Description
The purpose of our study is to compare the cognitive processes used to solve spatial problems on a large scale (moving through space) and on a small scale (on a sheet of paper). We are using a problem called the Traveling Salesperson Problem (TSP), in which the participant is asked to find the shortest path that travels to multiple destinations before returning home. Previous research has indicated that humans do surprisingly well on this mathematically complex task, producing nearly optimal solutions quickly and easily. Most previous research on this problem has used computerized or paper versions of the TSP, in which the entire problem is presented visually at a small scale. Therefore, it is possible that good solutions are produced perceptually by the visual system. We are testing this explanation by asking participants to solve a navigational version of the TSP, in which they physically travel between remembered locations (e.g. familiar campus landmarks) that are not all visible. This will help us better understand the relationship between spatial navigation and visuospatial problem solving in humans, and also about the strategies used by humans to solve the TSP.
Maps and Navigation in Spatial Cognition
The purpose of our study is to compare the cognitive processes used to solve spatial problems on a large scale (moving through space) and on a small scale (on a sheet of paper). We are using a problem called the Traveling Salesperson Problem (TSP), in which the participant is asked to find the shortest path that travels to multiple destinations before returning home. Previous research has indicated that humans do surprisingly well on this mathematically complex task, producing nearly optimal solutions quickly and easily. Most previous research on this problem has used computerized or paper versions of the TSP, in which the entire problem is presented visually at a small scale. Therefore, it is possible that good solutions are produced perceptually by the visual system. We are testing this explanation by asking participants to solve a navigational version of the TSP, in which they physically travel between remembered locations (e.g. familiar campus landmarks) that are not all visible. This will help us better understand the relationship between spatial navigation and visuospatial problem solving in humans, and also about the strategies used by humans to solve the TSP.
Comments
Faculty Mentor: Rachel Blaser