The founders of the United Federation of Planets, Humans have become one of the most influential races in this portion of the One of the most influential and important species in the Alpha quadrant, Humans originate from the planet Earth in the Sol system. The early history of the planet was remarkable in many respects - chiefly for the number of contacts with alien civilisations which occurred. All of these proved to be of a very limited type however, and it was not until 2063 that the first official First Contact occured. At this point Earth was suffering the effects of a large scale nuclear war and was at a particularly low point. A group of scientists working under Zephram Cochrane had been working on a method of faster than light drive system for spacecraft when the war occurred. Despite having no official funding and poor living conditions the team pressed on with their project, and by 2063 they where able to launch the Pheonix, the first vessel in the alpha quadrant fitted with a warp drive.
Cochranes flight attracted the attion of a Vulcan survey vessel which was in the system; the Vulcans subsequently sent a shuttlecraft down to make contact with Cochranes team. The discovery that they where not alone in the universe had a profound impact on mankind, bringing all the people of the Earth together as never before.
As the only species equipped with warp drive technology, Humanity was able to virtually create the concept of interstellar trade. Human-built spacecraft totally monopolised this trade for over twenty five years, bringing a flood of revenue which rebuilt the war-torn planet and turned it into an economic powerhouse. By 2113 poverty, hunger and war had been abolished from the planet and Humanity was a major power.
Throughout the next forty five years Humanity continued to build an interstellar network of colonies and bases through a significant portion of the Alpha quadrant. Finally, in 2158 they encountered the Romulan Empire; the two powers fought a brief but intense war which was ended in 2160 when the Romulan Neutral Zone was established in order to provide a buffer zone between the two powers.
The Romulan War proved to Humanity that they had over-reached themselves, and they sought to form an alliance of different civilisations in order to provide for greater stability and prevent further conflicts. The United Federation of Planets was established in 2161 when the Humans and Vulcans signed the Federation Constitution. Although the Federation is regarded as a model of inter-species cooperation, Humans have always made up the bulk of its population and have therefore tended to dominate it.
Physically, Humans are bilaterally symetrical bipeds whos skin and hair can vary considerably between individuals. As with most species there are two genders, male and female, but unusually there are several different racial groups. In most other respects Humans are physically close to the average for an Alpha quadrant species.