CHAPTER 7
Stick or Twist?
The Consistent Habits of Individuals
Many animals are creatures of habit. Humans certainly are. Some of
these habits are supremely trivial. I always begin shaving with a down-
ward stroke across my left cheek. Other habits are more significant, in-
deed potentially life- saving. Where road traffic keeps to the left, a par-
ent will teach a child to look right, then look left and then look right
again before crossing the road. And some habits perhaps reflect more
subtle interactions between people at large. We have all had the experi-
ence of explaining our route between two places, perhaps between
home and the workplace, only to be amazed to discover that someone
else, making virtually the same journey, takes a wholly different route.