Miscellaneous desk
< August 2	<< Jul \| August \| Sep >>	Current desk >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Miscellaneous Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is a transcluded archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

August 3

Simone Biles and marker pen

Why did Simone Biles hold a marker pen with five (or four) fingers rather than two, as did other women in the picture and most other people while writing or drawing? 212.180.235.46 (talk) 19:00, 3 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Some people hold a pen in different ways. --Viennese Waltz 19:01, 3 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Look up "types of pencil grips" on Google Images and you'll see a variety. Also look up videos of her signing autographs. It might be that this is how she's most comfortable signing autographs dozens of times a day. Komonzia (talk) 23:51, 3 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

If you hold a pen with less than four fingers, you get a 0.1 deduction. Them's the rules of gymnastic penmanship! Clarityfiend (talk) 09:47, 4 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Rather reminiscent of the grip used by Japanese calligraphers. In my 1960s childhood in England, we were taught the "correct" way to hold a pen at school; it seems that the education system is less prescriptive in these enlightened times, but the result is that younger folks sometimes hold their writing implements in ways that seem rather awkward to me. Alansplodge (talk) 14:50, 4 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]