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Stewart AG, Millard AR. The sinister story of a gauche deliverer and his corrie-fisted tribesmen: Ehud and the left-handed artillery. Laterality 2023:1-17. [PMID: 37139692 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2023.2199965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Bias against left-handers is well-documented and seen in the etymology of "left" and "right" in most languages. The subject of this study, Ehud, lived between the exodus of the Hebrew slaves from Egypt and the establishment of the Israelite kingdom (c1200-1000 BC), at the transition between the Late Bronze Age and Iron Age 1. His left-handedness was crucial to his deliverance of the proto-nation from tyranny, recorded in Judges in the Hebrew Bible. The description of Ehud as left-handed ('iṭṭēr yaḏ-yεmînô) is used once more in the Hebrew Bible, also in Judges, to describe the artillery of Ehud's tribe. The words apparently mean "bound/restricted in the right hand", sometimes interpreted as "ambidextrous". This is unlikely: ambidexterity is uncommon. The artillery used the sling with either hand, but Ehud used his left (śεm'ōl) hand to draw his sword. śεm'ōl, used throughout the Hebrew Bible, means left, without bias or derogatory implications. We suggest that 'iṭṭēr yaḏ-yεmînô was a right-handed bias towards left-handed people, but Ehud's left-handed victory was recognized as significant. Significant enough that (a) the language changed and the biased description was dropped in favour of simple description, and (b) the army changed with the development of left-handed slingers (artillery).
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex G Stewart
- College of Life and Environmental Science, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
- Health Protection, Public Health England, Liverpool, UK
| | - Alan R Millard
- Department of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, Liverpool University, Liverpool, UK
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2
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Cerebral Polymorphisms for Lateralisation: Modelling the Genetic and Phenotypic Architectures of Multiple Functional Modules. Symmetry (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/sym14040814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent fMRI and fTCD studies have found that functional modules for aspects of language, praxis, and visuo-spatial functioning, while typically left, left and right hemispheric respectively, frequently show atypical lateralisation. Studies with increasing numbers of modules and participants are finding increasing numbers of module combinations, which here are termed cerebral polymorphisms—qualitatively different lateral organisations of cognitive functions. Polymorphisms are more frequent in left-handers than right-handers, but it is far from the case that right-handers all show the lateral organisation of modules described in introductory textbooks. In computational terms, this paper extends the original, monogenic McManus DC (dextral-chance) model of handedness and language dominance to multiple functional modules, and to a polygenic DC model compatible with the molecular genetics of handedness, and with the biology of visceral asymmetries found in primary ciliary dyskinesia. Distributions of cerebral polymorphisms are calculated for families and twins, and consequences and implications of cerebral polymorphisms are explored for explaining aphasia due to cerebral damage, as well as possible talents and deficits arising from atypical inter- and intra-hemispheric modular connections. The model is set in the broader context of the testing of psychological theories, of issues of laterality measurement, of mutation-selection balance, and the evolution of brain and visceral asymmetries.
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Rodway P, Thoma V, Schepman A. The effects of sex and handedness on masturbation laterality and other lateralized motor behaviours. Laterality 2021; 27:324-352. [PMID: 34836486 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2021.2006211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Masturbation is a common human behaviour. Compared to other unimanual behaviours it has unique properties, including increased sexual and emotional arousal, and privacy. Self-reported hand preference for masturbation was examined in 104 left-handed and 103 right-handed women, and 100 left-handed and 99 right-handed men. Handedness (modified Edinburgh Handedness Inventory, EHI), footedness, eyedness, and cheek kissing preferences were also measured. Seventy nine percent used their dominant hand (always/usually) for masturbation, but left-handers (71.5%) were less consistently lateralized to use their dominant hand than right-handers (86.5%). Hand preference for masturbation correlated more strongly with handedness (EHI), than with footedness, eyedness, or cheek preference. There was no difference in masturbation frequency between left- and right-handers, but men masturbated more frequently than women, and more women (75%) than men (33%) masturbated with sex aids. For kissing the preferred cheek of an emotionally close person from the viewer's perspective, left-handers showed a left-cheek preference, and right-handers a weaker right-cheek preference. The results suggest that hemispheric asymmetries in emotion do not influence hand preference for masturbation but may promote a leftward shift in cheek kissing. In all, masturbation is lateralized in a similar way to other manual motor behaviours in left-handed and right-handed men and women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Rodway
- School of Psychology, University of Chester, Chester, United Kingdom
| | - Volker Thoma
- School of Psychology, The University of East London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Astrid Schepman
- School of Psychology, University of Chester, Chester, United Kingdom
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4
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Evidence of habitual behavior from non-alimentary dental wear on deciduous teeth from the Middle and Upper Paleolithic Cantabrian region, Northern Spain. J Hum Evol 2021; 158:103047. [PMID: 34403991 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Revised: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 06/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The use of 'teeth as tools' (non-masticatory or cultural-related dental wear) has largely been employed as a proxy for studying of past human behavior, mainly in permanent dentition from adult individuals. Here we present the analysis of the non-masticatory dental wear modifications on the deciduous dentition assigned to eight Neanderthal and anatomically modern human subadult individuals from Mousterian to Magdalenian technocultural contexts in the Cantabrian region (Northern Spain). Although preliminary, we tentatively suggest that these eight subadults present activity-related dental wear, including cultural striations, chipped enamel, toothpick grooves, and subvertical grooves. We also found evidence of habitual dental hygienic practices in the form of toothpicking on a deciduous premolar. Orientation of the cultural striations indicates similar handedness development as in modern children. Taken together, these dental wear patterns support the participation of young individuals in group activities, making them potential contributors to group welfare. This study potentially adds new evidence to the importance of the use of the mouth in paramasticatory activities or as a third hand throughout the Pleistocene, which can be confirmed with a more specific reference sample.
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Mondanaro A, Melchionna M, Di Febbraro M, Castiglione S, Holden PB, Edwards NR, Carotenuto F, Maiorano L, Modafferi M, Serio C, Diniz-Filho JAF, Rangel T, Rook L, O'Higgins P, Spikins P, Profico A, Raia P. A Major Change in Rate of Climate Niche Envelope Evolution during Hominid History. iScience 2020; 23:101693. [PMID: 33163945 PMCID: PMC7607486 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2020.101693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2020] [Revised: 09/03/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Homo sapiens is the only species alive able to take advantage of its cognitive abilities to inhabit almost all environments on Earth. Humans are able to culturally construct, rather than biologically inherit, their occupied climatic niche to a degree unparalleled within the animal kingdom. Precisely, when hominins acquired such an ability remains unknown, and scholars disagree on the extent to which our ancestors shared this same ability. Here, we settle this issue using fine-grained paleoclimatic data, extensive archaeological data, and phylogenetic comparative methods. Our results indicate that whereas early hominins were forced to live under physiologically suitable climatic conditions, with the emergence of H. heidelbergensis, the Homo climatic niche expanded beyond its natural limits, despite progressive harshening in global climates. This indicates that technological innovations providing effective exploitation of cold and seasonal habitats predated the emergence of Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens oversteps our ecological niche limits by means of culture The origin of Homo niche-construction ability is unknown We found Homo species other than H. sapiens were able to construct their own niche
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Mondanaro
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Resources Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Naples 80126, Italy.,Department of Earth Science. University of Florence, Florence 50121, Italy
| | - Marina Melchionna
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Resources Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Naples 80126, Italy
| | - Mirko Di Febbraro
- Department of Bioscience and Territory. University of Molise, Pesche, Isernia 86090, Italy
| | - Silvia Castiglione
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Resources Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Naples 80126, Italy
| | - Philip B Holden
- School of Environment, Earth and Ecosystem Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6BJ, UK
| | - Neil R Edwards
- School of Environment, Earth and Ecosystem Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6BJ, UK
| | - Francesco Carotenuto
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Resources Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Naples 80126, Italy
| | - Luigi Maiorano
- Department of Biology and Biotechnologies Charles Darwin, University of Rome La Sapienza, Rome 00185, Italy
| | - Maria Modafferi
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Resources Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Naples 80126, Italy
| | - Carmela Serio
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK
| | - Josè A F Diniz-Filho
- Department of Ecology, ICB, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia 74968-755, Brasil
| | - Thiago Rangel
- Department of Ecology, ICB, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia 74968-755, Brasil
| | - Lorenzo Rook
- Department of Earth Science. University of Florence, Florence 50121, Italy
| | - Paul O'Higgins
- Department of Archaeology and Hull York Medical School, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Penny Spikins
- Department of Archaeology and Hull York Medical School, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Antonio Profico
- Department of Archaeology and Hull York Medical School, University of York, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Pasquale Raia
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Resources Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Naples 80126, Italy
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Promsri A, Haid T, Werner I, Federolf P. Leg Dominance Effects on Postural Control When Performing Challenging Balance Exercises. Brain Sci 2020; 10:E128. [PMID: 32106392 PMCID: PMC7139434 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci10030128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2020] [Revised: 02/20/2020] [Accepted: 02/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Leg dominance reflects the preferential use of one leg over another and is typically attributed to asymmetries in the neural circuitry. Detecting leg dominance effects on motor behavior, particularly during balancing exercises, has proven difficult. The current study applied a principal component analysis (PCA) on kinematic data, to assess bilateral asymmetry on the coordinative structure (hypothesis H1) or on the control characteristics of specific movement components (hypothesis H2). Marker-based motion tracking was performed on 26 healthy adults (aged 25.3 ± 4.1 years), who stood unipedally on a multiaxial unstable board, in a randomized order, on their dominant and non-dominant leg. Leg dominance was defined as the kicking leg. PCA was performed to determine patterns of correlated segment movements ("principal movements" PMks). The control of each PMk was characterized by assessing its acceleration (second-time derivative). Results were inconclusive regarding a leg-dominance effect on the coordinative structure of balancing movements (H1 inconclusive); however, different control (p = 0.005) was observed in PM3, representing a diagonal plane movement component (H2 was supported). These findings supported that leg dominance effects should be considered when assessing or training lower-limb neuromuscular control and suggest that specific attention should be given to diagonal plane movements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arunee Promsri
- Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck 6020, Austria; (A.P.); (T.H.); (I.W.)
