It's amusing that the Hacker News reaction so far is to advance alternative hypotheses as to why helical staircases have a predominant chirality, without first establishing, as one should do if one were rigorous, that there is a need for an explanation in the first place, and that this is not, as is suggested in other articles (including one hyperlinked by the headlined one here), just a statistical fluke without significance that doesn't need explanation.
To put things in modern parlance: A meme, invented from whole cloth by Daily Telegraph writer Theodore Andrea Cook 120 years ago because he liked fencing, was still going strong on Twitter in 2022; and people are still falling prey to believing its assumptions.
One has to appreciate the additional irony of the Twitter account actually being named "history in memes".
Agreed! I like that there has to be an explanation. "Just because" or "it's the same either way" aren't acceptable. I suppose the internet loves to solve a puzzle (a sentiment I understand and share!).
To put things in modern parlance: A meme, invented from whole cloth by Daily Telegraph writer Theodore Andrea Cook 120 years ago because he liked fencing, was still going strong on Twitter in 2022; and people are still falling prey to believing its assumptions.
One has to appreciate the additional irony of the Twitter account actually being named "history in memes".