Ask Marilyn

I have never been able to tell left from right. In grade school, the only way I knew how to pledge allegiance to the flag was to look at a birthmark on my right arm. Why? —Linda Rodeffer, Lovettsville, Va.

Readers with this trait may be relieved to learn it's not rare, and it doesn't mean you aren’t intelligent. Left-right confusion is found more often among females, leading many to say it's a difficulty with spatial reasoning, known to be more common among females. But one study indicates that even when men and women are matched by spatial reasoning abilities, men still outperform women in left-right orientation, leading others to suggest it's just a general sex difference.

Send questions to marilyn @ parade.com