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of Phayao, Phayao 56000, Thailand
| | - Thomas Haid
- Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck 6020, Austria; (A.P.); (T.H.); (I.W.)
| | - Inge Werner
- Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck 6020, Austria; (A.P.); (T.H.); (I.W.)
| | - Peter Federolf
- Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck 6020, Austria; (A.P.); (T.H.); (I.W.)
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Gyimesi ML, Vilsmeier JK, Voracek M, Tran US. No Evidence That Lateral Preferences Predict Individual Differences in the Tendency to Update Mental Representations: A Replication-Extension Study. COLLABRA: PSYCHOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1525/collabra.227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
A growing body of evidence suggests that inconsistent hand preference is indicative of an increased disposition to update one’s beliefs upon exposure to novel information. This is attributed to a facilitated exchange of information between the two brain hemispheres among inconsistent handers, compared to consistent handers. Currently available studies provide only indirect evidence for such an effect, were mostly based on small sample sizes, and did not provide measures of effect size. Small sample size is a major factor contributing to low replicability of research findings and false-positive results. We thus attempted to replicate Experiment 1 of Westfall, Corser and Jasper (2014), which appears to be representative of research on degree of handedness and belief updating in terms of the employed methods. We utilized data from a sample more than 10 times the size (N = 1243) of the original study and contrasted the commonly applied median-split technique to classify inconsistent and consistent handers with an empirically grounded classification scheme. Following a replication-extension approach, besides handedness, footedness was also explored. Only one out of 12 chi-squared tests reached significance and supported the original hypothesis that inconsistent handers stay with, or switch more often from, the status quo than consistent handers, depending on the valence of novel information. A small-telescopes analysis suggested that the original study had too low analytic power to detect its reported effect reliably. These results cast doubt on the assumption that inconsistent and consistent-handers differ in the tendency to update mental representations. We discuss the use of the median-split technique in handedness research, available neuroscientific evidence on interhemispheric interaction and inconsistent handedness, and venues of future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marton L. Gyimesi
- Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, School of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, AT
| | - Johannes K. Vilsmeier
- Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, School of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, AT
| | - Martin Voracek
- Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, School of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, AT
| | - Ulrich S. Tran
- Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, School of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, AT
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8
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Thomas NA, Manning R, Saccone EJ. Left-handers know what's left is right: Handedness and object affordance. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0218988. [PMID: 31339898 PMCID: PMC6655602 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0218988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2018] [Accepted: 06/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
We live in a right-hander's world. Although left-handers become accustomed to using right-handed devices, an underlying preference for objects that afford the dominant hand could remain. We employed eye tracking while left- and right-handed participants viewed advertisements for everyday products. Participants then rated aesthetic appeal, purchase intention, and perceived value. Left-handed participants found advertisements for products that more easily afforded them action to be more aesthetically appealing. They also indicated greater future purchase intention for products that were oriented towards the left hand, and gave these products a higher perceived value. Eye tracking data showed that object handles attracted attention, and were also able to retain participants' attention. Further, across multiple eye movement measures, our data show that participant eye movements were altered by the orientation of the handle, such that this side of the image was examined earlier and for longer, regardless of handedness. Left-handers' preferences might be stronger because they are more aware of object orientation, whereas right-handers do not experience the same difficulties. These findings highlight intrinsic differences in the way in which we perceive objects and our underlying judgments about those products, based on handedness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole A. Thomas
- School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
- College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Rebekah Manning
- College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Elizabeth J. Saccone
- School of Psychological and Public Health, La Trobe University, Bendigo, Australia
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Morais N, Cruz J, Marques A. The Kinematic Chain of Arm Elevation Is Impaired in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. COPD 2019; 16:240-245. [PMID: 31272244 DOI: 10.1080/15412555.2019.1632281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) often complain about difficulties in performing activities with their arms above shoulders height. These difficulties have been associated with increased cardiorespiratory demand and altered lung mechanics; however, musculoskeletal-related mechanisms may also contribute to constrain the mechanics of the upper body quadrant, increasing the effort to perform the activities. This exploratory research aimed to assess potential changes in the kinematic chain of arm elevation in patients with COPD. A secondary analysis from a cross-sectional exploratory case-control and prediction study was conducted in 15 patients with COPD (2 females) and 15 controls (8 females) matched for age and body mass index. The sagittal alignment and active range of motion (ROM) of the head, thoracic spine and shoulder complex were measured, using a computer software, in digital lateral photographs obtained in three different testing positions: arms at rest, arms at 90° of shoulder flexion and full arm elevation. From rest to full arm elevation, both groups moved from a more flexed to a less flexed or more upright thoracic spine position (∼7°, p < 0.001, 0.419 < ηp2 <0.767). However, the COPD group showed significantly less shoulder flexion (∼12°, p = 0.007, d = 1.05) and thoracic spine extension (∼6°, p = 0.015, ηp2 = 0.139) ROM than the control group in the full arm elevation position. These findings suggest that this population may show changes in the kinematic chain of arm elevation that possibly contribute to arm movement-related complains and limited performance in their daily living.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nuno Morais
- School of Health Sciences (ESSLei), Centre for Rapid and Sustainable Product Development (CDRSP), Polytechnic Institute of Leiria , Leiria , Portugal
| | - Joana Cruz
- School of Health Sciences (ESSLei), Center for Innovative Care and Health Technology (ciTechCare), Polytechnic Institute of Leiria , Leiria , Portugal
| | - Alda Marques
- Lab 3R - Respiratory Research and Rehabilitation Laboratory, School of Health Sciences, University of Aveiro (ESSUA) , Aveiro , Portugal.,Center for Health Technology and Services Research (CINTESIS) , Aveiro , Portugal
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10
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Henderson RD, Garton FC, Kiernan MC, Turner MR, Eisen A. Human cerebral evolution and the clinical syndrome of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2019; 90:570-575. [PMID: 29666205 PMCID: PMC6581076 DOI: 10.1136/jnnp-2017-317245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2018] [Revised: 03/23/2018] [Accepted: 03/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Robert D Henderson
- Department of Neurology, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Fleur C Garton
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Matthew C Kiernan
- Brain & Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Martin R Turner
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Oxford University, Oxford, UK
| | - Andrew Eisen
- Division of Neurology Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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McManus C. Half a century of handedness research: Myths, truths; fictions, facts; backwards, but mostly forwards. Brain Neurosci Adv 2019; 3:2398212818820513. [PMID: 32166178 PMCID: PMC7058267 DOI: 10.1177/2398212818820513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Although most people are right-handed and have language in their left cerebral hemisphere, why that is so, and in particular why about ten per cent of people are left-handed, is far from clear. Multiple theories have been proposed, often with little in the way of empirical support, and sometimes indeed with strong evidence against them, and yet despite that have become modern urban myths, probably due to the symbolic power of right and left. One thinks in particular of ideas of being right-brained or left-brained, of suggestions that left-handedness is due to perinatal brain damage, of claims that left-handers die seven years earlier than right-handers, and of the unfalsifiable ramifications of the byzantine Geschwind-Behan-Galaburda theory. This article looks back over the past fifty years of research on brain asymmetries, exploring the different themes and approaches, sometimes in relation to the author's own work. Taking all of the work together it is probable that cerebral asymmetries are under genetic control, probably with multiple genetic loci, only a few of which are now beginning to be found thanks to very large databases that are becoming available. Other progress is also seen in proper meta-analyses, the use of fMRI for studying multiple functional lateralisations in large number of individuals, fetal ultra-sound for assessing handedness before birth, and fascinating studies of lateralisation in an ever widening range of animal species. With luck the next fifty years will make more progress and show fewer false directions than had much of the work in the previous fifty years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris McManus
