Since we've had extensive discussion about this here, and it's many accompanying terms (i.e.: southpaw...or, in Max's case, northpaw [ahem]), I thought it relevant to point out this new study which "suggests there is no evolutionary disadvantage to being a lefty, as some scientists had thought."

And there's also a word here which bothers me: handedness ("In 343 cases, he could also determine the handedness of the artists;"...) Anyone ever hear "handedness" before?

http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/news/6981545.htm

>

handedness-- well handed is common enough, and handedness seems a natural extentions when discussing left handed and right handed, and things that might be associated (or show no assoication) with the use of a specific hand..

i think its been used here--have you checked?

I've heard it a lot.

FTR "handedness" scores a whopping 130T.

From search for "neurology handedness"
It is generally accepted that most people have left-hemispheric language dominance, though the actual incidence of atypical language distribution in non–right-handed subjects has not been extensively studied. The authors examined language distribution in these subjects and evaluated the relationships between personal handedness, family history of sinistrality, and a language laterality index (LI) measured with fMRI.

Methods: The authors used whole-brain fMRI to examine 50 healthy, non–right-handed subjects (Edinburgh Handedness Inventory quotient between -100 and 52)

I've heard the word handedness often.

k

>i think its been used here--have you checked?

it's not surprising this should seem familiar to you, helen -- it scored 77 on the AWADtalk-o-meter before this thread started.

it scored 77 on the AWADtalk-o-meter

Yeahbut® can you dance to it?

Not if you have two left feet.

Or offhandedness, of course.

Or offhandedness, of course.

Hey, I'm a southpaw, a topsider, and yes, handedness is a very common word indeed.

Is there an echo in here or something? Hellooooooo!!!

left handed is to left handedness as...

left footed is to ?????

left handed is to left handedness as left footed is to...

... worth a lot of money on the transfer market?

this new study which "suggests there is no evolutionary disadvantage to being a lefty ..."

Is that what it said?

Extract:
"Faurie plans to continue working to understand why left-handedness might have persisted in the same proportion for such a long time.

'I'm trying to show the possible advantages associated with being left-handed,' she said."

It may be that whatever the disadvantages of being left-handed, there may be compensating advantages.

For instance, it is said that left-handers have superior spatial skills as reflected by higher batting averages in baseball based on the relative percentage of left-handed hitters in the professional game.

It may be that whatever the disadvantages of being left-handed, there may be compensating advantages.
Good point, moss. I found this--a set of test answers--that gives a concise summary (though I doubt that it's complete).

Faces=right-brain behavior; Names=left-brain behavior

Spontaneous=right-brain behavior; Organized=left-brain behavior

Fantasy=right-brain behavior; Realistic=left-brain behavior

Intuition=right-brain behavior; Logic=left-brain behavior

Open-ended=right-brain behavior; Well-structured=left-brain behavior

Pictures=right-brain behavior; Language=left-brain behavior

Creative=right-brain behavior; Not creative=left brain behavior

Humorous=right-brain behavior; Serious=left-brain behavior

Main idea and overview=right-brain behavior; Details and facts=left-brain behavior

Exploration=right-brain behavior; Systematic plans=left-brain behavior.
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/TM/WS_brain_key.shtml

Hey, this is really cool! Esp. take a look at 'Warnings'.
Introduction
Some language skills involve analytical, sequential, and left-brain processing. Others involve right-brain skills such as guessing, associating, and getting the main idea.

Obviously, those with bilateral dominance have some advantages.

There are, however, good language learners with both left-brain or right-brain dominance who achieve a high degree of fluency and accuracy. They learn to use both left-brain and right-brain skills depending on what works best for the activity at hand.

Guidelines
Here are some general guidelines to follow when you use your brain dominance for language learning:

Use your left-brain analytical skills to determine the purpose of a learning activity or to set up the activity. Once you are involved in the activity, put most of your attention on the content of the message and let your right-brain go to work.
According to James Asher, author of the Total Physical Response method, direct association methods for building listening comprehension rely more on right-brain processing than on left brain processing. Do not consciously try to figure out every detail when using these methods. Let your subconscious do the work.

Warnings
Here are some warnings about using your brain dominance for language learning:

Analytical thinkers who make good linguists sometimes never acquire communicative fluency in a second language because their left-brain, sequential processing slows them down.
Right-brained, global thinkers sometimes become quite fluent in comprehending and expressing themselves in a second language, but never become truly accurate. They are content to get across the main idea without worrying about the details.
You can read more by going to
http://makeashorterlink.com/?W25E12566

One of the most interesting features of hemisphere dominance and its link to handedness is the way that it can be overriden in emergencies. I know someone who suffered oxygen deprivation for around 15 minutes at birth, due to being transverse in the womb. The deprivation apparently affected the left hemisphere most significantly. This person is left-handed, but is no good at any of the things sinistrals are supposed to excel at. For all intents and purposes, this person is a dextral trapped in a sinistral shell. Apparently, this sort of last second switch is fairly well-documented.

dextral trapped in a sinistral shell

Yes, and our right-handed prejudice as a society is stunningly apparent for all to see in your deft turn of phrase.

Juxaposing "dextral" (same root as "dexterity") and "sinistral" (same root as "sinister") is quite sublime (same root as "subliminal"?).