The religious elements of Leonard Nimoy's Orthodox Jewish childhood proved useful when he landed the part of Spock. Realizing that the character could benefit from some sort of defining gesture, he came up with the transcendent brilliance of the Vulcan salute. Nimoy based the salute on the kohanic blessing, forming his fingers roughly into the shape of the Hebrew letter "shin" - the letter used as one of the Hebrew names for God. With this display of deep creativity, Nimoy showed that he was willing to put careful thought into something even as mundane as a gesture. And that careful thought paid off - he created the single most recognizable gesture in sci-fi history.