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
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12
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Marcori AJ, Grosso NDS, Porto AB, Okazaki VHA. Beyond handedness: assessing younger adults and older people lateral preference in six laterality dimensions. Laterality 2018; 24:163-175. [PMID: 29975175 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2018.1495725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Lateral preference is influenced by many different factors. Although studies that assessed handedness contributed greatly to our understanding of the phenomenon, looking to other dimensions of motor laterality, such as lower limbs, trunk, visual and hearing preference, may be an interesting strategy to further advance in the field. Comparing different age groups with a complete inventory also contributes to understanding the ageing impact on these variables. Our aim, therefore, was to assess six motor laterality dimensions in younger adults and older people. Two hundred subjects participated in this study (102 adults, 30.6 ± 11.2 years old, and 98 elders, 70.4 ± 7.22 years old) and lateral preference was assessed by the Global Lateral Preference Inventory. We verified significant differences between groups in all dimensions, except the visual one, with proportionally stronger right preference in the older group. Compared to other dimensions, higher frequency of ambidexterity was observed in trunk, hearing and visual preference for both groups. These results might indicate that lateral preference is, indeed, multifactorial, being affected by ageing, task complexity and other possible related aspects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandre Jehan Marcori
- a Physical Education Department , Londrina State University , Londrina , Paraná , Brazil.,b Physical Education Department , Motor Neuroscience Research Group, Londrina State University , Londrina , Paraná , Brazil
| | | | - Alessandra Beggiato Porto
- a Physical Education Department , Londrina State University , Londrina , Paraná , Brazil.,b Physical Education Department , Motor Neuroscience Research Group, Londrina State University , Londrina , Paraná , Brazil
| | - Victor Hugo Alves Okazaki
- a Physical Education Department , Londrina State University , Londrina , Paraná , Brazil.,b Physical Education Department , Motor Neuroscience Research Group, Londrina State University , Londrina , Paraná , Brazil
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Robira B, Pouydebat E, San-Galli A, Meulman EJM, Aubaile F, Breuer T, Masi S. Handedness in gestural and manipulative actions in male hunter-gatherer Aka pygmies from Central African Republic. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 166:481-491. [PMID: 29427288 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2017] [Revised: 01/22/2018] [Accepted: 01/25/2018] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES All human populations display a right-biased handedness. Nonetheless, if studies on western populations are plenty, investigations of traditional populations living at subsistence levels are rare. Yet, understanding the geographical variation of phenotypes of handedness is crucial for testing evolutionary hypotheses. We aimed to provide a preliminary investigation of factors affecting handedness in 25 Aka pygmies from Central African Republic when spontaneously gesturing or manipulating food/tools (Nactions = 593). MATERIALS AND METHODS We recorded spontaneous behaviors and characterized individuals' hand preference using GLMM with descriptive variables as target position, task complexity (unimanual/bimanual), task nature (food/tool manipulation, gesture), and task physical/cognitive constraints (precision or power for manipulative actions and informative content for gestures). RESULTS Individuals were lateralized to the right (93%, N = 15) when manipulating food/tools but not when gesturing. Hand preference was affected by target position but not by task complexity. While nonexplicitly informative gestures were more biased to the right compared to explicitly informative ones, no differences were found within food/tool manipulation (power or precision vs. none). DISCUSSION Although we do not intend to assume generalizable results due to our reduced sample, our observations provide additional information on handedness in a contemporary traditional society. Especially, the study mainly evidenced considerable cultural effects in gestures while also supporting theories considering active tool manipulation as one of the overriding factor in human handedness evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Robira
- Institut de biologie de l'Ecole normale supérieure (IBENS), Ecole Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, PSL Research University, Paris, France.,Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Emmanuelle Pouydebat
- Department of Ecology and Management of Biodiversity, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, UMR 7179-CNRS/MNHN, MECADEV, Paris, France
| | - Aurore San-Galli
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Ellen J M Meulman
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Françoise Aubaile
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
| | - Thomas Breuer
- Global Conservation Program, Wildlife Conservation Society, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, New York
| | - Shelly Masi
- Département Hommes, Natures, and Sociétés, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, UMR 7206-CNRS/MNHN, Paris, France
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Bargalló A, Mosquera M, Lozano S. In pursuit of our ancestors' hand laterality. J Hum Evol 2017; 111:18-32. [PMID: 28874271 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2015] [Revised: 05/29/2017] [Accepted: 06/04/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to apply a previously published method (Bargalló and Mosquera, 2014) to the archaeological record, allowing us to identify the hand laterality of our ancestors and determine when and how this feature, which is exhibited most strongly in humans, appeared in our evolutionary history. The method focuses on identifying handedness by looking at the technical features of the flakes produced by a single knapper, and discovering how many flakes are required to ascertain their hand preference. This method can potentially be applied to the majority of archaeological sites, since flakes are the most abundant stone tools, and stone tools are the most widespread and widely-preserved remains from prehistory. For our study, we selected two Spanish sites: Gran Dolina-TD10.1 (Atapuerca) and Abric Romaní (Barcelona), which were occupied by pre-Neanderthal and Neanderthal populations, respectively. Our analyses indicate that a minimum number of eight flakes produced by the same knapper is required to ascertain their hand preference. Even though this figure is relatively low, it is quite difficult to obtain from many archaeological sites. In addition, there is no single technical feature that provides information about handedness, instead there is a combination of eight technical features, localised on the striking platforms and ventral surfaces. The raw material is not relevant where good quality rocks are used, in this case quartzite and flint, since most of them retain the technical features required for the analysis. Expertise is not an issue either, since the technical features analysed here only correlate with handedness (Bargalló and Mosquera, 2014). Our results allow us to tentatively identify one right-handed knapper among the pre-Neanderthals of level TD10.1 at Gran Dolina (Atapuerca), while four of the five Neanderthals analysed from Abric Romaní were right-handed. The hand preference of the fifth knapper from that location (AR5) remains unclear.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amèlia Bargalló
- University College London, Institute Archaeology, London, Great Britain, UK.
| | - Marina Mosquera
- Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Tarragona, Spain; IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain
| | - Sergi Lozano
- IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain; Area de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Tarragona, Spain
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15
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Muntané G, Santpere G, Verendeev A, Seeley WW, Jacobs B, Hopkins WD, Navarro A, Sherwood CC. Interhemispheric gene expression differences in the cerebral cortex of humans and macaque monkeys. Brain Struct Funct 2017; 222:3241-3254. [PMID: 28317062 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-017-1401-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2017] [Accepted: 03/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Handedness and language are two well-studied examples of asymmetrical brain function in humans. Approximately 90% of humans exhibit a right-hand preference, and the vast majority shows left-hemisphere dominance for language function. Although genetic models of human handedness and language have been proposed, the actual gene expression differences between cerebral hemispheres in humans remain to be fully defined. In the present study, gene expression profiles were examined in both hemispheres of three cortical regions involved in handedness and language in humans and their homologues in rhesus macaques: ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, posterior superior temporal cortex (STC), and primary motor cortex. Although the overall pattern of gene expression was very similar between hemispheres in both humans and macaques, weighted gene correlation network analysis revealed gene co-expression modules associated with hemisphere, which are different among the three cortical regions examined. Notably, a receptor-enriched gene module in STC was particularly associated with hemisphere and showed different expression levels between hemispheres only in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerard Muntané
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA.
