Who is wiser, Spock or Yoda? An actual scientific study weighs in
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Who is wiser, Spock or Yoda? An actual scientific study weighs in
By Bryan Nelson, Mother Nature Network, January 30 2019
Yoda vs. Spock, who would win in a battle over wisdom? (Photo: Lucasfilm, Wikimedia Commons / NBC Television, Wikimedia Commons )
It's the ultimate geek debate: "Star Trek" or "Star Wars"? Or, perhaps even more essential: Spock or Yoda?
In a physical confrontation, it would probably be tough for Spock to contend with Yoda's force-wielding powers, provided Yoda could avoid a Vulcan nerve pinch. But what makes these two characters so iconic is not so much their physical prowess as their brilliant minds. Yoda is a Jedi Grandmaster, with 900 years worth of grammatically awkward wisdom at his disposal. Spock, on the other hand, is a wizard of logic, with powers of reasoning unfettered by emotional biases.
Who would win, then, in a battle of wits?
The debate, it turns out, might already be over. Scientists have weighed in (with an actual study!) that settles, once and for all, which of these fictional oracles employs the wisest philosophy.
A team of psychologists, led by Igor Grossmann from the University of Waterloo, pulled together the results from six separate studies that looked at how the emotions influence reasoning processes. They wanted to determine how a concept known as " emodiversity " — the ability to experience a rich mixture of balanced emotional states — might alter how reasoned decisions are made.
"With our new study, we wanted to test how the presence and balance of multiple emotions at the same time influence one's ability for wise reasoning," explained Grossmann in a news release .
Overall, the experiments involved some 3,678 participants across four years of research. While none of the study subjects were either Vulcan or members of ... whatever species Yoda happens to be ... these two fictional characters nevertheless are known for their differing methodologies. Spock believes in negating emotions so that his reasoning powers are unbridled, while Yoda preaches finding balance, and he regularly consults with his intuitions and emotions when making decisions.
This was basically the distinction that the study was comparing, and it wasn't lost on the researchers.
As with most things, balance is the key
"What unites both the grand master of the Jedi Order and the first officer of the Starship Enterprise are their critical acumen, their ability to reason through complex situations, and their selfless willingness to forego personal interests for the common good," the team explained, in their very serious research paper . "At the same time, these two icons differ fundamentally in their attitudes toward emotions."
While you might think that scientists would be biased toward Spock, given that his emotion-suppressing methodology seems to fit more congruently with the scientific method, that's not how the results panned out. Subjects who performed the best on the study's "wise reasoning" metric were consistently those who expressed a balanced set of emotional states, as opposed to suppressed emotions or unbalanced emotional states.
In other words, the science sides with Yoda, and it's not even close.
"It seems that wise reasoning does not align with uniform emotional down-regulation, as portrayed by Spock. Rather, wise reasoning accompanies one's ability to recognize and balance a wide range of emotions, as portrayed by Yoda," said Grossmann, definitively.
And so, the great debate has been resolved. Don't rub it in too hard, though, "Star Wars" fanatics. Trekkies might need some time for this one to settle in.
Heed the Grandmaster's advice: "You will know good from bad when you are calm, at peace. Passive. A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack."
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Have Spock and Yoda play a game of 3 D chess. That will determine who's the wisest
Good idea Trout!
No fair, though. The Force sometimes allows one to see the future, so Yoda would have an unfair edge.
Doesn't Yoda have to deliberately "look" into the future? If he makes that face, Spock will know what's going on and give him a neck pinch
I don't know. Luke seemed to see the future whether that was his intent or not.
I'm pretty sure the Vulcan nerve pinch is prohibited, but I suppose in response to unfair play, it might be acceptable. And much more elegant than just flipping the board over.
Here's the thing, tho. Both Spock and Yoda are ethical creatures. I would trust that they would both play the game with no tricks involved.
I would hope.
It's allowed. It's the mind meld that you have to ask permission to do, since it is a violation of a being.
You know, I think you're right. They wouldn't cheat.
high five!
Nope neither would cheat.....
But if logic dictated, Spock would lie...... He called it subterfuge..... If the intent is true, a lie is but a tactic to obtain truth.....
I believe Savik actually questioned him on this very topic in the Wrath of Khan....... A lie can be logical.....
