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Humans prefer to walk anticlockwise, scientists find – but reason is unclear
UK NewsTechnology•June 10, 2026 at 10:40 AMNational

Humans prefer to walk anticlockwise, scientists find – but reason is unclear

By Ian Sample Science editor•The Guardian - UK News

From Spain to Japan, experiments have repeatedly shown a left-turn bias, but exact mechanic ‘is still an open question’“I’m not an ambi-turner,” laments Derek Zoolander in the eponymous noughties satire about the world’s hottest male model and his rare catwalk hangup. “It’s a problem I’ve had since I was a baby … I can’t turn left.”Now research suggests that the fashionista’s career-threatening quirk was even more unusual than previously thought. Tests reveal that when people are ambling about, they have a natural tendency to turn to the left and walk in an anticlockwise direction. Continue reading...

From Spain to Japan, experiments have repeatedly shown a left-turn bias, but exact mechanic ‘is still an open question’

“I’m not an ambi-turner,” laments Derek Zoolander in the eponymous noughties satire about the world’s hottest male model and his rare catwalk hangup. “It’s a problem I’ve had since I was a baby … I can’t turn left.”

Now research suggests that the fashionista’s career-threatening quirk was even more unusual than previously thought. Tests reveal that when people are ambling about, they have a natural tendency to turn to the left and walk in an anticlockwise direction.

Continue reading...