- Institut Biologia Evolutiva, Universitat Pompeu Fabra-CSIC, 08003, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Gabriel Santpere
- Institut Biologia Evolutiva, Universitat Pompeu Fabra-CSIC, 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Andrey Verendeev
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
| | - William W Seeley
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Bob Jacobs
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Neuroscience Program, Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO, 80903, USA
| | - William D Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute and the Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, 30302, USA
| | - Arcadi Navarro
- Institut Biologia Evolutiva, Universitat Pompeu Fabra-CSIC, 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Chet C Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
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PÉREZ-CRIADO LAURA, ROSAS ANTONIO, BASTIR MARKUS, PASTOR JUANFRANCISCO. Humeral laterality in modern humans and Neanderthals: a 3D geometric morphometric analysis. ANTHROPOL SCI 2017. [DOI: 10.1537/ase.170610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- LAURA PÉREZ-CRIADO
- Group of Paleoanthropology, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales–CSIC, Madrid
| | - ANTONIO ROSAS
- Group of Paleoanthropology, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales–CSIC, Madrid
| | - MARKUS BASTIR
- Group of Paleoanthropology, Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales–CSIC, Madrid
| | - JUAN FRANCISCO PASTOR
- Museo Anatómico, Departamento de Anatomía Humana, Universidad de Valladolid, Valladolid
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17
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Frayer DW, Clarke RJ, Fiore I, Blumenschine RJ, Pérez-Pérez A, Martinez LM, Estebaranz F, Holloway R, Bondioli L. OH-65: The earliest evidence for right-handedness in the fossil record. J Hum Evol 2016; 100:65-72. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2015] [Revised: 03/05/2016] [Accepted: 07/04/2016] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
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Condemi S, Monge J, Quertelet S, Frayer DW, Combier J. Vergisson 4: a left-handed Neandertal. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2016; 162:186-190. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2016] [Revised: 09/01/2016] [Accepted: 09/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Silvana Condemi
- UMR 7268-ADÉS (Anthropologie bio-culturelle, Droit, Éthique and Santé), CNRS/Université d'Aix-Marseille/EFS, Faculté de Médecine-Secteur Nord; Marseille Cédex 15 France
| | - Janet Monge
- University of Pennsylvania, Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology; Philadelphia Pennsylvania 19104 USA
| | - Sylvain Quertelet
- Maison du Grand Site & Musée de Préhistoire; Solutré Pouilly Vergisson, Grand Site de France; Solutré Pouilly 71960 France
| | - David W. Frayer
- Department of Anthropology; University of Kansas; Lawrence Kansas 66045
| | - Jean Combier
- Académie des Sciences, Arts et Belles Lettres de Mâcon; 71870 Mâcon France
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Stephens NB, Kivell TL, Gross T, Pahr DH, Lazenby RA, Hublin JJ, Hershkovitz I, Skinner MM. Trabecular architecture in the thumb of Pan and Homo: implications for investigating hand use, loading, and hand preference in the fossil record. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2016; 161:603-619. [PMID: 27500902 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2015] [Revised: 06/14/2016] [Accepted: 07/24/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Humans display an 85-95% cross-cultural right-hand bias in skilled tasks, which is considered a derived behavior because such a high frequency is not reported in wild non-human primates. Handedness is generally considered to be an evolutionary byproduct of selection for manual dexterity and augmented visuo-cognitive capabilities within the context of complex stone tool manufacture/use. Testing this hypothesis requires an understanding of when appreciable levels of right dominant behavior entered the fossil record. Because bone remodels in vivo, skeletal asymmetries are thought to reflect greater mechanical loading on the dominant side, but incomplete preservation of external morphology and ambiguities about past loading environments complicate interpretations. We test if internal trabecular bone is capable of providing additional information by analyzing the thumb of Homo sapiens and Pan. MATERIALS AND METHODS We assess trabecular structure at the distal head and proximal base of paired (left/right) first metacarpals using micro-CT scans of Homo sapiens (n = 14) and Pan (n = 9). Throughout each epiphysis we quantify average and local bone volume fraction (BV/TV), degree of anisotropy (DA), and elastic modulus (E) to address bone volume patterning and directional asymmetry. RESULTS We find a right directional asymmetry in H. sapiens consistent with population-level handedness, but also report a left directional asymmetry in Pan that may be the result of postural and/or locomotor loading. CONCLUSION We conclude that trabecular bone is capable of detecting right/left directional asymmetry, but suggest coupling studies of internal structure with analyses of other skeletal elements and cortical bone prior to applications in the fossil record.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas B Stephens
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig, 04103, Germany
| | - Tracy L Kivell
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig, 04103, Germany.,Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NR, United Kingdom
| | - Thomas Gross
- Institute of Lightweight Design and Structural Biomechanics, Vienna University of Technology, A-1060 Vienna, Getreidemarkt 9/BE, Vienna, Austria
| | - Dieter H Pahr
- Institute of Lightweight Design and Structural Biomechanics, Vienna University of Technology, A-1060 Vienna, Getreidemarkt 9/BE, Vienna, Austria
| | - Richard A Lazenby
- Department of Anthropology, University of Northern British Columbia, 3333 University Way, Prince George, BC, Canada, V2N 4Z9
| | - Jean-Jacques Hublin
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig, 04103, Germany
| | - Israel Hershkovitz
- Department of Anatomy and Anthropology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Matthew M Skinner
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, Leipzig, 04103, Germany.,Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NR, United Kingdom
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Beaton AA, Mutinelli S, Corr PJ. Fractionating negative and positive affectivity in handedness: Insights from the Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory of personality. Laterality 2016; 22:419-444. [DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2016.1213274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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21
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Kiyokawa Y, Takahashi D, Takeuchi Y, Mori Y. The right central amygdala shows greater activation in response to an auditory conditioned stimulus in male rats. J Vet Med Sci 2016; 78:1563-1568. [PMID: 27320818 PMCID: PMC5095625 DOI: 10.1292/jvms.16-0255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Pavlovian fear conditioning is an experimental procedure in which a conditioned stimulus (CS) acquires an ability to elicit fear responses. This type of
conditioning depends on the basolateral complex of the amygdala (BLA) and/or central amygdala (CeA). We previously found that rats showed reduced fear responses
to an auditory CS when they were subjected to a pre-training chemical lesion of the entire right amygdala as compared with the left amygdala. Based on this
finding, we hypothesize that the BLA and/or CeA in the right hemisphere will be more strongly activated by an auditory CS than those in the left hemisphere. To
test this hypothesis, we re-exposed fear-conditioned and non-conditioned rats to an auditory CS 1 day after fear conditioning. We assessed Fos expression in the
BLA and CeA in each hemisphere. We found that fear-conditioned subjects showed fear responses, such as increased freezing and decreased walking, as well as
increased Fos expression in the BLA and CeA. When we compared Fos expression between hemispheres, Fos expression in the CeA, but not the BLA, was greater in the
right hemisphere compared with the left hemisphere. These results suggest that the right CeA is more strongly activated by the auditory CS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasushi Kiyokawa
- Laboratory of Veterinary Ethology, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
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23
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Westmoreland P. A philosophical approach to the concept of handedness: The phenomenology of lived experience in left- and right-handers. Laterality 2016; 22:233-255. [PMID: 27026143 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2016.1164181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
This paper provides a philosophical evaluation of the concept of handedness prevalent but largely unspoken in the scientific literature. This literature defines handedness as the preference or ability to use one hand rather than the other across a range of common activities. Using the philosophical discipline of phenomenology, I articulate and critique this conceptualization of handedness. Phenomenology shows defining a concept of handedness by focusing on hand use leads to a right hand biased concept. I argue further that a phenomenological model based in spatial orientation rather than hand use provides a more inclusive concept of handedness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Westmoreland
- a Philosophy Department , The University of Florida , Gainesville , FL , USA
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24
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Half Oaks, Half Willows: Degree, Not Direction, of Handedness Underlies Both Stable Prevalence in the Human Population and Species-Beneficial Variations in Cognitive Flexibility. EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s40806-016-0047-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
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25
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Steele J, Clegg M, Martelli S. Comparative morphology of the hominin and African ape hyoid bone, a possible marker of the evolution of speech. Hum Biol 2015; 85:639-72. [PMID: 25078953 DOI: 10.3378/027.085.0501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/30/2013] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
This study examines the morphology of the hyoid in three closely related species, Homo sapiens, Pan troglodytes, and Gorilla gorilla. Differences and similarities between the hyoids of these species are characterized and used to interpret the morphology and affi nities of the Dikika A. afarensis, Kebara 2 Neanderthal, and other fossil hominin hyoid bones. Humans and African apes are found to have distinct hyoid morphologies. In humans the maximum width across the distal tips of the articulated greater horns is usually slightly greater than the maximum length (distal greater horn tip to most anterior point of the hyoid body in the midline). A different pattern is usually found in the African ape hyoids, which have much greater maximum lengths. In humans, the hyoid body is also much more anteroposteriorly shallow in proportion to its height and width, and this is true for all age classes. The Dikika australopithecine hyoid body proportions are chimpanzeelike. A discriminant function analysis, using a larger subadult sample from the three extant species than that reported by Alemseged et al. (2006), confirms this finding. The Kebara hyoid dimensions (body alone, and articulated body and greater horns) are almost all within the observed range for human hyoids. Discriminant functions clearly distinguish human from African ape hyoids and classify the Kebara 2 hyoid as human (confirming the finding of Arensburg et al. 1989). Our virtual dissection of a chimpanzee air sac system shows its subhyoid extension into the dorsal hyoid body. Following Alemseged et al. (2006), the expanded bulla characteristic of the African ape and australopithecine hyoid body is therefore interpreted as refl ecting the presence of such a laryngeal air sac extension. Its absence in the human, Neanderthal, and H. heidelbergensis (Atapuerca SH) hyoids implicates the loss of the laryngeal air sacs as a derived Neanderthal and modern human trait, which evolved no later than the middle Pleistocene. If, as has been argued by de Boer (2012), the loss of the air sac helped to enhance perceptual discrimination of speech sounds, then this derived hyoid morphology can be added to the list of fossil markers of the capacity for speech.
