The sense of direction is a fascinating and essential aspect of human and animal behaviour that involves the ability to orient oneself in space and navigate through the environment. Discover the science behind how different species, from insects to humans, find their way and establish spatial relationships, including the role of sensory inputs, memory, learning, and cognitive processes. Learn about the factors that affect the sense of direction, from genetics and age to culture and experience, and the impact of technology and environment on wayfinding. Explore the practical applications of the sense of direction research, from urban planning to medicine, and this knowledge’s ethical and social implications. Discover our resources and expert insights on the sense of direction and expand your understanding of this fascinating and complex topic.
A summary 2011 The two prevailing ideas on long distance navigation are based around two ideas: Magnetic cues Olfactory cues (smell) It is clear that near home animals, birds and humans build up a map of their neighbourhood with remembered sights smells and landmarks. This is all mediated by the hippocampus. There is some evidence…
I believe that the ancient peoples “always knew” where they were going and many people today seem to just know where they are going or have a “sense of direction”. Tristan Gooley, has written a fascinating book called, “The Natural Navigator”, he covers many of the clues that help navigate, especially the position of the…
With the emergence of GPS, the need to think has diminished our innate navigational skills. Rosamund F Langston, PhD Lecturer in Behavioural Neuroscience at Ninewells Hospital describes this loss of our innate navigational skills, because like all skills, if you do not use them, you lose them. She includes map reading as one of the…
In classic navigation at the beginning of the journey we need to know where we are in order to plot where we are going. If you navigate with a compass you need a map to show you where you are and where you want to go. This then gives you a bearing and distance. With…
One way to look at navigation is to think of a rope. A rope is made up of many strands each are often tiny weak and short. The Incas made bridges over great canyons using straw wound together to make great strong ropes that last for ages. Each fibre of a rope must be wound…
First, you will need to make your tool: a Dowsing Rod. Take a wire coat hanger. Cut one of the diagonal bars going up to the hook. Cut this with pliers about 6” (15cm) from the corner to the horizontal bar (which you use to hang your clothes). Now cut the horizontal bar near the…
The bar tailed Godwit is about 37/39cms (15ins) long which summers in the arctic yet migrates to warmer locations during the winter. These include astonishing non-stop flights over the Pacific to New Zealand every Northern winter. As you can see from the tracks, you will see it flies in a perfect straight flight from the Arctic…
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