Making a fist of it

摘要

The appendage at the end of a human being's arm is a strange organ. It is the only one that has different names, depending on what it is being used for. Employ it to hold something, and it is called a hand. Employ it to hit someone, and it is called a fist. That second use, though, is almost unknown in other primates. Most primate hands are long of palm and finger, short of thumb, and suited for climbing. Human hands have short palms, short fingers and long thumbs, which are not. These proportions do, though, make it possible to grip things in two ways that other apes' hands cannot manage well.