Human The Humans ( " Homo sapiens " ) , also known as Terran s , were a warp - capable humanoid species from the Alpha Quadrant . The species originated from the planet Earth , in the Sol system . Humans were the only surviving race of several sentient / intelligent species to have evolved from the Genus Homo . Humans were also one of two known space faring intelligent species to have originated from Earth ; the other being the Voth , who had come to live in the Delta Quadrant by the 24th century . ( ) Overview . As the Latin word for their homeworld was " Terra " , Humans were sometimes referred to as " Terran s " , but not always . ( This usage was consistent in the mirror universe . ) Occasionally , the term " Terran " was used to distinguish Humans living on Earth from those resident on colonies on other planets and moon s . Some people used the adjective " Terran " to refer to subjects or institutions associated with Humanity ( Terran cuisine , Terran literature , Terran art , etc . ) . The Borg designation for Humans was Species 5618 . ( ) A founding member of the United Federation of Planets , Earth became warp - capable in 2063 , which was the same year Humans experienced first official contact with an alien species , the Vulcan s . The first warp - drive was engaged on April 5th of that year by Zefram Cochrane . ( ; ; ) By the 24th century , Human society had changed from what it was for most of recorded history . On Earth , hunger , war , disease , famine , and poverty had largely been eliminated . The acquisition of wealth was no longer the primary driving force in the lives of many Humans . A great deal of emphasis was placed on the importance of continued social and personal development . Thanks to the non - currency - based New World Economy and the development of replicator s , material needs were largely satisfied . Although money was no longer used by Humans within the Federation , they did use gold - pressed latinum and other forms of currency ( such as Bajoran lita s and credit s ) in places where it was still needed , such as Quark ' s . The idea behind not using money was that rather than seeking material possessions , Humans worked to better themselves and the rest of Humanity ( see Human philosophy ) . ( ; ) It must be noted that all of this more specifically applied to Humans within the Sol system , as many Earth colonies were known to have developed vast cultural differences from other Humans and some had even fallen into chaos , most notably Turkana IV . ( ) Earth colonies . These colonies were established by various Earth governments or United Earth and largely remained in close contact and dependence with and on Earth . Most of them were older than the United Federation of Planets itself . Human settlements unaffiliated with Earth . While achieving warp capability in 2063 , there were Human populations on other planets prior to this . In these cases , they would usually have been brought there by alien species , who had traveled to Earth . For instance , Native American s had been transplanted on Amerind by an unknown alien race called the Preservers sometime in the 19th century . In 2268 , they still lived as hunters and gatherers . Captain Kirk was adopted into one of the tribe s of Amerind , as the god Kirok . ( ) In 2153 , the starship , commanded by Captain Jonathan Archer , discovered a planet in the Delphic Expanse inhabited by six thousand Humans whose ancestors had been transplanted from the Ancient West during the late nineteenth century . ( ) The crew of the discovered , in 2371 , another instance of Humans having been kidnapped as slaves . Aliens from the Delta Quadrant , known as the Briori , had abducted , in 1937 , over three hundred other people ( among whom was Amelia Earhart , whose disappearance had never been explained ) to be utilized as slave labor on one of their planets . The " Voyager " crew discovered Earhart and Noonan , along with six other Humans , in a state of suspended animation , the only abducted Humans who had been left in stasis . By this time , the Humans had long since overthrown their Briori masters , and their descendants had established a thriving community on the planet . Upon being revived by the " Voyager " crew , Earhart and the others , who had come to be known as " the 37 ' s " by the Human colonists , were given the option of joining the crew on their long journey back to the Alpha Quadrant . Earhart and the others declined , however , and elected to remain on the planet with the other Human colonists . ( ) Biology . Human and Earth DNA , like much of the life in the galaxy , was originally seeded by an ancient humanoid race ( which shared similar DNA ) , and allowed to evolve under Earth ' s unique conditions . In time , they became Earth ' s animal biota , and one line evolved into Humans over millions of years . Humans are compatible with many other humanoid races across the galaxy because of this shared DNA . ( ; ) Many species are also affected by the same diseases across the galaxy because of the shared DNA . Some of Humanity ' s evolutionary ancestors included some kind of spider , amphibians , reptiles , primates , apes , and ultimately hominid proto - Humans ; each was a separate link in the Humans ' evolutionary chain , stretching back to the origins of all lifeforms on Earth . ( ; ) Bilaterally symmetrical bipedal primate s , Humans were a warm - blooded humanoid species . ( ; ) They had two hands and two feet , each of which had five digits . The Human hand featured an opposable thumb and their fingers had multiple points of articulation . ( ) The average Human life span had gradually increased during their history . At one point , it was only thirty - five years . ( ) During the 22nd century , it was about one hundred years . ( ) In the 24th century , Humans were known to live as long as 137 years as well , ( ) in the 23rd century , as long as 144 years . ( ) Humans evolved from the australopithecine s . ( ) Several related species of humanoids , including the Neanderthal s , co - existed on Earth some thirty - five thousand years prior to the 22nd century . Evolutionary pressures led to the extinction of these other species . In the 22nd century , Humanity ' s closest living relative was the chimpanzee . ( ) They had two sex es , as was common to many humanoid species . ( ) The female of the species was fertile once a month after she reached puberty until the onset of a biochemical stage known as menopause . ( ) Human gestation was significantly longer than the Bajoran five months . ( ) The make - up of Human DNA structure was significant , as , with some modifications , it allowed them to crossbreed successfully with a wide range of other races across the galaxy , including Vulcan s , Betazoid s , and Klingon s . ( ; ; ) On average , Humans were not as physically strong as some species such as Klingons and Vulcans . ( ; ; ) They were , however , resilient in other ways . They were more adaptable to incarceration than Klingons . ( ) They could survive with one lung or kidney , despite having two of these organs initially . ( ; ) Humans could also go day s without water and week s without food due to their bodies ' ability to conserve water and live off stored fat . ( ) Their bodies ' efficient temperature regulation allowed them to resist and survive cold temperatures that would adversely affect other species such as Cardassian s and Klingons or high temperatures that would be uncomfortable for an Andorian . ( ; ) They also possessed more acute hearing than Cardassians . ( ) Humans were prone to strong , occasionally overwhelming emotion s , such as love , hatred , embarrassment , and elation . ( ) Such feelings extended beyond sentient species . Many Humans anthropomorphized the lower lifeforms they kept as pet s . Even fictional characters could elicit Human compassion . ( ) Humans had iron - based hemoglobin in their blood . ( ; ) Each individual ' s blood could be one of several blood type s , which included AB - positive , O - negative , and B - negative . ( ; ) Culture . Humans were easily the most outworldly , idealistic , and expansionistic race in the United Federation of Planets , and possessed those qualities in a greater degree than many of the alien races they encountered . Humans had no true specialty or extraordinary qualities and were average in both a technological and physical sense . The Devore inspector Kashyk remarked that Human culture had many contradictions – such as violence and beauty , as well as science and faith – all somehow mingled harmoniously , similar to the counterpoint of a musical composition . ( ) Because Humans were the Federation species most interested in space exploration , they made up a large majority of Starfleet . The fact that Starfleet was originally a pre - Federation Earth organization also contributed to the Human dominance of Starfleet . Humans also made up the majority of colonists on Federation colonies . Human adaptability and their strong tradition of innovation and cooperation brought them to the forefront of the current Federation interstellar situation . It was for this very reason , however , that Human society was constantly changing and evolving . This was seen not only on the isolated colonies , where the past traditions brought by culturally and geographically homogeneous blocks of colonists competed with new cultural pragmatism demanded of frontier life , but also in the staid and settled core worlds as well . Fashion , speech , and especially political views were constantly changing . For species that were steeped in tradition and genealogical reverence as the basis of their societies , the Human fascination with the novel experience and their unending desire to innovate and explore , to discover for the sake of discovery , were all difficult concepts to grasp . Jazz music persisted into the 24th century and became a contribution to galactic culture , as did opera music . Humans played music collaboratively in a format known as " classical music . " ( ; ; ) Competitive sports from Human cultures also became part of Federation culture in various ways . Sports played in the 24th century included soccer ( also known as " football " ) , fencing , and wrestling . Other Human sports included water polo , baseball , and hockey . ( ; ; ; ; ) Humans expressed themselves through various art forms . One such art form was known as dance . ( ; ) Human cuisine had a broad spectrum , and was shared widely with other cultures . Humans were omnivorous , unlike vegetarian Vulcan culture . A small sampling of Human dishes enjoyed by other species included pecan pie and chocolate . Human foods were often connected to a place , a language , or a family , and were a part of a richer cultural experience , such as jambalaya and oden . ( ; ; ; ; ) Human mating rituals sometimes involved a cultural ceremony known as a wedding to indicate a lasting commitment , as in other cultures , such as Vulcan and Klingon . ( ; ; ; ; ) " According to divorce e in the alternate reality , " " If an Earth girl says , ' It ' s me , not you , ' it ' s definitely you . " " " ( ; ) Human culture evolved to eliminate war , poverty and disease by the year 2113 . ( ; ; ) Humanity ' s children . In later centuries , Humans expanded on their desire to seek out new life by turning inward , demonstrating their abilities to create new life in their own image . The stronger , more intelligent and physically resilient 20th century Augment s may or may not have qualified as a separate species , but following his experience with Augments in the 22nd century , Dr . Arik Soong abandoned genetics for cybernetics . His work was continued and fulfilled by Dr . Noonian Soong , who created a series of sentient Soong - type android s , including Lore , B - 4 , Juliana Soong ( the nearly perfect reproduction of his then - comatose wife ) , and Data ( the first android to be officially ruled by Federation law as sentient , and who proved capable of reproduction by creating his own daughter , Lal ) . ( ; ; ; ) Humans also used holographic technology to sprout new sentient life , beginning with the first self - aware holographic character , James Moriarty , in 2365 . The work of Dr . Lewis Zimmerman on Emergency Medical Hologram s birthed The Doctor , Humanity ' s most complex photonic lifeform , developed in the later 24th century . ( ; ) Mirror universe . In the mirror universe , Humans were known as s and were the founders of the Terran Empire . They were filled with fear and suspicion when a Vulcan scout ship landed on Earth to initiate first contact in 2063 . The Humans slaughtered the Vulcan crew and used the technology within to create an interstellar empire . ( ) This Empire lasted centuries until it was overshadowed by the equally vicious aspirations of the Klingon - Cardassian Alliance . Although many races in the mirror universe harbored hopes of forming a peaceful alliance to protect civilization , Terrans were rarely found among these rebels due to the wealth and safety afforded by their violent expansionist policies . ( ) Appendices . Background information . Humans are the only species to have made an appearance in almost every episode to date of all six " Star Trek " series and all films ( except , though several holographic representations of Humans are present in that episode ) . In addition , the plurality of the lead characters of every " Star Trek " series so far have been Human . In the final draft and the revised final draft of the script for , Leonard McCoy submitted that part of " the Human condition " was having " an enemy within . "