Saturday, March 07, 2009

Are You a Lefty or a Righty?

Hey...there's a party going on over at Barbara Vey's blog. She's giving away lots and lots of prizes this week. Pop over!
http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/1240041524.html

WINNER, WINNER, WINNER!!!

LuAnn, you are the winner of Tracy's Madison book, A Taste of Magic!

Please email your snail mail address, at christie (@) christie-craig . com (no spaces)

Congrats!

CC


Help me welcome Tracy to Killer Fiction again. And I don't care if she's a lefty or righty, she's a great writer.

And make sure you leave a comment because she's giving away a copy of A Taste of Magic to one lucky person.

CC


I bet, when you read the header, you thought I was talking about whether you're left or right handed, huh? Nope! What I'm talking about today is brains.

Yep. You read that right--BRAINS. They say that right brained people are more creative than left brain people, but that left are more analytical than right. So, do you know if you're mainly a right brain individual or a left?

Don't feel bad if you don't, I'm still not sure, but here's a little info to help you make that decision:

The standard theory is that two different sides of the brain control two different forms of thinking, and that each of us generally tends to prefer one form over the other. Things like "Oh, HE'S really practical/analytical/etc," or "SHE'S really emotional/intuitive/etc." And of course, the "he" and the "she" are completely interchangeable.

Though, let's be honest--most men (on average!) fall into the practical/analytical side, while women tend to be more on the emotional/intuitive side. At least in my personal experience. But yes, I know emotional men and analytical women exist--heck, some of them are my friends.

Anyway, moving on! Now I don't want to get to technical here, because that wouldn't be nearly as interesting, but suffice it to say that there are some GENERAL thinking characteristics that make up each side of the brain.

They are:

The LEFT BRAIN thinking style tends to be:
Rational
Logical
Analytical
Objective
Sequential
Looks At Parts

While the RIGHT BRAIN thinking style tends to be:
Intuitive
Random
Holistic
Subjective
Synthesizing
Looks At Wholes

Okay, if you're anything like me, that list kind of made me scratch my head, because I tend to fall a bit into both, so then I did some more searching and I found a nifty chart of right brain and left brain characteristics.

Recreated here, they are:

LEFT BRAIN CHARACTERISTICS:

Responds to verbal instruction.
Problem solves by logically and sequentially looking at the parts of things.
Looks at differences.
Is planned and structured.
Prefers talking and writing.
Prefers multiple choice tests.
Controls feelings.
Prefers ranked authority structures.
Draws on previously accumulated, organized information.

A-Ha! Sounds like most men I've ever met in my life...

RIGHT BRAIN CHARACTERISTICS:

Responds to demonstrated instructions.
Problem solves with hunches, looking for patterns and configurations.
Looks at similarities.
Is fluid and spontaneous.
Prefers elusive, uncertain information.
Prefers drawing and manipulating objects.
Prefers open ended questions.
Free with feelings.
Prefers collegial authority structures.
Draws on unbounded qualitative patterns that are not organized into sequences, but that cluster around images.

So, again, this list is more like the females in my life than the men. But, I was still a little confused, because again, I have areas in both that are me. I tend to plan, and I like things somewhat structured within MY own schedule (MY plan, though, not someone else's), but I also problem solve with hunches (intuition/emotions) often. Also, I definitely love to talk and write, but I'm also free with my feelings.

I went hunting the Internet again, and found--to my utter delight--a QUIZ! Yes, a quiz to help you determine if you're right brained or left brained.

Go. Now. Take this VERY COOL QUIZ and then come back--I'll wait.

Back? Cool. So what'd it say about you? Mine said:


Right Brain/ Left Brain Quiz
The higher of these two numbers below indicates which side of your brain has dominance in your life. Realising your right brain/left brain tendancy will help you interact with and to understand others.
Left Brain Dominance:
(8)
Right Brain Dominance:
(13)
Right Brain/ Left Brain Quiz

So it appears I'm mainly a right brain sort of gal, which really doesn't surprise me. With this information, I searched some more and found this really cool video that, depending on the way the girl is spinning, tells you if you're a RIGHTY or a LEFTY.

