Helix

Hello,

As soon as I saw the title of the story, I became interested because Helix is the name of a Russian battle chopper which I like best in a game I play. well, back to the topic. It is from the story "Helix" by "Banana Yoshimoto".

"A helix (pl: helices), from the Greek word έλικας/έλιξ, is a twisted shape like a spring, screw or a spiral (correctly termed helical) staircase. Helices are important in biology, as DNA is helical and many proteins have helical substructures, known as alpha helices."

"Helices can be either right-handed or left-handed. With the line of sight being the helical axis, if clockwise movement of the helix corresponds to axial movement away from the observer, then it is a right-handed helix. If counter-clockwise movement corresponds to axial movement away from the observer, it is a left-handed helix. Handedness (or chirality) is a property of the helix, not of the perspective: a right-handed helix cannot be turned or flipped to look like a left-handed one unless it is viewed through a mirror, and vice versa.
Most hardware screws are right-handed helices. Points on the surface of an (American) football thrown by a right-handed quarterback (usually) travel in a right-handed helix. The alpha helix in biology as well as the A and B forms of DNA are also right-handed helices. The Z form of DNA is left-handed."