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26
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Kavaklioglu T, Ajmal M, Hameed A, Francks C. Whole exome sequencing for handedness in a large and highly consanguineous family. Neuropsychologia 2015; 93:342-349. [PMID: 26581626 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2015.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2015] [Revised: 11/05/2015] [Accepted: 11/10/2015] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Pinpointing genes involved in non-right-handedness has the potential to clarify developmental contributions to human brain lateralization. Major-gene models have been considered for human handedness which allow for phenocopy and reduced penetrance, i.e. an imperfect correspondence between genotype and phenotype. However, a recent genome-wide association scan did not detect any common polymorphisms with substantial genetic effects. Previous linkage studies in families have also not yielded significant findings. Genetic heterogeneity and/or polygenicity are therefore indicated, but it remains possible that relatively rare, or even unique, major-genetic effects may be detectable in certain extended families with many non-right-handed members. Here we applied whole exome sequencing to 17 members from a single, large consanguineous family from Pakistan. Multipoint linkage analysis across all autosomes did not yield clear candidate genomic regions for involvement in the trait and single-point analysis of exomic variation did not yield clear candidate mutations/genes. Any genetic contribution to handedness in this unusual family is therefore likely to have a complex etiology, as at the population level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tulya Kavaklioglu
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Muhammad Ajmal
- Institute of Biomedical and Genetic Engineering (IBGE), 24-Mauve Area, G-9/1, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Abdul Hameed
- Institute of Biomedical and Genetic Engineering (IBGE), 24-Mauve Area, G-9/1, Islamabad, Pakistan.
| | - Clyde Francks
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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27
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Oxilia G, Peresani M, Romandini M, Matteucci C, Spiteri CD, Henry AG, Schulz D, Archer W, Crezzini J, Boschin F, Boscato P, Jaouen K, Dogandzic T, Broglio A, Moggi-Cecchi J, Fiorenza L, Hublin JJ, Kullmer O, Benazzi S. Earliest evidence of dental caries manipulation in the Late Upper Palaeolithic. Sci Rep 2015; 5:12150. [PMID: 26179739 PMCID: PMC4504065 DOI: 10.1038/srep12150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2015] [Accepted: 06/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Prehistoric dental treatments were extremely rare, and the few documented cases are known from the Neolithic, when the adoption of early farming culture caused an increase of carious lesions. Here we report the earliest evidence of dental caries intervention on a Late Upper Palaeolithic modern human specimen (Villabruna) from a burial in Northern Italy. Using Scanning Electron Microscopy we show the presence of striations deriving from the manipulation of a large occlusal carious cavity of the lower right third molar. The striations have a “V”-shaped transverse section and several parallel micro-scratches at their base, as typically displayed by cutmarks on teeth. Based on in vitro experimental replication and a complete functional reconstruction of the Villabruna dental arches, we confirm that the identified striations and the associated extensive enamel chipping on the mesial wall of the cavity were produced ante-mortem by pointed flint tools during scratching and levering activities. The Villabruna specimen is therefore the oldest known evidence of dental caries intervention, suggesting at least some knowledge of disease treatment well before the Neolithic. This study suggests that primitive forms of carious treatment in human evolution entail an adaptation of the well-known toothpicking for levering and scratching rather than drilling practices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregorio Oxilia
- 1] Department of Biology, University of Florence, Via del Proconsolo, 12, 50122 Firenze, Italy [2] Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Bologna, Via degli Ariani 1, 48121 Ravenna, Italy [3] Sezione di Scienze Preistoriche e Antropologiche, Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, Università di Ferrara, 44100 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Marco Peresani
- Sezione di Scienze Preistoriche e Antropologiche, Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, Università di Ferrara, 44100 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Matteo Romandini
- Sezione di Scienze Preistoriche e Antropologiche, Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, Università di Ferrara, 44100 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Chiara Matteucci
- Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Bologna, Via degli Ariani 1, 48121 Ravenna, Italy
| | - Cynthianne Debono Spiteri
- 1] Plant Foods in Hominin Dietary Ecology Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany [2] Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte und Archäologie des Mittelaters, Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen, Schloss Hohentübingen, 72070 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Amanda G Henry
- 1] Plant Foods in Hominin Dietary Ecology Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany [2] Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Dieter Schulz
- Dental Workshop Bensheim, Private Laboratory for Training, Research and Methods, Siegfriedstraße 104, 64646 Heppenheim, Germany
| | - Will Archer
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Jacopo Crezzini
- 1] CeSQ, Centro Studi sul Quaternario ONLUS., Via Nuova dell'Ammazzatoio 7, I-52037 Sansepolcro (Arezzo), Italy [2] Università degli Studi di Siena, Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra e dell'Ambiente, Unità di Ricerca Preistoria e Antropologia, Via Laterina 8, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Francesco Boschin
- 1] CeSQ, Centro Studi sul Quaternario ONLUS., Via Nuova dell'Ammazzatoio 7, I-52037 Sansepolcro (Arezzo), Italy [2] Università degli Studi di Siena, Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra e dell'Ambiente, Unità di Ricerca Preistoria e Antropologia, Via Laterina 8, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Paolo Boscato
- Università degli Studi di Siena, Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra e dell'Ambiente, Unità di Ricerca Preistoria e Antropologia, Via Laterina 8, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Klervia Jaouen
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Tamara Dogandzic
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Alberto Broglio
- Sezione di Scienze Preistoriche e Antropologiche, Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, Università di Ferrara, 44100 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Jacopo Moggi-Cecchi
- 1] Department of Biology, University of Florence, Via del Proconsolo, 12, 50122 Firenze, Italy [2] Università degli Studi di Siena, Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra e dell'Ambiente, Unità di Ricerca Preistoria e Antropologia, Via Laterina 8, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Luca Fiorenza
- 1] Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash University,Melbourne VIC 3800, Australia [2] Earth Sciences, University of New England, Armidale NSW 2351, Australia
| | - Jean-Jacques Hublin
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Ottmar Kullmer
- Senckenberg Research Institute, Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Stefano Benazzi
- 1] Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Bologna, Via degli Ariani 1, 48121 Ravenna, Italy [2] Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
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Sala N, Arsuaga JL, Pantoja-Pérez A, Pablos A, Martínez I, Quam RM, Gómez-Olivencia A, Bermúdez de Castro JM, Carbonell E. Lethal interpersonal violence in the Middle Pleistocene. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0126589. [PMID: 26018668 PMCID: PMC4446311 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0126589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2015] [Accepted: 04/06/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Evidence of interpersonal violence has been documented previously in Pleistocene members of the genus Homo, but only very rarely has this been posited as the possible manner of death. Here we report the earliest evidence of lethal interpersonal violence in the hominin fossil record. Cranium 17 recovered from the Sima de los Huesos Middle Pleistocene site shows two clear perimortem depression fractures on the frontal bone, interpreted as being produced by two episodes of localized blunt force trauma. The type of injuries, their location, the strong similarity of the fractures in shape and size, and the different orientations and implied trajectories of the two fractures suggest they were produced with the same object in face-to-face interpersonal conflict. Given that either of the two traumatic events was likely lethal, the presence of multiple blows implies an intention to kill. This finding shows that the lethal interpersonal violence is an ancient human behavior and has important implications for the accumulation of bodies at the site, supporting an anthropic origin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nohemi Sala
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain
| | - Juan Luis Arsuaga
