How the Vulcan Mind Meld from Star Trek Works

Oh, those wacky Vulcans from Star Trek, always peeking into people’s minds. We look at the history and, well, LOGIC of the Vulcan Mind Meld!

“My mind to your mind. My thoughts to your thoughts…”

• Vulcans right before they guess your phone password.

We’ve all seen them do it. A Vulcan gets cozy with an individual, gently places a perfectly-manicured and long-fingered hand along their face, gets that distant look in their eye, and suddenly their minds are one. No, it’s not a clever party trick, it’s an incredibly useful information gathering tool, as well as an intimate (even emotional) act that Vulcans don’t take lightly and thus only deploy in circumstances that absolutely demand it. Yes, we’re talking about the Vulcan Mind Meld this week! And despite being one of the most famous pieces of Star Trek lore there is surprisingly (or perhaps thankfully) little on screen explanation of it. 

But explaining how a mind meld may or may not work requires us to dig into how brains actually conjure up and store things like memories, the electrical impulses that make up thoughts, and actual real world non-verbal communication. There are also some fascinating pieces of Star Trek history to be uncovered in our quest to determine not just the “how” of this famed plot and story device, but the “why” of how it came to be. Our hosts, Dr. Hakeem Oluseyi and Tamara Krinsky have once again performed a mind meld of their own to bring you the very best breakdown of sci-fi and pop culture you’re going to find in this quadrant.

Check out the latest episode of Does it Fly? right here if you don’t believe us!

FURTHER VIEWING

Despite being one of the most famous bits of Star Trek lore, the Vulcan Mind Meld is something that’s only been used relatively sparingly on screen. You probably know the broad strokes of what it is and what it’s supposed to do, but here are the specific episodes and moments we used for reference in this episode:

Star Trek season 1 episode 9 – “Dagger of the Mind”

Star Trek: The Next Generation season 3 episode 23 – “Sarek”

Star Trek: Voyager season 1 episode 8 – “Ex Post Facto”

Star Trek: Voyager season 2 episode 16 – “Meld”

Star Trek: Enterprise season 1 episode 17 – “Fusion”

FURTHER READING

Do you want to delve a little deeper into the facts, concepts, and stories Hakeem and Tamara referenced in today’s episode? Of course you do! 

What is a Mind?

Oh no, are we getting all philosophical again like we did in our recent Freaky Friday episode? Well…maybe not as much this time. In fact, to prove it, here is an exceedingly scientific breakdown of what makes up the brain itself: neurons and how they work! See also: the concept of “theory of mind” which we have also discussed recently!

Brain Energy Signals

In order to detect what a brain is thinking, you need to read the signals…which may be electrical in nature but come in units of measure we aren’t used to dealing with!

Mirror Neurons

No, not neurons that make you behave like your evil double from a parallel universe (sorry, this is a Star Trek episode, so couldn’t resist), these are far more practical. And in a way, it’s a form of mind meld!

Technological Mind Melds

The scientific study that Hakeem references where scientists used technology to essentially create a mind meld was captured on video here.

Where are Memories Stored in the Brain?

In order to access the thoughts of another, they have to theoretically be stored somewhere, right? All this and more answered here.

Behind the Scenes!

If you want to go deeper into Tamara’s explanations about how the Mind Meld came to be, we always recommend These are the Voyages, TOS Season One by Marc Cushman and Susan Osborne and The Fifty-Year Mission: The Complete, Uncensored, Unauthorized Oral History of Star Trek – The First 25 Years by Ed Gross and Mark A. Altman.

WANT MORE FROM DOES IT FLY?

This ain’t our first rodeo (in this case, “rodeo” means “exploration of concepts from Star Trek)! 

Our first episode ever took on the transporter and you can watch that right here.

We also took a closer look at the Genesis Device from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Watch it here!

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