The science of hammering

I don't believe this study quite hits the nail on the head.



Either the person who digested the study for this snippet of an article missed something important, or the study itself is epidemiological white noise at its worst.



As a former professional carpenter myself, I find it hard to believe that a man who is good at hitting a nail in limited light conditions is going to be worse when using a hammer in better light. I'll bet that if the bell curves for hammering accuracy in all light conditions for the two sexes were looked at, you would find a similar situation to those representing intelligence levels-- there would be a higher number of men than women who are outstanding at hitting a nail in general, as well as a higher number of men than women who are completely incompetent, but more women than men who are average at hitting a nail no matter what the lighting conditions.



But whatever. I prided myself on slamming a 16 d in with no more than four blows whether it was high noon or my eyes were closed (counting the start tap, of course).



One hint even many of the most seasoned carpenters don't know however-- to avoid splitting your wood, make sure you position the chisel point of your nail with the wide dimension perpendicular to the direction of the wood grain. Do it the other way, and you'll split the board more times than not.

Necessities of the 'Dark Age(s)' ... Cave dwelling families dividing the tasks: women tending to families in the light and warmth of the fire being continually fed by the men who had to leave the cave for extended periods for fire fuel and food. Tools for different uses were in use inside and outside, by men and women.

Pure speculation on my part, but the post ice-age archaeology is turning up very interesting details about human survival in those difficult times, and modern genetics may be maintaining redundant capacities/advantages - just in case.