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Paleontología, Facultad Ciencias Geológicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ana Pantoja-Pérez
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain
| | - Adrián Pablos
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain
- Área de Antropología Física, Departamento de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad de Alcalá, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ignacio Martínez
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain
- Área de Antropología Física, Departamento de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad de Alcalá, Madrid, Spain
| | - Rolf M. Quam
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain
- Department of Anthropology, Binghamton University (SUNY), Binghamton, New York, United States of America
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Asier Gómez-Olivencia
- Centro Mixto UCM-ISCIII de Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencia y Tecnología, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, Bilbao, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
- Équipe de Paléontologie Humaine, Département de Préhistoire, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Musée de l’Homme, Paris, France
| | | | - Eudald Carbonell
- Àrea de Prehistòria, Departamento d’Història i Història de l’Art, Universidad Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain
- Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain
- Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of Beijing, Beijing, China
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Edlin JM, Leppanen ML, Fain RJ, Hackländer RP, Hanaver-Torrez SD, Lyle KB. On the use (and misuse?) of the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory. Brain Cogn 2015; 94:44-51. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2015.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2014] [Revised: 01/08/2015] [Accepted: 01/10/2015] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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Lee SH. Homo erectus in Salkhit, Mongolia? HOMO-JOURNAL OF COMPARATIVE HUMAN BIOLOGY 2015; 66:287-98. [PMID: 25813423 DOI: 10.1016/j.jchb.2015.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2014] [Accepted: 02/05/2015] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
In 2006, a skullcap was discovered in Salkhit, Mongolia. The Salkhit skullcap has a mostly complete frontal, two partially complete parietals, and nasals. No chronometric dating has been published yet, and suggested dates range from early Middle Pleistocene to terminal Late Pleistocene. While no chronometric date has been published, the presence of archaic features has led to a potential affiliation with archaic hominin species. If it is indeed Homo erectus or archaic Homo sapiens, Salkhit implies a much earlier spread of hominins farther north and inland Asia than previously thought. In this paper, the nature of the archaic features in Salkhit is investigated. The Salkhit skullcap morphology and metrics were compared with Middle and Late Pleistocene hominin fossils from northeast Asia: Zhoukoudian Locality 1, Dali, and Zhoukoudian Upper Cave. Results show an interesting pattern: on one hand, the archaic features that Salkhit shares with the Zhoukoudian Locality 1 sample also are shared with other later hominins; on the other hand, Salkhit is different from the Middle Pleistocene materials in the same way later hominins differ from the Middle Pleistocene sample, in having a broader frontal and thinner supraorbital region. This may reflect encephalization and gracilization, a modernization trend found in many places. It is concluded that the archaic features observed in Salkhit are regionally predominant features rather than diagnostic features of an archaic species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sang-Hee Lee
- Department of Anthropology, University of California at Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521-0418, USA.
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31
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Loffing F, Hagemann N. Pushing through evolution? Incidence and fight records of left-oriented fighters in professional boxing history. Laterality 2014; 20:270-86. [DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2014.961471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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32
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Loffing F, Sölter F, Hagemann N. Left preference for sport tasks does not necessarily indicate left-handedness: sport-specific lateral preferences, relationship with handedness and implications for laterality research in behavioural sciences. PLoS One 2014; 9:e105800. [PMID: 25141020 PMCID: PMC4139391 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0105800] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2014] [Accepted: 07/29/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In the elite domain of interactive sports, athletes who demonstrate a left preference (e.g., holding a weapon with the left hand in fencing or boxing in a ‘southpaw’ stance) seem overrepresented. Such excess indicates a performance advantage and was also interpreted as evidence in favour of frequency-dependent selection mechanisms to explain the maintenance of left-handedness in humans. To test for an overrepresentation, the incidence of athletes' lateral preferences is typically compared with an expected ratio of left- to right-handedness in the normal population. However, the normal population reference values did not always relate to the sport-specific tasks of interest, which may limit the validity of reports of an excess of ‘left-oriented’ athletes. Here we sought to determine lateral preferences for various sport-specific tasks (e.g., baseball batting, boxing) in the normal population and to examine the relationship between these preferences and handedness. To this end, we asked 903 participants to indicate their lateral preferences for sport-specific and common tasks using a paper-based questionnaire. Lateral preferences varied considerably across the different sport tasks and we found high variation in the relationship between those preferences and handedness. In contrast to unimanual tasks (e.g., fencing or throwing), for bimanually controlled actions such as baseball batting, shooting in ice hockey or boxing the incidence of left preferences was considerably higher than expected from the proportion of left-handedness in the normal population and the relationship with handedness was relatively low. We conclude that (i) task-specific reference values are mandatory for reliably testing for an excess of athletes with a left preference, (ii) the term ‘handedness’ should be more cautiously used within the context of sport-related laterality research and (iii) observation of lateral preferences in sports may be of limited suitability for the verification of evolutionary theories of handedness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Loffing
- Institute of Sports and Sports Science, University of Kassel, Kassel, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Florian Sölter
- Institute of Sports and Sports Science, University of Kassel, Kassel, Germany
- Institute of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Muenster, Muenster, Germany
| | - Norbert Hagemann
- Institute of Sports and Sports Science, University of Kassel, Kassel, Germany
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Zanolli C, Bondioli L, Coppa A, Dean CM, Bayle P, Candilio F, Capuani S, Dreossi D, Fiore I, Frayer DW, Libsekal Y, Mancini L, Rook L, Medin Tekle T, Tuniz C, Macchiarelli R. The late Early Pleistocene human dental remains from Uadi Aalad and Mulhuli-Amo (Buia), Eritrean Danakil: macromorphology and microstructure. J Hum Evol 2014; 74:96-113. [PMID: 24852385 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2013] [Revised: 04/19/2014] [Accepted: 04/22/2014] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Fieldwork performed during the last 15 years in various Early Pleistocene East African sites has significantly enlarged the fossil record of Homo erectus sensu lato (s.l.). Additional evidence comes from the Danakil Depression of Eritrea, where over 200 late Early to early Middle Pleistocene sites have been identified within a ∼1000 m-thick sedimentary succession outcropping in the Dandiero Rift Basin, near Buia. Along with an adult cranium (UA 31), which displays a blend of H. erectus-like and derived morpho-architectural features and three pelvic remains, two isolated permanent incisors (UA 222 and UA 369) have also been recovered from the 1 Ma (millions of years ago) Homo-bearing outcrop of Uadi Aalad. Since 2010, our surveys have expanded to the nearby (4.7 km) site of Mulhuli-Amo (MA). This is a fossiliferous area that has been preliminarily surveyed because of its exceptional concentration of Acheulean stone tools. So far, the site has yielded 10 human remains, including the unworn crown of a lower permanent molar (MA 93). Using diverse analytical tools (including high resolution μCT and μMRI), we analysed the external and internal macromorphology and microstructure of the three specimens, and whenever possible compared the results with similar evidence from early Homo, H. erectus s.l., H. antecessor, H. heidelbergensis (from North Africa), Neanderthals and modern humans. We also assessed the UA 369 lower incisor from Uadi Aalad for root completion timing and showed that it compares well with data for root apex closure in modern human populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clément Zanolli
- Multidisciplinary Laboratory, The 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy.
