Study Buddy (Challenger): Are you left-handed? Research finds that your pet might be, too!
This page is for students who want to take their reading comprehension to the next level with difficult vocabulary and questions to test their inference skills.
A study has revealed surprising information about left-handedness in animals like cats. Photo: Yik Yeung-manContent provided by British Council
Read the following text, and answer questions 1-9 below:
[1] Left-handed people face many challenges in a world designed for right-handed people. However, the tendency to have a dominant side does not apply to people alone. Scientists have shown that animals have right- or left-side preferences as well.
[2] People have long considered right- or left-handedness solely a human phenomenon. A 2021 global study found that around one in 10 people are left-handed. It was conducted by a team of scientists, including biopsychologist Sebastian Ocklenburg of the Medical School Hamburg. “Handedness is a form of hemispheric asymmetry, meaning the dominance of one side of the brain for certain activities,” Ocklenburg said. Genetic and environmental factors can influence which side dominates. It also applies to animals, he said, adding that many animal species have a preference.
[3] Together with biopsychologists Felix Ströckens and Onur Güntürkün, Ocklenburg analysed 119 animal species in a study. The research spanned pawiness in cats, claw preferences in parrots and handedness in monkeys. The study also looked at amphibians, fish and reptiles. In around a third of the species, the animals showed no clear preference for one side over the other. But in most species, animals favour one side. This includes a series of animals that prefer to perform tasks with their left limb, just as humans tend to be right-handed. “These results make it clear that limb preferences are the rule and not the exception in the animal kingdom,” Ocklenburg said in another study.
[4] Further investigations have focused on pets, with a meta-analysis showing more than three-quarters of the cats studied were either right-pawed or left-pawed. Around one in four cats used both equally. Scientists saw a similar pattern in dogs, with more than two-thirds favouring one paw over another.
[5] Animals that do not have arms or legs in the classic sense may also show a preference, said Ocklenburg. For example, a team led by environmental scientist Annette Sieg from the University of Michigan said leatherback turtles show a preference for the right. Females of this turtle species often use their right rear flipper to cover their eggs when laying them.
[6] If you think only animals with two front limbs show a clear side preference, think again. According to an older study by the Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research in Austria, even eight-armed creatures such as octopuses have a favourite arm to reach for certain foods.
[7] Just like humans, many animal species are more skilful with one of their limbs. Pet owners can use simple tricks to find out for themselves which paw their four-legged friend prefers. “In principle, most people do it with ‘food reaching’ tasks,” said Ocklenburg. You might hide a treat in a tube so narrow that only one paw can fit through it. “If your pet uses the same paw several times in succession to reach the food, then you know that the animal is right- or left-footed,” he said.
Source: dpa, August 24
Questions
1. What does the phrase “dominant side” mentioned in paragraph 1 refer to?
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2. What is the relationship between hemispheric asymmetry and handedness, according to paragraph 2?
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3. The aim of the study mentioned in paragraph 3 was to … in various animal species.
A. investigate the prevalence and patterns of limb preferences
B. explore the relationship between intelligence and handedness
C. investigate the evolutionary history of limb preferences
D. study the impact of environmental factors on limb preferences
4. What does Ocklenburg mean when he said that limb preferences are the rule and not the exception in the animal kingdom?
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5. What do dogs and cats have in common based on paragraph 4?
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6. Find a phrase in paragraph 5 that refers to “typical limbs associated with mammals and other vertebrates”.
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7. According to paragraph 5, how do female leatherback turtles show which flipper they prefer?
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8. Paragraph 6 focuses on animals …
A. without any limbs.
B. with multiple front limbs.
C. that can regenerate their limbs.
D. that use their limbs solely for eating.
9. What does it mean if one’s pet keeps using one paw to get food, according to paragraph 7?
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Answers
1. The preference for using either the right or left hand more frequently than the other.
2. Handedness is a result of hemispheric asymmetry which determines the dominance of one side of the brain for certain activities. (accept all similar answers)
3. A
4. He meant that having a preference for one limb over the other is a common trait among animals, and not an unusual or rare occurrence. (accept all similar answers)
5. They have a preference for using one paw over the other. (accept all similar answers)
6. in the classic sense
7. They often use their right rear flipper to cover their eggs when laying them.
8. B
9. It means that the animal has a preference for that particular paw.