Human navigation in complex spaces using landmarks and self-motion

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Navigation in complex environment is a fundamental function of the human cognitive system. However, the cognitive mechanisms underneath are not clear. The long-term goal of my research program is to fully understand how humans develop and use spatial memory while navigating complex environments. As human navigation relies on multimodal spatial cues including vision and self-motion, the short-term objective of my research program is to investigate how humans use visual landmarks and self-motion to locate self and goals in complex spaces. I propose three research lines. (1) It is a consensus belief that distal landmarks dominate directional cues while proximal landmarks dominate positional cues, supported by experiments in which humans' self-motion was disrupted. I will propose and test a new hypothesis: when self-motion is involved in navigation, proximal landmarks dominate over distal landmarks as directional cues. (2) It is generally agreed that people use self-motion to continuously update their locations and updating using self-motion is automatic, independent of landmarks. However, empirical evidence for this view is inconsistent. To reconcile the inconsistency, I will propose and test a new theory conjecturing that humans use self-motion to provide likely locations for visual search of the landmarks. (3) Animal neurophysiology demonstrates that rats can extend their 3d headings from the floor to the wall when they climb on vertical walls. I will investigate the extent to which humans can update their 3d headings. The empirical and theoretical outcomes will achieve my short-term objective and pave the way for further research to reach my long-term goal. Methodology. I will design behavioral experiments to test competing theories in the three research lines. In experiments, individual undergraduate students (~3,000, half male) will be tested in immersive virtual environments, which I have been used to study human navigation for 20 years. They will learn locations of objects before walking to the testing positions. They will locate remembered objects relying on self-motion or landmarks. Their response in locating objects will be used to calculate their estimates of position and heading (e.g., using a bi- or tri-dimension regression). By examining the roles of different cues on participants' self-location, I will test my hypotheses and alternative hypotheses. Impact. This proposal is rich in theoretical originality and experimental innovation, contributing to the field of human navigation and broader areas. My original hypothesis that people prefer proximal landmarks to distal landmarks for directions in navigation with self-motion will totally change the existing theory. My innovative paradigm of using tri-dimension regression to calculate peoples' self-location in 3d spaces will create the possibility to study humans' 3d headings behaviorally. The outcomes will have broader impacts on neuroscience and artificial intelligence of navigation.