Want to do a little research? All you have to do is to be a bit of a Peeping Tom, and you can find out whether our Chihuahuan Desert folk fit a common pattern. It's long been known that for the first 6 months or so after birth, humans have a preference for turning the head to the right. A recent report suggests that this tendency isn't turned off then, but has ramifications into adulthood.
Now, noses are rather necessary, but they do tend to get in the way
when two people kiss--the result, of course, is that people tilt their heads when
kissing. The author of the report, observing in public places such as airports, parks,
and beaches, carefully recorded the direction of head tilt of people kissing in those
places. What did he find? Roughly a 2:1 ratio of right tilters to left tilters, about
the same as for favoring right over left ears, eyes, or feet (but not hands, where the
ratio is about 8:1). How about it, do we desert rats fit the mold?
Contributor: Arthur H. Harris, Laboratory for Environmental Biology, Centennial Museum, University of Texas at El Paso.
Desert Diary is a joint production of the Centennial Museum and KTEP National Public Radio at the University of Texas at El Paso.
Gunturkun, O. 2002. Adult persistence of head-turning asymmetry. Nature, 421:711.