24.02.2016Do Lefties die earlier? Myths and Facts on Handedness from a Neuroscientific perspective

PD Dr. Sebastian Ocklenburg, Biopsychology, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum

While 90% of the population uses their right hand for most motor tasks, around 10% of the populace is left-handed. Why this is so remains a scientific mystery. Many myths circulate on left-handedness, among them, that left-handed people die earlier than those who are right-handed, or the idea, that artists tend to be left-handed. In this talk, these assumptions will be discussed from a scientific point of view. Furthermore, a short insight into current genetic and neuroscientific research on the development of handedness will be given.