YUNHO

11 fact about ambidextrous

what is ambidextrous?
Ambidexterity is the state of being equally adept in the use of both left and right
appendages (such as the hands). It is one of the most famous varieties of cross-
dominance. People that are naturally ambidextrous are rare with only one out of one
hundred people being naturally ambidextrous.!he degree of versatility with each hand is
generally the qualitative factor in determining a person"s ambidexterity.
In modern times it is more common to find people considered ambidextrous who were
originally left handed and who learned to be ambidextrous either deliberately or during
childhood institutions such as schools #obs where right-handed habits are often
emphasi$ed or required. %ince many everyday devices (such as can openers and scissors)
are asymmetrical and designed for right-handed people many left-handers learn to use
them right-handedly due to the rarity or lac& of left-handed models. !hus left-handed
people are much more li&ely to develop motor s&ills in their non-dominant hand than
right-handers (who are not sub#ected to left-favoring devices). 'ight-handers may
become ambidextrous due to an in#ury of their right hand or arm. (mbidexterity is
often encouraged in activities requiring a great deal of s&ill in both hands such as
&nitting typing on a computer #uggling swimming percussion &eyboard music baseball
paintball lacrosse surgery boxing martial arts and bas&etball.
1. If you can write equally well with either hand, then you are the one percent.
)ven among the small population of *multi-handed+ individuals very few experience equal
ease and s&ill with both hands. In comparison around ,-. of people are lefties.
2. Right-, left- and mixed-handedness arent sufficient to define the preferences
of most people according to experts. /ost people experience some level of cross-
dominance 0 favoring one hand for certain tas&s even if it+s the non-dominant one 0
and among the group of people who use both hands there are even finer distinctions.
(mbidextral refers to those who can use both hands as well as a right-hander+s right
hand (so really well) and ambisinistral can be used to describe people who use both
hands as well as a right-hander+s left hand (that is somewhat clumsily).
!. 1nli&e righties who show strong left brain dominance the hemispheres of
ambidextrous and left-handed peoples brains are almost symmetric"
#. " as is the typical brain of a person with synesthesia, or $mixed senses,% who
experiences cross-sensory perception. (mong synesthetes the instance of
ambidexterity (and left-handedness) is much higher than in the general population.
&. 'he ambidextrous are more li(ely to possess the )RR'*1 gene +on chromosome
2,, which is lin(ed to schi-ophrenia. %tudies reveal that people with schi$ophrenia are
significantly more li&ely to be ambidextrous or left-handed than people who are not
schi$ophrenic
.. (nother study conducted through the 223 %cience website shows that of the one
percent of 2&&,/// respondents who indicated equal ease writing with both hands,
0.21 of men and 1&..1 of women reported being bisexual. In the same study 4. of
right-handed and 4.5. of left-handed men and 6.7. of right-handed and 6.8. of left-
handed women said they+re attracted to both sexes.
2. 3eople who identify as 4either-handed score slightly lower o5erall in general
intelligence testing and most often those scores are lower in arithmetic memory and
reasoning9
6. " except when they arent. ( study of :--- children ages ; and : shows that the
:; mixed-handed students had more pronounced difficulties in language s&ills and at
ages ,5 and ,6 the same students showed a higher ris& of (<=< symptoms and
performed academically under both right- and left-handed students from the same
sample.
0. Ambis can be quic( to anger according to a study from /errimac& 3ollege which
suggests a higher interlin&ing of brain hemispheres found in ambidextrous and lefties. (
follow-up study found that the increased hemisphere connections correlate to increased
aw&wardness clumsiness and moodiness.
1/. 7ut inconsistent-handers can also be easier to sway emotionally. /ontclair %tate
1niversity tested a group of right- left and either-handers for emotional stability. !heir
findings report that of the group righties were hardest to coerce and ambis were most
li&ely to report a change in mood based on their surroundings directed thought and
music.
11. It+s not all bad news for the handedness-ambivalent though. 7eing able to use both
hands with +almost, equal ease can really pay off, especially in sports, arts and
music. %ome reportedly cross-dominant celebrities and historic figures include
>eonardo da ?inci Pete 'ose 'ichard @eynmen pitcher Areg (. =arris /ichelle Bwan
%higeru /iyamoto Paul /c3artney 2en#amin @ran&lin and =arry !ruman