# Human vs Klingon vs Vulcan - How do they match up physically? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 10, 2009, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088 "2009-11-10T20:23:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2009, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/61 "2009-11-12T18:02:52Z")
> [@R4v3nh34rt](#): > > First of all my post wasn’t meant to be aggressive or anything since i just registered only to reply on this particular topic, so chill the fuck out. > Four times? mhhh, well how do they say? That quantity is not as important as quality? Moreover, judging by the things i read in this topic it doesn’t seem there are people who have been watching it that long. > > And a decade is the longest i could ever have watched it since I’m pretty young (yeah, spare me the shit “oh it’s obvious” since I’m not THAT young). > There are “weird” and unusual episodes where you see vulcans doing weird stuff like bending pipes or things like that. Don’t take every single event as the only truth since there will always be several others which deny that. Name one. Give us one instance from a show where a Vulcan tried to do something that would take less strength than a gorilla, but more than 3x human, and failed. Cites have been provided where a Vulcan bent a steel bar - you’re calling that a “weird and unusual”. Give us a cite where a Vulcan tries to bend a steel bar, but can’t, as support that bending one was “weird and unusual”. And yeah, until you came along, no one in this thread brought out their “I’m such a Trekker I’ve got samples of Shatner’s hair in my basement!” credits. So don’t be terribly surprised that you got called on it when you did. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2009, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/62 "2009-11-12T18:21:03Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > Pissing off Scotty would be trivial - just compare the Enterprise to a garbage scow. And he is a Scotsman, who aren’t particularly well known for their even temper - hell, “like filling a Scotsman with rage” could replace “like taking candy from a baby” as the adage for a trivial task. Stereotypes aside, Scotty never struck me as especially short-tempered. Even in the tribble episode, when he clocks a Klingon for saying the Enterprise should be hauled away as garbage, he doesn’t seem to lose his self-control; it was more of a _I cannot ignore this slur to my great lady’s honor, orders or not._ (And, of course, that was just his sly way of getting confined to quarters so he could catch up on his engineering journals, rather than going on shore leave to a space station that was crawling with Klingons rather than hookers. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2009, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/63 "2009-11-12T19:01:26Z")
But back to the OP, prior to going all logical on the universe, the Vulcans were supposed to be extremely violent and extremely emotional. This was established back in the original series. They turned to their more peaceful philosophy of logic as an antidote to their savagery that crippled their culture due to all the ongoing warfare. I think it was TNG that established that early Vulcans who didn’t wanna be all logical, took off, got their own planet, and became Romulans. As for their strength: three times stronger than humans is cannon from both TOS and DS9 and they have faster reflexes as well. You can probably get a whack of cites and details from [Memory Alpha, the Star Trek Wiki](http://memory-alpha.org). ---
**Author:** ![dark\_angeluk1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f17d59/32.png) [@dark\_angeluk1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dark_angeluk1)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2009, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/64 "2009-11-14T21:09:44Z")
hi all in response to the Human vs Klingon vs Vulcan, Humans and Klingons are fairly evenly matched there are quite a few episodes and refs where these two species fight each other with no real clear winner, Humans adapt to the various situiations they find themselves in, someone pointed out that humans are the 98LB weaklings this they are most certainly not, if this were true how have humans fought off the Jem Haddar? Vulcans are at best 3 - 4 times stronger than Humans but again it varies with conditioning etc by the way Vulcans are carbon based like Humans and Klingons, their blood is copper based, this is why their colouring is like it is from a greenish tinge to a reddish tinge. on the premise of fighting the Jem Haddar are no stronger than either Humans or Klingons but are bred to be more violent and supremely battle ready from almost being born, few Jem Haddars live long lives, i seem to remember one saying 15 years old was ancient. As for the Multi Species Olympics the final stand would most likely be Swimming the final would be likely to be Klingon Vs Human (i quote from a few sources here, Vulcans in general are not great swimmers though some have learnt to swim) Shooting likely to be Human Vs Vulcan ( Klingons do not have good distance vision) track and field certainly Vulcan (speed over short distance, but the longer distance would certainly be Human or Klingon and quite Possibly Human, we have a much more endurance based body system) fighting is anybodies guess, again certain Vulcan but this could be vs either Klingon or Human. if anyone wants to try and shoot me down bare in mind i have watched every single episode of every single series of star trek, i have read every single book thats been written, i have every ref manual from the more famous ones to some quite obscure stuff. i think i can safely say i have put the nail in the coffin lol. regards to you all. PEACE AND LONGLIFE ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2009, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/65 "2009-11-14T22:37:17Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > \<…\>rather than going on shore leave to a space station that was crawling with Klingons rather than hookers. [Who the heck says there weren’t hookers?](http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Deep_Space_Station_K-7_personnel#Brunette_waitress) That’s what the Klingon captain as much as admitted they were there for. Yeah, I know, they were officially “waitresses” \ but does anyone really believe that? ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2009, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/66 "2009-11-14T23:57:51Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > [Who the heck says there weren’t hookers?](http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Deep_Space_Station_K-7_personnel#Brunette_waitress) That’s what the Klingon captain as much as admitted they were there for. Yeah, I know, they were officially “waitresses” \ but does anyone really believe that? I didn’t say there were NO hookers on the station. I said the station wasn’t CRAWLING with hookers. Or something to that effect. I’d check for the exact wording but I’m not sure how to scroll up. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2009, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/67 "2009-11-15T02:08:50Z")
> [@Jolly\_Roger](#): > > Ok, that Grinch reference made me chuckle. 🙂 Say what? > [@Jolly\_Roger](#): > > I wonder where Cardassians fall in this who is stronger stuff? They hold their liquor better, and are sneakier. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2009, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/68 "2009-11-15T02:13:35Z")
> [@Small\_Hen](#): > > Nitpick: But McCoy, who was carrying Spock’s Katra in “Search For Spock” was unable to do a nerve pinch, even though he should have had the exact know how and memory in his head. So, what’s that about? Huh? He’s been drinking as I recall. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2009, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088/69 "2009-11-15T02:30:39Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I’ve never understood why, apart from plot reasons, Kirk decided to piss Spock off in “Paradise Syndrome.” I understand that he needed the technical help, but it would have been much smarter to run that strategem on Scott or Uhura, whom he could reasonably have expected to be able to overpower. It was pure dumb luck that he survived the fight with Spock; the episode makes it clear tha tthe strength difference between humans and Vulcans is simply overwhelming. Kirk didn’t know how to fix it. He can’t do anything by himself except kick ass. All he has to do is diss Spock and keep out of his way. When Spock came out of it, he figured out they could make a dingus that would bring even McCoy out of it. Of course, Spock lives to piss off McCoy, but I digress. Someone’s already pointed out that you are talking about _This Side of Paradise,_ right? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-vs-klingon-vs-vulcan-how-do-they-match-up-physically/517088.md?page=3)