The mystery of why left-handers are so much rarer (2016)

Patterns of handedness, ears, and feet

• Phone-ear preference varies widely and often follows which hand is free, not perceived ear dominance.
• Smartphone usage patterns (one-handed vs two-handed) complicate simple handedness–ear correlations.
• Footedness for activities like sliding, skating, and board sports often doesn’t align neatly with hand dominance.

Mixed-handedness and adaptation

• Many commenters report “cross-dominance”: fine motor tasks with one hand, gross-motor/power tasks with the other.
• Some were born that way; others became mixed-handed after injury, parental/teacher pressure, or tool constraints.
• True, perfectly balanced ambidexterity is viewed as rare; most “ambidextrous” people still have task-specific biases.

Tools, interfaces, and design bias

• Right-handed design is a recurring theme: scissors, firearms, mice, musical instruments, golf clubs, watches, etc.
• Left-handed scissors differ in both blade orientation and ergonomics; many “fake” lefty scissors only change the grip.
• Some left-handers deliberately learn right-handed versions (e.g., guns, mice) to fit available equipment; others invest in specialized gear.

Health, development, and statistics

• Discussion around higher left-handed rates in conditions like Down syndrome, epilepsy, and cerebral palsy:
  • One view: developmental abnormalities disrupt typical handedness.
  • Bayes-rule calculations show relative risk increases but absolute risk stays low.
• Earlier claims that left-handers die younger are criticized as methodologically flawed (sampling only the dead).

Evolutionary and behavioral hypotheses

• Several references to studies linking higher left-handed prevalence with more violent or “warlike” societies; some find this compelling, others call it spurious correlation or reporting bias.
• A common explanation: left-handers have combat advantages when rare, so frequency equilibrates.
• Other speculative ideas (organ placement, venom exposure, tool-sharing) are floated and often challenged as “just‑so stories.”

Language, culture, and education

• Etymology of “right” (straight/correct) and “left/sinister” illustrates deep cultural bias.
• Historical and ongoing attempts to “correct” left-handedness reported in schools, religious settings, and some Waldorf/Chinese contexts, often causing frustration and lasting effects.

Practical issues and coping strategies

• Left-handers describe smudged writing, ring-binder and fountain-pen issues, and difficulty with calligraphy/technical drawing.
• Some switch paper orientation, use special inks or pens, or rely on keyboards to bypass handwriting challenges.