Because I'm not smart enough to figure out how to imbed the actual video in this post, you'll have to GO HERE to see it. If you see her spinning clockwise, you're a RIGHTY, but if she's going counter-clockwise, then you're a LEFTY.

I'm a little weird, I think. Or maybe just quirky. Yes, let's go with quirky. Because when I first look at her she's going clockwise, and then as I continue to watch, her movement changes to counter, but after a while, back to clockwise.

So--what about you? Are you a LEFTY or a RIGHTY? And what way does the lady spin for you?

By the way, I am absolutely sure that my right brain tendencies are why I have such a hard time writing synopses. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

30 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, had I answered the question before taking the tests, I would have said, without reservation, that I was right-brained. Now, I understand a little better some of the conversations my husband and I have. I am exactly 50/50 left-brained, right-brained. I scored two 7's and I can see the dancer going both clockwise and anti-clockwise. Oh, and I'm left-handed too.

Refhater said...

When I read today's title my first thought was that I'm amidextrous. I can write and do things with both my right and left hands.

According to the handy dandy quiz, I'm a lefty. Though I have some of the characteristics of a right brained person as well.

Welcome to K. F.

Christie Craig said...

Hi Tracy,

It's great to have you here today.

I'm a righty. Frankly, it's scary how my brain works.

CC

Cheryl said...

Really enjoyed your post and my quiz came out as:
Left Brain Dominance: 8
Right Brain Dominance: 7

Watching the dancer was . . . interesting. For the majority of the time she was going anti-clockwise but I would look away and look back and occasionally she would be going clockwise.

Cheryl S.

Zita said...

I'm left:8 right:5 Thanks for the fun post!

Anonymous said...

I've always thought I was pretty evenly split, which explains why I scored two 7s and can see the dancer spinning both ways.

Gorgeous book cover, by the way!

Terry S said...

What a fun column!

I scored two 8's and see the dancer spinning both ways. Now does this mean I'm well balanced or have a split personality? I sure hope it's the first :-)

LuAnn said...

I've always considered myself to be both. So, I took the test and found out I was right ... 8/8. Strange, though. Some of the questions weren't really yes or no questions for me.

Suzan Harden said...

Tracy, what are you when the ballerina does the twist?

catslady said...

I scored an 8 and 10. As always some questions are hard to answer yes or no. I see the girl go clockwise but I can get her to go the other way but it's harder lol.

Tracy Madison said...

Liz - LOL on better understanding the conversations with your husband. I wish it had shed some light on the convos I have with my hubby!

Refhater - Thanks for the welcome! One of my closest friends is also ambidextrous and more of a lefty brainwise. I wonder if there's a correlation?

Christie - Thanks for having me! And LOL, it's a little scary how my brain works, so we're in good company. :)

Jo said...

As I was reading, I thought. I'm both, I've done that dancer quiz and saw it both ways (this was before I got to the part where you linked to it).

So I took the written quiz and...
Like I thought, I'm both.

Left Brain Dominance: (9)
Right Brain Dominance: (9)

Tracy Madison said...

Cheryl S - Thanks! I enjoyed writing the post. As far as the dancer is concerned, I was convinced (at first) that she only turned to the right. So I grabbed every member of my family (well, those that were in the house) to test it out.

Zita - I'm glad you enjoyed the post!

Jenifer - I love my book covers! But I love the vast majority of Dorchester's book covers, they always do an amazing job.

Tracy Madison said...

Terry S - LOL! I'm sure it means your well-balanced. Sometimes I wish I a little more well-balanced :)

LuAnn - I felt the same about some of the questions, so I just sort of went with the answer was "mostly" right.

Suzan - At first she's always spinning to the right, but as I look at her, she'll eventually change direction. I wonder if that's because I'm concentrating so hard, that the left side (analytical) part of my brain kicks in? LOL, who knows?

Tracy Madison said...

Catslady - What do you do to get her to go the other way? Just focus on seeing her spin counter clockwise? When she switches direction for me, I'm really focusing hard.