| | - Luca Bondioli
- Museo Nazionale Preistorico Etnografico 'Luigi Pigorini', Rome, Italy
| | - Alfredo Coppa
- Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, Università di Roma 'La Sapienza', Rome, Italy
| | - Christopher M Dean
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, UK
| | | | - Francesca Candilio
- Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, Università di Roma 'La Sapienza', Rome, Italy
| | - Silvia Capuani
- CNR-IPCF, Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Roma 'La Sapienza', Rome, Italy
| | - Diego Dreossi
- Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., SYRMEP Group, Basovizza, Italy
| | - Ivana Fiore
- Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, Università di Roma 'La Sapienza', Rome, Italy
| | - David W Frayer
- Department of Anthropology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, USA
| | | | - Lucia Mancini
- Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., SYRMEP Group, Basovizza, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Rook
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Firenze, Italy
| | - Tsegai Medin Tekle
- National Museum of Eritrea, Asmara, Eritrea; Institut Catala de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain
| | - Claudio Tuniz
- Multidisciplinary Laboratory, The 'Abdus Salam' International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy; Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, Università di Roma 'La Sapienza', Rome, Italy; Centre for Archaeological Science, University of Wollongong, Australia
| | - Roberto Macchiarelli
- Département de Préhistoire, UMR 7194, MNHN, Paris, France; Département Géosciences, Université de Poitiers, France
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34
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Lozano M, Subirà ME, Aparicio J, Lorenzo C, Gómez-Merino G. Toothpicking and periodontal disease in a Neanderthal specimen from Cova Foradà site (Valencia, Spain). PLoS One 2013; 8:e76852. [PMID: 24146934 PMCID: PMC3797767 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0076852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2013] [Accepted: 08/27/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
We present a Neanderthal maxilla (CF-1) from Cova Foradà site (Oliva, Valencia, Spain) with periodontal disease and evidence of attempts to alleviate pain with the use of a toothpick. Two interproximal grooves have been found on the distal surfaces of the upper left Pm3 and M1 of CF-1 maxilla. The location, morphology and size of the grooves coincide with other interproximal grooves found on the teeth of other fossil specimens. Heavy dental wear and periodontal disease would have caused the Cova Foradà Neanderthal specimen pain and discomfort, which the individual attempted to mitigate using some kind of dental probe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Lozano
- IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain
- Àrea de Prehistòria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV).Tarragona, Spain
- * E-mail:
| | - Maria Eulàlia Subirà
- Unitat d’Antropologia Biològica (GRAPAC), Facultat de Biociències, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
- MINOA Arqueologia i Serveis S.L. I+D, Bellaterra, Spain
| | - José Aparicio
- Secció d’Estudis Arqueològics Valencians, Diputación Provincial de Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Carlos Lorenzo
- IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain
- Àrea de Prehistòria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV).Tarragona, Spain
| | - Gala Gómez-Merino
- IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain
- Àrea de Prehistòria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV).Tarragona, Spain
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Common variants in left/right asymmetry genes and pathways are associated with relative hand skill. PLoS Genet 2013; 9:e1003751. [PMID: 24068947 PMCID: PMC3772043 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1003751] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2013] [Accepted: 07/10/2013] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans display structural and functional asymmetries in brain organization, strikingly with respect to language and handedness. The molecular basis of these asymmetries is unknown. We report a genome-wide association study meta-analysis for a quantitative measure of relative hand skill in individuals with dyslexia [reading disability (RD)] (n = 728). The most strongly associated variant, rs7182874 (P = 8.68 × 10(-9)), is located in PCSK6, further supporting an association we previously reported. We also confirmed the specificity of this association in individuals with RD; the same locus was not associated with relative hand skill in a general population cohort (n = 2,666). As PCSK6 is known to regulate NODAL in the development of left/right (LR) asymmetry in mice, we developed a novel approach to GWAS pathway analysis, using gene-set enrichment to test for an over-representation of highly associated variants within the orthologs of genes whose disruption in mice yields LR asymmetry phenotypes. Four out of 15 LR asymmetry phenotypes showed an over-representation (FDR ≤ 5%). We replicated three of these phenotypes; situs inversus, heterotaxia, and double outlet right ventricle, in the general population cohort (FDR ≤ 5%). Our findings lead us to propose that handedness is a polygenic trait controlled in part by the molecular mechanisms that establish LR body asymmetry early in development.
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36
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Bonnet C, Hanuška J, Rusz J, Rivaud-Péchoux S, Sieger T, Majerová V, Serranová T, Gaymard B, Růžička E. Horizontal and vertical eye movement metrics: what is important? Clin Neurophysiol 2013; 124:2216-29. [PMID: 23806744 DOI: 10.1016/j.clinph.2013.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2012] [Revised: 04/19/2013] [Accepted: 05/06/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To assist other eye movement investigators in the design and analysis of their studies. METHODS We examined basic saccadic eye movements and smooth pursuit in the horizontal and vertical directions with video-oculography in a group of 145 healthy subjects between 19 and 82 years of age. RESULTS Gender and education level did not influence eye movement metrics. With age, the latency of leftward and vertical pro- and antisaccades increased (p<0.001), velocity of upward prosaccades decreased (p<0.001), gain of rightward and upward prosaccades diminished (p<0.001), and the error rate of antisaccades increased (p<0.001). Prosaccades and antisaccades were influenced by the direction of the target, resulting in a right/left and up/down asymmetry. The skewness of the saccade velocity profile was stable throughout the lifespan, and within the range of saccades analyzed in the present study, correlated with amplitude and duration only for antisaccades (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS Some eye movement metrics must be separated by the direction of movement, others according to subject age, while others may be pooled. SIGNIFICANCE This study provides important information for new oculomotor laboratories concerning the constitution of subject groups and the analysis of eye movement metrics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia Bonnet
- Dept. of Neurology and Centre of Clinical Neuroscience, Charles University in Prague, 1st Faculty of Medicine and General University Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic.
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37
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Schiefenhövel W. Biased semantics forrightandleftin 50 Indo-European and non-Indo-European languages. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2013; 1288:135-52. [DOI: 10.1111/nyas.12124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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38
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Handedness in Neandertals from the El Sidrón (Asturias, Spain): evidence from instrumental striations with ontogenetic inferences. PLoS One 2013; 8:e62797. [PMID: 23671635 PMCID: PMC3646041 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0062797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2013] [Accepted: 03/25/2013] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The developed cognitive capabilities for Homo sapiens seems to be the result of a specialized and lateralized brain, and as a result of this, humans display the highest degree of manual specialization or handedness among the primates. Studies regarding its emergence and distribution within the genus Homo show that handedness is present very early. The mode in which it was articulated and spread across the different species during the course of human evolution could provide information about our own cognitive capacities. Here we report the manual laterality attributed to eleven 49,000 old Neandertal individuals from El Sidrón cave (Spain), through the study of instrumental or cultural striations on the anterior dentition. Our results show a predominant pattern addressed to right-handers. These results fit within the modern human handedness distribution pattern and provide indirect evidence for behavior and brain lateralization on Neandertals. They support the early establishment of handedness in our genus. Moreover, the individual identified as Juvenile 1 (6–8 years old at death), displays the same striation pattern as the adult Neandertals from the sample, and thereby the ontogenic development of manual laterality in that Neandertal population seems to be similar to that of living modern humans.
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Stock JT, Shirley MK, Sarringhaus LA, Davies TG, Shaw CN. Skeletal evidence for variable patterns of handedness in chimpanzees, human hunter-gatherers, and recent British populations. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2013; 1288:86-99. [DOI: 10.1111/nyas.12067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jay T. Stock
- PAVE Research Group; Department of Archaeology and Anthropology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge United Kingdom
| | - Meghan K. Shirley
- PAVE Research Group; Department of Archaeology and Anthropology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge United Kingdom
| | | | - Tom G. Davies
- PAVE Research Group; Department of Archaeology and Anthropology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge United Kingdom
- Churchill College; Cambridge United Kingdom
| | - Colin N. Shaw
- PAVE Research Group; Department of Archaeology and Anthropology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge United Kingdom
- McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research; University of Cambridge; Cambridge United Kingdom
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40
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Betsch M, Rapp W, Przibylla A, Jungbluth P, Hakimi M, Schneppendahl J, Thelen S, Wild M. Determination of the amount of leg length inequality that alters spinal posture in healthy subjects using rasterstereography. EUROPEAN SPINE JOURNAL : OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE EUROPEAN SPINE SOCIETY, THE EUROPEAN SPINAL DEFORMITY SOCIETY, AND THE EUROPEAN SECTION OF THE CERVICAL SPINE RESEARCH SOCIETY 2013; 22:1354-61. [PMID: 23479027 DOI: 10.1007/s00586-013-2720-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2012] [Revised: 12/19/2012] [Accepted: 02/12/2013] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Leg length inequalities (LLIs) can result in an increased energy consumption, abnormal gait or osteoarthritis of the hip. In a previous study we simulated different LLIs of up to 15 mm and evaluated their effects on the pelvic position and spinal posture. We found a correlation between LLIs and resulting changes of the pelvic position. Despite suggestions in the literature we were not able to detect significant changes of the spinal posture. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the amount of LLI that would in fact alter the spinal posture. METHODS The subjects were placed on a simulation platform, whose height could be precisely controlled by the measuring device, to simulate different LLIs of up to 20 mm. For LLIs >20 mm, additional precision-cut wooden blocks were used under one foot. After an adaptation period the resulting changes of the pelvis and spine were measured with a rasterstereographic device. RESULTS We found a significant correlation between platform height changes and changes of the pelvic position. The frontal spinal parameters surface rotation and lateral deviation changed significantly when simulating differences greater than 20 mm. No changes of the sagittal spinal curvature were measured, however, a trend to decreasing kyphotic angles was noted. CONCLUSIONS Our study has shown for the first time that LLIs >20 mm will lead to significant changes in the spinal posture of healthy test subjects. However, these changes were only found in frontal (surface rotation and lateral flexion) spinal parameters, but not in sagittal parameters. Here for the kyphotic angle only a tendency to decreasing angles was noted. We have also found a significant correlation between different leg lengths and changes of the pelvic position. Further, females and males seem to react in the same way to LLIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcel Betsch
- Department of Trauma and Hand Surgery, University Hospital Duesseldorf, Duesseldorf, Germany.
