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Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

ox.ac.uk

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Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#151

Post by Vachyas »

An interesting anecdote that comes to mind is playing old computer games with arrow keys, which used my right hand. I got pretty proficient with this.

Over the years, I (and I imagine many others) switched over to WASD to play newer games with mouse + keyboard, but this meant using the left hand for "arrow keys"

Now I can directly compare how proficient I am with WASD vs Arrow Keys and the result surprised me. I was way worse with arrow keys (right hand) even though back when WASD was becoming a thing I'd rebind WASD to arrow keys because it felt too weird! I would've never imagined back then that WASD could ever feel as natural as arrow keys.

Makes me wonder how much of handedness is truly innate vs learned.

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#152

Post by mortenjorck »

yawpitch wrote: post #22
scythe wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here's my five minute lunchtime hypothesis: it's because the heart is on the left. As human behavior demanded increasing precision from the hands, being a little farther from the heartbeat was a slight advantage.

Here’s my multiple years of anatomy classes response: the heart isn’t on the left. The aorta is, sure, but the vena cava is on the right. Also people with situs inversus (essentially all organs flipped laterally from “normal”) aren’t obviously more prone to left-handedness.

I’ve wondered ever since fourth grade (where an anatomical model in a corner of the classroom always made it clear that the heart is centrally located) how the vernacular conception of the heart as located on the left originated and persisted.

Your post finally made it click for me – the aorta extending to the left gives the superficial impression of that being the heart’s location because it’s easier to feel the heartbeat through the skin, versus the more deeply embedded vena cava on the right.

Presumably this means, evolutionarily, greater vulnerability on the left, predisposing the left hand to shielding duties, leaving the right to more dexterous tasks like spearing. The cardiological hypothesis of right-handedness holds!

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#153

Post by walterburns »

My first thought was, "language". The Broca's area is on the left side of the brain, which is the center of control for logic, language and the right hand. It makes sense to me that an evolutionary feedback loop would develop between the hands and complex language development. So it's not odd that the average human brain would develop -somewhat better control over the right hand than the left.

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#154

Post by dhosek »

Vachyas wrote: post #151

An interesting anecdote that comes to mind is playing old computer games with arrow keys, which used my right hand. I got pretty proficient with this. Over the years, I (and I imagine many others) switched over to WASD to play newer games with mouse + keyboard, but this meant using the left hand for "arrow keys" Now I can directly compare how proficient I am with WASD vs Arrow Keys and the result surprised me. I was…

For this sort of motor skill, it’s definitely learned. For stringed instruments, for example, it’s the left hand which has the more finely managed manipulation than the right (it’s interesting to note that only guitar-family instruments are commonly made in left-handed versions, although some of that may come down to logistics of string ensembles where having one left-handed violin in the violin section would cause a bit of chaos with colliding bows that is less of an issue with guitar ensembles where there are fewer musicians and they’re less tightly packed in the performance space). Likewise, the fingering on woodwind instruments doesn’t really favor one hand over the other. In contrast, brass instruments are decidedly right-handed (I suppose one might be able to manage a trumpet left-handed, but I’ve never tried. I don’t think other brass instruments could be fingered with the left hand at all.

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#155

Post by xenadu02 »

Vachyas wrote: post #151

An interesting anecdote that comes to mind is playing old computer games with arrow keys, which used my right hand. I got pretty proficient with this. Over the years, I (and I imagine many others) switched over to WASD to play newer games with mouse + keyboard, but this meant using the left hand for "arrow keys" Now I can directly compare how proficient I am with WASD vs Arrow Keys and the result surprised me. I was…

I remember in elementary school being amused by the idea of handedness so I decided to practice writing with my left hand as well. I'm not great at it but even to this day I can write legibly with my left hand from that little bit of practice as a child.

Anyone can get much better at using their non-dominant hand (if they have one) with just a bit of practice. The effect is much much stronger when you do so as a child.

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#156

Post by kelipso »

Vachyas wrote: post #151

An interesting anecdote that comes to mind is playing old computer games with arrow keys, which used my right hand. I got pretty proficient with this. Over the years, I (and I imagine many others) switched over to WASD to play newer games with mouse + keyboard, but this meant using the left hand for "arrow keys" Now I can directly compare how proficient I am with WASD vs Arrow Keys and the result surprised me. I was…

Something super simple and revealing is try pressing on the brakes with your left foot.

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#157

Post by kazinator »

Here is a funny thing.

I can walk a bicycle perfectly just by holding nothing but the saddle with my right hand. I can pick some spot on the ground ahead, call it, and hit it with the front wheel accurately.

Switch to my left hand and the bike's front wheel starts having a mind of its own.

"No, don't veer that way, Bike; you're not reading my mind, like you do through my right hand!!!"

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#158

Post by kazinator »

Why is there handedness on stringed instruments? If you're right handed, you strum a guitar with your right hand, fret with the left. But both are fine motor skills requiring coordination. Left handed players go out of their way to acommodate doing it the other way around; either finding left-handed instruments (challenge: most things they might like/want are not available in lefty version) or suffer with a flipped right handed instrument (control positions on electrics are wrong, asymmetric cutaways for reach are wrong, nuts are slotted wrong for a mirrored string order).

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#159

Post by Gigachad »

usef- wrote: post #122
Magi604 wrote: post #114

I almost never see people using a left hand mouse these days. As younger people start using computers they generally will learn with right-handed mice and will thus develop those fine motor skills in that hand. I wonder if this will make right-handedness even more dominant.

With modern controllers the main joystick/thumbstick is on the left side. People are using both hands for fine control in different circumstances.

Keyboard is also both hands equally used. With handwriting less common, I wonder if people are shifting mostly towards using both hands equally now.

Re: Why is almost everyone right-handed? A new study connects it to bipedalism

#160

Post by Viacol »

nubinetwork wrote: post #132
skyberrys wrote: post #74

The article didn't really help me understand what it was about bipedalism that resulted in a right handed preference. Also in my family left hand dominates, we are a cluster of left handed people. My theory is if any child wants help with fine motor control the help is provided by a left hand to a left hand.

Oddly enough, a lot of my "nerd friends" are left handed, and I'm also left handed. /shrug

Funny enough, this made me realize that although I'm right-handed, I'm left-footed when it comes to football. As an amateur player, using my right foot with proper shooting form still feels surprisingly awkward to me.
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