Why The Good Guys Always Win

Researchers say the first cowboy to draw seldom wins the duel since the brain responds faster to danger

Have you ever noticed that the first cowboy to draw his gun in a Hollywood Western is invariably the one to get shot? Nobel prize–winning physicist Niels Bohr did, and arranged mock duels to test the validity of this cinematic curiosity.

Following Bohr's example, researchers have now confirmed that people move faster if they are reacting to another person's movements than if they are taking the lead themselves. The findings may one day inspire new therapies for patients with brain damage.

Bohr was seemingly unhappy with the Tinseltown explanation that the good guy, who never shoots first, always wins. Legend has it that he procured two toy pistols and enlisted the aid of fellow physicist George Gamow. In a series of duels, Bohr never drew first but won every time. The physicist suggested that the brain responded to danger faster than it carried out a deliberate intention.

Although players reacting to an opponent's draw completed the sequence more quickly, researchers say not to count on winning the duel, because the increase in speed was seldom sufficient to make up for the time they lost by starting later.

Science Now