MetaChat - Can you roll your tongue?

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31 March 2010

Can you roll your tongue? →[More:]
I was taught at school that whether or not you can do this is based on genetics. Teh intarwebs do not agree, but it's generally accepted that it is something you either can or can't do, and if you can't, then you can't learn how to do it.

I can't. How about you?

post by: essexjan at: 08:17 | 31 comments

Oh, and here is a picture of a cat rolling its tongue. Any excuse for a kitteh pic.
≡ Click to see image ≡

posted by essexjan 31 March | 08:19

I can. I can also do the Vulcan salute with both hands, which I used to think was something that only people descended from the Kohanim could do, but have since learned is pretty common.

I cannot, however, wink with either eye without scrunching my whole face up.

posted by amro 31 March | 08:35

I can roll my tongue, and I used to be able to do the triple-roll three-tiered tongue thingee. (Here's the first image I could Google up; this is Not Me.) A friend showed me in high school, and I practiced with a mirror until I did it. It hurt at first! But then it got to be old hat; I could do it any old time, and if I recall correctly, I taught a couple of people to do it.

I know these things are said to be genetic, but....

*shrugs*

I cannot wiggle my ears.

posted by Elsa 31 March | 08:43

Clarifying: I taught myself to triple-curl, not to roll. Rolling came naturally.

posted by Elsa 31 March | 08:45

I CAN wiggle my ears.

No dice on the tongue-roll, though.

posted by BoringPostcards 31 March | 08:56

Wiggle my ears - check
Roll my tongue - check
Double Vulcan - check
Both eyes wink - check
Bend the top joint of my finger over independently - check
≡ Click to see image ≡
Clasp my hands behind my back and bring them over my head to the front - check.

I am very popular at gatherings with many small children.

posted by gomichild 31 March | 09:01

Not really. I can do it inside my mouth, but not sticking out, which is how I think you're supposed to do it.

I can clap with one hand though, which was so very amusing one volleyball season when pretty much everyone on my team learned how (I learned from another girl who could do it on both hands) and it freaked out other teams.

posted by sperose 31 March | 09:15

Wiggle my ears - don't think so?
Roll my tongue - check
Double Vulcan - check
Both eyes wink - check

Dominate conversation whilst talking about old school punk rock - CHECK.

posted by richat 31 March | 09:16

Wiggle your ears? I didn't even know that was a thing. How the heck do you do that?

posted by amro 31 March | 09:19

Can't wiggle ears but can do everything else. . .I taunt my wife with the Double Vulcan, in that she can't do it.

posted by danf 31 March | 09:49

I can roll my tongue.

posted by JanetLand 31 March | 09:55

Wiggle your ears? I didn't even know that was a thing. How the heck do you do that?

I feel exactly this way about the double Vulcan, but, y'know, totally opposite, in that:
- I didn't know it was a thing (to do a double salute)
- I didn't know some people couldn't do it
- I can't even imagine how you could be unable to do it. The idea boggles me.

posted by Elsa 31 March | 09:57

Can you roll your tongue?

Yeah, I think I could take the little guy in a fair fight.

posted by Atom Eyes 31 March | 10:40

yep. both me and the mister can do it. He can also make many extremely accurate "Calvin-faces"; if you recall the Bill Watterson comic from the 80s.

this has led to several highly entertaining IM sessions where we taunt/flame each other both in text and visually from opposite ends of the sofa by making a bunch of those horrible old-skool "your face is gonna freeze if you keep doing that" faces at each other, whilst simultaneously sending a barrage of 4chan-esque insulting chatspeakery over the wireless.

we in fact ARE both still in third grade. Why do you ask? :P

posted by lonefrontranger 31 March | 10:56

You should see what I can pick up with my butt cheeks!

posted by Ardiril 31 March | 11:12

After I learned to wiggle my ears I fell into a compulsive ear-wiggling habit. Took me about a year to break myself of the constant tensing of weird head muscles and the resultant headaches. I wonder if my head's shape was changed by this weird regimen?

posted by jtron 31 March | 12:14

I'll see your triple-roll, Elsa, and raise you a clover leaf tongue. (No, that's not me in the photo.)

I can roll my tongue.
I can tie a cherry stem in a knot. *waggles eyebrows*
I cannot wiggle my ears.
I can make Vulcan fingers.
I can wink.
I cannot raise one eyebrow. (Damn!)
I can make my pinkies and index fingers touch (over my other fingers) without using my thumbs.

posted by Specklet 31 March | 12:25

Yeah, I can do that too! Or, at least, I could, years ago. I'm certain I could train myself to do it again, but dang learning it in the first place HURT. I can knot a cherry stem, too, though I haven't tried lately. (Haven't had a drink with a cherry for a long time. Sigh!)

I can wink my left eye, but I have to crumple up my whole right orbital socket to wink that eye.

I cannot cannot CANNOT roll my RRRRRRRrrrrrrrrs. Despite enthusiasm and a general facility with accents and tongue-twisters, I spent years trying to learn and only managed it once.

posted by Elsa 31 March | 12:42

I can:
- roll my tongue (just found out today!)
- Spock fingers on both hands
- wink both eyes (closing left eye is difficult but I can do it)
- bend top joint of my middle, index and pinky fingers on both hands
- raise my left eyebrow
- touch index and pinky fingers on my left hand

I cannot:
- wiggle my ears
- wiggle my nose

posted by deborah 31 March | 12:57

Oooh who can flare their nostrils?

posted by Specklet 31 March | 14:42

I can do all the things gomi can do, plus I can bend all my fingers backwards more than most people think is acceptable, and can go cross-eyed and then move one eye around freely while the other one points inward, which makes most people go "ewwwww!".

I cannot wiggle my nose effectively, raise one eyebrow independently or flare my nostrils.

posted by altolinguistic 31 March | 15:14

I can't do weird eye things but I can flare my nostrils and wiggle it a different way too.

One eyebrow raising not a problem.

posted by gomichild 31 March | 17:32

Yes.

and I can raise either eyebrow, vulcan salute, wiggle ears a little. Not simultaneously.

posted by theora55 31 March | 18:08

Yes.

posted by redvixen 31 March | 20:00

I can cross my eyes, but cannot flare my nostrils.

posted by deborah 31 March | 20:14

Yes, and do a single eyebrow raise and the vulcan salute on both hands and do that creepy first joint finger bending thing. I can cross my eyes, flare my nostrils and do what someone once called "Raising Hackles" I am flexible.

posted by The Whelk 31 March | 20:20

But I can't whistle!

posted by The Whelk 31 March | 20:20

altolinguistic: and can go cross-eyed and then move one eye around freely while the other one points inward, which makes most people go "ewwwww!"

I can do this too! I can also make it look like my eyes are "bumping" each other: look to the left, bring left eye towards center so it looks like it's "bonking" the right eye, move right eye to right corner, repeat in reverse until tired or small children cry.

posted by evilcupcakes 31 March | 20:27

Eponysterical?

posted by Specklet 01 April | 04:25

yep. Can roll tongue, flip it and (like amro) I can do the Vulcan salute with both hands... I can even do the reverse salute with both hands.

posted by terrapin 01 April | 07:15

I can tie a cherry stem in a knot. *waggles eyebrows*
I think I need some alone time.

I can:
-roll my tongue
-do spock fingers both hands
-touch index and pinky fingers on both hands
-wink both eyes
-breath through my ears^*
-flare my nostrils

I cannot:
-wiggle my ears
-wiggle my nose
-do that bizarre freaky finger joint stuff
-whistle

^*in my dreams

posted by dg 01 April | 07:35

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