Your index finger has nothing to do with an index

Hi, Matthew: Where did the index finger get its name? 2. Why do clocks run in the direction we call clockwise? Shouldn’t they run the other way in the Southern Hemisphere? 3. Is a person who uses meth a Methodist? — Frank Pospisil, San Diego

Index in Latin means “that which (or he who) points out,” a pointer, indicator.

Clocks run clockwise, basically, because most big things except Vegemite and koalas originated in the Northern Hemisphere. Clocks with hands and circular dials were based on their predecessors, sundials. In the Northern Hemisphere the shadow on a sundial moves “clockwise.” And a person who uses meth is profoundly irritating.