3 ms·

Not sure if a DNA test was necessary to determine that skull fragment wasn't the result of a suicide... not that this says much about whether it is Hitler's sku

Not sure if a DNA test was necessary to determine that skull fragment wasn't the result of a suicide... not that this says much about whether it is Hitler's skull or not. The picture provided in the article clearly shows a downward angled hole high on the parietal lobe of the skull-- a typical suicide shot, assuming it was taken at roughly the temple, should be in the temporal or sphenoid bones, and angled flat or slightly upward. EDIT: I don't know if Hitler was right or left handed, but a right handed person would likely use their right hand to fire a suicide shot. This may be another fact that is inconsistent with the existing skull fragment, which has a bullet hole on the right half.

jessaustin 11y ago
It's not very unusual to shoot with the "wrong" hand. Sure, someone who had never used a gun before would naturally pick one up with her dominant hand. Those who practice a bit, however, often shift to using their dominant eye (occasionally opposite the dominant hand). If only one chirality of firearm were available when one were learning to shoot, one might acclimate to that as well. Right-handed bolt-action rifles are a regular annoyance to me.
- pavel_lishin 11y ago
  Are there non-symmetric pistols?
  - jessaustin 11y ago
    Many pistol safeties that are located near the trigger operate side-to-side. That means that it's easy, depending on which hand is holding, either to go from safe to fire or from fire to safe, but going the other direction requires using the other hand. Most shooters would prefer the safe-to-fire transition to be easy. Not all safeties on modern firearms are set up like this, however. De-cocking mechanisms may be located on only one side, although most are on both. I've never seen a slide release that wasn't limited to only one side. That would seem unavoidable from a physics perspective. However, your question is a bit off-target. Most shooters, particularly early in the previous century, would learn with a rifle first, and their rifle preferences would transfer to their pistol use.
    - pavel_lishin 11y ago
      > However, your question is a bit off-target. Most shooters, particularly early in the previous century, would learn with a rifle first, and their rifle preferences would transfer to their pistol use. Oh, I was curious in general, not as pertaining to this particular historical question. Thanks for the answer!
      - jessaustin 11y ago
        You're welcome! b^)

jessaustin 11y ago

It's not very unusual to shoot with the "wrong" hand. Sure, someone who had never used a gun before would naturally pick one up with her dominant hand. Those who practice a bit, however, often shift to using their dominant eye (occasionally opposite the dominant hand). If only one chirality of firearm were available when one were learning to shoot, one might acclimate to that as well. Right-handed bolt-action rifles are a regular annoyance to me.

pavel_lishin 11y ago
Are there non-symmetric pistols?
- jessaustin 11y ago
  Many pistol safeties that are located near the trigger operate side-to-side. That means that it's easy, depending on which hand is holding, either to go from safe to fire or from fire to safe, but going the other direction requires using the other hand. Most shooters would prefer the safe-to-fire transition to be easy. Not all safeties on modern firearms are set up like this, however. De-cocking mechanisms may be located on only one side, although most are on both. I've never seen a slide release that wasn't limited to only one side. That would seem unavoidable from a physics perspective. However, your question is a bit off-target. Most shooters, particularly early in the previous century, would learn with a rifle first, and their rifle preferences would transfer to their pistol use.
  - pavel_lishin 11y ago
    > However, your question is a bit off-target. Most shooters, particularly early in the previous century, would learn with a rifle first, and their rifle preferences would transfer to their pistol use. Oh, I was curious in general, not as pertaining to this particular historical question. Thanks for the answer!
    - jessaustin 11y ago
      You're welcome! b^)