Left-Handers: Why Are They Different?
Whereas 90% of the world's population is right handed, the remaining 10% prefers using their left hand.
For a long time, societies discriminated against lefties, and language wasn't any kinder to them. In many if not in all languages, the word left has bad connotations; for example, in German, the word left means "awkward" or "clumsy"; in Latin, it means "sinister", but we don't have to go far searching for examples, for in English the word left is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word "lyft", which means "weak" or "broken".
But why are some people left-handed?
Actually, there are many theories that try to explain the mystery of left-handness.One theory suggests that a human's preference of handness starts in the womb; by observing which hand the fetus usually sucks or hold close to his mouth.
Another theory, developed by neurologist Norman Geschwind, has to do with testosterone.
It says that the exposure to high rates of testosterone during pregnancy many suppress the growth of the left cerebral hemisphere, which makes the right one more qualified to be the center of handness, and since each cerebral hemisphere controls the other side of the body, the fetus in this case is more likely to be left-handed.
Despite the discrimination against lefties in most cultures, some people argue that lefties may have special abilities, since the right cerebral hemisphere, which is more developed in left-handers, is the center of artistic function.
For example, in 2006, researchers at La Fayette College and Johns Hopkins University found that left-handed college graduates are 15% richer than the right-handed ones. However, this doesn't apply to women.
Another interesting study in Ontario, Canada shows a link between homosexuality and handness. While an earlier study showed that gays and bisexuals are 39% more likely to be left-handed, the new study indicates that gay or bisexual men are also more likely to be extremely right-handed, but the question of handness in this case depends on the number of older brothers; the study shows that extreme right-handness is usually found in homosexuals with no or few older brothers.