Jo - So far from the folks here, it appears more people are evenly balanced. Maybe because I'm not is why I've always been a little off-center? :)

Shel said...

Mine were almost even, which doesn't surprise me since I tend to have characteristics of both.

But it was a fun test!

Estella said...

The higher of these two numbers below indicates which side of your brain has dominance in your life. Realising your right brain/left brain tendancy will help you interact with and to understand others.


Left Brain Dominance: (7)
Right Brain Dominance: (5)

I can see the lady going both ways----and I am left-handed.

Unknown said...

Hmm! I took the quiz and it came out 50/50 I scored two 6's so I guess I am both. This was a very interesting quiz.

Delia DeLeest said...

I'm 9 to 5 in favor of the left side. I'm guessing my husband is the opposite, which is why I'm the one who balances the checkbook, makes doctor appointments, etc.

Blinky St. James said...

I'm mostly a righty, which is good since I stink at math. LOL I scored left:7, right:10. Haha! And yet I'm right handed... ^_^ That was a fun post!

ReadingIsSoMuchFun said...

Hello Tracy! It's great to see you here at Killer Fiction. I have been dying to read A Taste of Magic! The cover for this book and the future books are all adorable and really got my attention. I love anything with magic so the title alone had me. They sound like great books and I would love to be entered to win A Taste of Magic!

Here is my results for the test.
Left Brain Dominance: 6
Right Brain Dominance: 7

Hugssss
LindaH

donnas said...

Great post. Thanks!

That video freaked me out a little though, it was very odd. If I stared at it directly she went counter clockwise. But when I was reading the info below or not looking directly at it, it went clockwise.

Brandy said...

Just wanted to say I've read your book and really enjoyed it!
As for the quiz, I was Left:10. Right:8. And the dancer went both clockwise and counter-clockwise. *g* I'm ambidextrous, so maybe that has something to do with it? *g*

Minna said...

The dancer went clockwise when I was watching it.

Tracy Madison said...

Shel - I'm glad you had fun!

Estella - I'm really beginning to wonder if there's a correlation between the two. Hmm. :)

Virginia - I think everyone is both, just some use one side more than other. I'd love to be a little more balanced! :)

Tracy Madison said...

Delia - LOL! That makes total sense.

Blinky - I dislike math, am also right-handed, and apparently right brained. Maybe only lefty's like math? :)

Linda H. - Thanks! Dorchester really does a fantastic job on covers. I've always loved magic too. I was a huge Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie fangirl when I was a kid! (Reruns, of course)

Tracy Madison said...

Donnas - The video is strange, isn't it?

Brandy - Wow! Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed the book.

Minna - Can you see it go counter-clockwise too? Or only clockwise? My daughter can only see her swing in one direction, no matter how hard she tries.

Tracy Madison said...

Congrats, LuAnn! The envelope is addressed and sealed and will go out in tomorrow's mail!

Hellie Sinclair said...

I'm the same as Liz. I got 50/50.

I'll have to find the other tests to figure out which one I am really. I'm probably the girl one. I like routine, but not always.

Editor said...

I love this image and we use it in our training on brain dominance – not however to establish whether a person is left or right brained as it cannot be used to establish that, but to demonstrate the way your brain takes in a bit of information and then leaps to a conclusion. And, more to the point, once it has reached a conclusion it is very difficult to alter that perception.

Part of the learning is to get people to see it “going the other way”. This is possible because, in point of fact, it is not a woman spinning but rather a bunch of pixels on a screen. It is your brain that tells you that it is a woman and that it is rotating. It is therefore possible to alter your brain’s perception of the image by covering part of it or even by tuning your head upside down – give it a go.

The reason turning your head over works is because you have disrupted your perception of the image sufficiently for your brain to reassess it, and because you have reversed the information entering your eyes, the likelihood is that it will begin to turn in the opposite direction.

For more information on the subject of left and right brains and brain dominance in general have a look at MyBrain.

There is also an on-line questionnaire to complete but it does cost money. However, if you register for the newsletter before completing the questionnaire you get a discount voucher.