Yes, Vulcan logic regarding honesty could be very...fluid.
In Voyager, Tuvok lied to infiltrate the Maquis - something about being "true to his own convictions" or similar. He also lied to help flush out a crewman leaking information to the Kazon.
I'm not sure one can lie one's way to a chess victory, though, other than the normal subterfuge that can be part of game strategy. I'd consider that to be fair game, anyway.
Yoda might try distraction by lifting a shuttlecraft or X-wing, whichever happened to be handy, but I doubt that would work on a mind as focused as Spock's.
That is logical.
We were wrong. Spock would cheat:
I've gotta go with Yoda. He didn't have to rely on "Project Genesis" to come back to life like Spock ! Yoda lasted and eventually died of old age.
Spock had a bit of "Reasoning" problems in "The Galileo Seven" episode too ! His "Reasoning" Failed and confused him on Taurus II.
I did like Spock's reasoning when he died though. "The means of the many, out way the means of the few....or the ONE "!
the actual quote......
Kirk's response...
reH dictates Logic.
QaQjaj jajlIj!!!
we have seen other Vulcans but only Yoda, what are others of his kind like?
Yoda using the force is very powerful and when he uses a light saber he does not move like he is old
We have seen how Vulcans act during their mating season
I believe if you watched episode I the "Phantom Menace", in the closing scenes, there were Yoda type creatures there, rougher looking, but of the Yoda species.
I will have to go back and watch that because I don't remember the other Yodas.
I recently saw "Solo"...now I hope they do movies about Yoda and Chewbacca
Was it any good? I avoided it because of the reviews.
I'm not sure anybody but Harrison Ford could be Han Solo for me.
I liked it. It explained how Solo and Chewbacca became friends.
It also explained the "Kessel Run in 12 parsecs"
Good, because that needed some explanation.
I agree with Sandy. Nobody else but Ford could possibly be Han Solo. Perhaps in the future they could resurrect him like they brought him back out of being put in a solid slab that Jabba the Hut did to him.
Harrison Ford is getting a little long in the tooth to play a 20-something, tho.
I want them to make a movie with Princess Leia as a teen nymphomaniac before she became political.
I want them to make a movie with Princess Leia as a teen nymphomaniac before she became political.
Well why not?
After all, something "sexual" was done with Hermione in the Harry Potter series.
Harry Potter Hermione's Growth Spurt - SNL
both have amazing ears but Yoda has a tail
He does?
I thought I saw a picture of him or an action figure with a tail but I was wrong
mistaken, I was
Wow, like any of this can even be considered valid.....
It's like comparing Merlin to General Eisenhower......
Each, depending on the situation, had their strong points.....
Yoda either has a speech impediment or is dyslexic. Though I am sure that doesn't discount wisdom.
I just think that if he was as knowledgeable as they say, he could master a language.
I wouldn't say he hadn't mastered the language. His vocabulary was correct, and all of the parts of speech are there.
Just used a strange sentence structure, he did.
Languages many, I speak.
Now you sound Amish.
Make the lights off when you leave the room, bitte...
Since Harrison Ford and the Amish are mentioned here...
Went to paramedic (MICT) school with a great EMT who was dyslexic. Unfortunately he was dropped because he couldn't do drug dosage calculations in his head. He stayed a great EMT.
I have to go with Spock on this one.
Yoda may be very wise, but he could not have fooled the 21st century people in The Voyage Home as Spock was able to do. Of course that has nothing to do with wisdom, but Yoda would have had to do more than use a headband to cover his ears.
Maybe he could have used the Force to make them see an average Joe.
Yeah, I guess that's possible. He could have waved his hand and planted it into the mind of observers the way Obi Wan Kenobi did to let him and Luke pass, and Rey did to have a stormtrooper release her bonds and drop his weapon.
Spock can tell you the answer to any question you ask him. Yoda knows the answer before you even ask him the question. Of course there's a chance he might lie to you about the answer.
Lie, he does not. Embellish the truth , maybe
He always tells the truth. From a certain point of view.
Seems to me Yoda exemplifies wisdom whereas Spock exemplifies knowledge (and logic). But of course both characters are wise, knowledgeable and logical.