoeba than we're to a Vulcan," Noor stated. "I do not think about us having youngsters with these different species." [Where No Films Have Gone Before: The Complete 'Star Trek' Movie List]

As an alternative, Noor proposed that the seeding occurred rather more not too long ago than portrayed within the episode. If the human ancestor Homo erectus, together with crops and different animals, had been taken by the Preservers solely one million years in the past, somewhat than the proposed billion, and had been seeded onto planets like Vulcan, the ensuing life-forms could possibly be extra intently associated, Noor stated.

"It might require an excessive model of quick terraforming, however from a organic perspective, it is at the least doable," Noor stated.

In the meantime, the Homo erectus people who remained on Earth may have advanced into people whereas these on Vulcan advanced to turn out to be pointy-eared aliens.

"The 2 fashionable species would certainly look comparable, however it's probably there could be some bodily variations," Noor stated, pointing to Vulcans' uncommon ears and eyebrows. The shut genetic relationship among the many totally different descendants of Homo erectus may even enable them to provide an offspring born of each, such because the half-human, half-Vulcan Spock.

Kissing cousins

As a longtime "Star Trek" fan, Noor has loved analyzing the accuracy of the present. In school, he and his professors would joke concerning the unfeasible scientific explanations offered in "The Subsequent Technology," the sequence on the air on the time. To arrange for his Dragon Con presentation, Noor hung out reviewing varied episodes from a number of sequence of the present, after which discussing the science with biologists and chemists. 

"I feel the thought of attempting to think about what life in outer house could possibly be is fascinating," he stated. "I've actually loved researching this."

If human life within the "Star Trek" universe was certainly seeded on a number of planets, Earth could be the most probably unique supply, Noor stated. That is as a result of life-forms on Earth are clearly associated to 1 one other in a hierarchal approach. People could be extra intently associated to aliens reminiscent of Romulans and Klingons than they're to chimpanzees.

Confirming this is able to be "remarkably straightforward" for an evolutionary biologist within the "Star Trek" universe, Noor stated. By evaluating DNA samples from different human-like aliens to these of Earthlings, biologists would be capable to uncover the shut genetic relationship between them, which might simply rule out the thought of random, undirected panspermia.

"We could even be capable to infer roughly what number of years in the past this occurred from the distinction within the DNA sequence," Noor stated.

Comply with Nola Taylor Redd on Twitter @NolaTRedd or Google+. Comply with us at @Spacedotcom, Fb or Google+. Initially revealed on House.com.

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