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Who
is a left hander?
A left hander is a
person who prefers the use of his left hand for activities that
require fine motor skills; he even performs better with his left
hand. Sociocultural
influences often force many potential left-handers to use their
right hands for such activities and as a result their activities are
not at their optimal best.
Ambidexterity
Many people
demonstrate the ability to use both their hands with an equal amount
of skill for identical tasks. At times the left may be preferred for
certain tasks and the right may be preferred for different
tasks.
Scientific
research on the “why” of it
Various scientific
studies in this area have been made to pinpoint the reason for some
people having a predisposition towards using their left hands.
Genetics is believed to have a significant part to play in
determining a person’s preference for use of his hands. However
genetics is not the only cause of left handedness and scientists
believe in the existence of certain non-inherent causes too. Left
handedness need not necessarily be passed on from parent to child.
Similarly the possibility of a right-handed person having a
left-handed offspring can also not be ruled out.
Scientific studies
have associated certain personality types as having a predisposition
towards left handedness, or even vice versa. i.e., left handed
people may be predisposed to having certain personality types. An
inclination towards doing something outstanding, one might say.
Something to ponder about, considering the fact that so many famous
personalities are from the minority 10 per cent of the population.
The incidence of left handedness among creative individuals, those
with superior math abilities and those who excel in the visual arts
have added credence to certain personality types being more common
among left handed people.
One such study
points out that left-handed individuals have more symmetrical brains
that right-handers. In most people, the right hemisphere of the
brain is larger than the left hemisphere. Generally the left
hemisphere of the brain controls speech. Studies have however shown
unpredictable patterns in the case of left handers. Some have shown
their right hemispheres to be in control of speech and some others
have demonstrated this capability in both the hemispheres.
No conclusive reasons have been discovered for this as yet,
but the stigma and negative implications attached to the use of the
left hand are now almost extinct.
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