TOW #21 - Why am I Right-Handed?

Are you right handed at least?  I got this question at least 25 times throughout my time wearing a sling because of my broken collarbone, and each time I put on a face of appreciation and relief as I replied “Yes, at least I’m right handed so I can still write.”  About 90% of the population is right handed, an overwhelming majority.  Simple logic, and what we are taught growing up, is that the reason is “genetics,” and we tend to leave it at that, failing to further question what “genetics” means.  In her article “Why am I Right-Handed?” Maggie Koerth-Baker writes about the much more complicated nature of the question of dexterity.  She utilizes expert authority and an interesting concept to achieve her purpose of informing the public about the interesting idea of what makes someone right-handed.

Baker, a writer and statistician, does not have the authority to speak directly about the genes and biological expertise needed to tackle this issue.  So, as a good writer always does, she finds experts and quotes them to create a strong argument.  Baker quotes Chris McManus, a scientist who was one of the first to publish the dextral/chance model.  She also gets John Armour’s opinions, who is a professor of human genetics at the University of Nottingham in the U.K.  She then has these two scientists, who have conflicting views on the controversial subject, go back and forth and create a mock debate, in a sense.  This establishes the credibility of her throughout the article.

Baker also uses a interesting concept to sell this article to potential readers.  She markets it as a new series that answers hard science questions asked by toddlers.  She says, “Sometimes, their little brains can lead to big places adults forget to explore.”  This cool idea creates what may sometimes be dry topics into something exciting, fun, and new for readers.

TOW #20 - Hockeytown Doc (first half)

I have just concluded reading the first half of the book “Hockeytown Doc: a Half-Century of Red Wings Stories from Howe to Yzerman” by Dr. John Finley.  This book is a collection of stories from the former physician of the Detroit Red Wings.  Overall, I enjoyed the first half of the book.  It provided some amazing, hilarious, and heart-wrenching stories.  I had two main takeaways: firstly, the stories Finley writes about are simply amazing and even though the writing style and flow of the book perhaps is not as good as a professional writer, the kinds of stories that are being told overshadow that fact.  Secondly, Finley does not provide a ton of background information on the Detroit Red Wings, so unless you are a Red Wings or NHL fan, this book may seem alien, which it did to me in a couple of places.

One example where it is evident that Finley is not a professional writer is in his story about concussions.  He writes, “Players who have suffered from the long-term effects of head injuries are left with permanent disabilities, so early detection, treatment and minimizing or avoiding them in the first place is of utmost importance” (Finley 57).  It is somewhat of a choppy sentence, and the use of “so” in the middle seems a little bit amateur.  He is clearly not a master of rhetoric, but he goes on to write and incredibly intriguing passage about his take on concussions.  Thus, he can hide his few flaws as a writer with his interesting character.

The other main takeaway for me was how little hockey I knew before reading this book. I found myself having to look up players, names, dates, competitions and more all the time.  But at least I knew the basics of the NHL; if someone read this book not knowing much at all about hockey, they were be incredibly confused and lost. 

I enjoyed the first half of the book and look forward to the second half…hopefully some more interesting stories will be shared.