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41
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Abstract
Negative frequency-dependent effects rather than innate predispositions may provide left-handers with an advantage in one-on-one fighting situations. Support mainly comes from cross-sectional studies which found significantly enhanced left-hander frequencies among elite athletes exclusively in interactive sports such as baseball, cricket, fencing and tennis. Since professional athletes' training regimes continuously improve, however, an important unsolved question is whether the left-handers' advantage in individual sports like tennis persists over time. To this end, we longitudinally tracked left-hander frequencies in year-end world rankings (men: 1973-2011, ladies: 1975-2011) and at Grand Slam tournaments (1968-2011) in male and female tennis professionals. Here we show that the positive impact of left-handed performance on high achievement in elite tennis was moderate and decreased in male professionals over time and was almost absent in female professionals. For both sexes, left-hander frequencies among year-end top 10 players linearly decreased over the period considered. Moreover, left-handedness was, however, no longer seems associated with higher probability of attaining high year-end world ranking position in male professionals. In contrast, cross-sectional data on left-hander frequencies in male and female amateur players suggest that a left-handers' advantage may still occur on lower performance levels. Collectively, our data is in accordance with the frequency-dependent hypothesis since reduced experience with left-handers in tennis is likely to be compensated by players' professionalism.
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Abrams DM, Panaggio MJ. A model balancing cooperation and competition can explain our right-handed world and the dominance of left-handed athletes. J R Soc Interface 2012; 9:2718-22. [PMID: 22535700 PMCID: PMC3427516 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2012.0211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2012] [Accepted: 04/04/2012] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
An overwhelming majority of humans are right-handed. Numerous explanations for individual handedness have been proposed, but this population-level handedness remains puzzling. Here, we present a novel mathematical model and use it to test the idea that population-level hand preference represents a balance between selective costs and benefits arising from cooperation and competition in human evolutionary history. We use the selection of elite athletes as a test-bed for our evolutionary model and find evidence for the validity of this idea. Our model gives the first quantitative explanation for the distribution of handedness both across and within many professional sports. It also predicts strong lateralization of hand use in social species with limited combative interaction, and elucidates the absence of consistent population-level 'pawedness' in some animal species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mark J. Panaggio
- Department of Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
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Volpato V, Macchiarelli R, Guatelli-Steinberg D, Fiore I, Bondioli L, Frayer DW. Hand to mouth in a neandertal: right-handedness in Regourdou 1. PLoS One 2012; 7:e43949. [PMID: 22937134 PMCID: PMC3425541 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0043949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2012] [Accepted: 07/27/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
We describe and analyze a Neandertal postcranial skeleton and dentition, which together show unambiguous signs of right-handedness. Asymmetries between the left and right upper arm in Regourdou 1 were identified nearly 20 years ago, then confirmed by more detailed analyses of the inner bone structure for the clavicle, humerus, radius and ulna. The total pattern of all bones in the shoulder and arm reveals that Regourdou 1 was a right-hander. Confirmatory evidence comes from the mandibular incisors, which display a distinct pattern of right oblique scratches, typical of right-handed manipulations performed at the front of the mouth. Regourdou's right handedness is consistent with the strong pattern of manual lateralization in Neandertals and further confirms a modern pattern of left brain dominance, presumably signally linguistic competence. These observations along with cultural, genetic and morphological evidence indicate language competence in Neandertals and their European precursors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virginie Volpato
- Department of Paleoanthropology and Messel Research, Senckenberg Research Institute Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Roberto Macchiarelli
- Département de Préhistoire, UMR 7194, MNHN, Paris, France
- Département Géosciences, Université de Poitiers, Poitiers, France
| | | | - Ivana Fiore
- Soprintendenza al Museo Nazionale Preistorico Etnografico “L. Pigorini”, Rome, Italy
| | - Luca Bondioli
- Soprintendenza al Museo Nazionale Preistorico Etnografico “L. Pigorini”, Rome, Italy
| | - David W. Frayer
- Soprintendenza al Museo Nazionale Preistorico Etnografico “L. Pigorini”, Rome, Italy
- Department of Anthropology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Shaw CN, Hofmann CL, Petraglia MD, Stock JT, Gottschall JS. Neandertal humeri may reflect adaptation to scraping tasks, but not spear thrusting. PLoS One 2012; 7:e40349. [PMID: 22815742 PMCID: PMC3399840 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0040349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2012] [Accepted: 06/04/2012] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Unique compared with recent and prehistoric Homo sapiens, Neandertal humeri are characterised by a pronounced right-dominant bilateral strength asymmetry and an anteroposteriorly strengthened diaphyseal shape. Remodeling in response to asymmetric forces imposed during regular underhanded spear thrusting is the most influential explanatory hypothesis. The core tenet of the “Spear Thrusting Hypothesis”, that underhand thrusting requires greater muscle activity on the right side of the body compared to the left, remains untested. It is unclear whether alternative subsistence behaviours, such as hide processing, might better explain this morphology. To test this, electromyography was used to measure muscle activity at the primary movers of the humerus (pectoralis major (PM), anterior (AD) and posterior deltoid (PD)) during three distinct spear-thrusting tasks and four separate scraping tasks. Contrary to predictions, maximum muscle activity (MAX) and total muscle activity (TOT) were significantly higher (all values, p<.05) at the left (non-dominant) AD, PD and PM compared to the right side of the body during spear thrusting tasks. Thus, the muscle activity required during underhanded spearing tasks does not lend itself to explaining the pronounced right dominant strength asymmetry found in Neandertal humeri. In contrast, during the performance of all three unimanual scraping tasks, right side MAX and TOT were significantly greater at the AD (all values, p<.01) and PM (all values, p<.02) compared to the left. The consistency of the results provides evidence that scraping activities, such as hide preparation, may be a key behaviour in determining the unusual pattern of Neandertal arm morphology. Overall, these results yield important insight into the Neandertal behavioural repertoire that aided survival throughout Pleistocene Eurasia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin N Shaw
- PAVE Research Group, Department of Archaeology & Anthropology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
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Schorer J, Loffing F, Hagemann N, Baker J. Human handedness in interactive situations: Negative perceptual frequency effects can be reversed! J Sports Sci 2012; 30:507-13. [PMID: 22296164 DOI: 10.1080/02640414.2012.654811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Left-handed performers seem to enjoy an advantage in interactive sports. Researchers suggest this is predominantly due to the relative scarcity of left-handers compared with right-handers. Such negative frequency-dependent advantages are likely to appear in inefficient game-play behaviour against left-handed opponents such as reduced ability to correctly anticipate left-handers' action intentions. We used a pre-post retention design to test whether such negative frequency-dependent perceptual effects can be reversed via effective training. In a video-based test, 30 handball novices anticipated the shot outcome of temporally occluded handball penalties thrown by right- and left-handed players. Between the pre- and post-tests, participants underwent a perceptual training programme to improve prediction accuracy, followed by an unfilled retention test one week later. Participants were divided into two hand-specific training groups (i.e. only right- or left-handed shots were presented during training) and a mixed group (i.e. both right- and left-handed shots were presented). Our results support the negative frequency-dependent advantage hypothesis, as hand-specific perceptual training led to side-specific improvement of anticipation skills. Similarly, findings provide experimental evidence to support the contention that negatively frequency-dependent selection mechanisms contributed to the maintenance of the handedness polymorphism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jörg Schorer
- Institute of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Muenster, Münster, Germany.
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