literally figurative

I've been feeling a little down of late

but I've had a decent share of highs in my life, so I figure it all balances out in the end

on one hand I can accept where I am in my life, on the other hand I still have hopes of other kinds of contentment and - perhaps - happinesses

(what if we had more than one hand, I've often thought. . . we'd say "on the other other hand this, and on the other other other hand that")

I'm getting very behind in all sorts of chores and task, but I have something to look forward to - I've booked my holiday this summer

we use so much of the concrete to describe the abstract, don't we? it's not surprising really, is it - we're physical beings and live (mainly) in a physical world; I was reading, in my favourite weekly read, New Scientist, a while ago, about how if scientists are to successfully develop artificial intelligence in a computer based thingy they will have to put the AI thingy into some form of humanoid. . .and it does make one wonder about the Babel Fish I mean if aliens are life forms based on anything other than something that developed from a star fish, how would we understand them and their concepts even if we could translate what they were saying to us? I know how cross it makes me - perhaps that's a little strong, but I do get a tad irritated - if I watch a French film with subtitles and the translations aren't what the French part of my brain understands the words/meanings to be. . .

anyhow, so in this article some researcher had tracked the eye movement patterns of left- and right-handed Western (as opposed to Eastern) people's eyes, when looking at how we visualise quantities

so, in a random and totally unscientific way, I wonder if you can tell me where your eyes/hand movements go if you visualise these phrases "a few", "one or two", "lots", "none", "loads", "several" - not now, because you'll be thinking about it - but during the next few days, if you are in coversation with someone, say. . . and if you're the kind of person who gesticulates as they talk and your hands are free at the time, and if you realise you're doing it - just think of a simple grid of two-by-two, with just four squares (so work out if your eyes/hands are going "top right, top left, bottom right, bottom left") (or even, just from left to right or up/down. . . if that makes it simpler)

can you try it for me
and report back?
ta!