Arne Ekstrom – författare

The first book to comprehensively explore the cognitive foundations of human spatial navigationHumans possess a range of navigation and orientation abilities, from the ordinary to the extraordinary. All of us must move from one location to the next, following habitual routes and avoiding getting lost. While there is more to learn about how the brain underlies our ability to navigate, neuroscience and psychology have begun to converge on some important answers. In Human Spatial Navigation, four leading experts tackle fundamental and unique issues to produce the first book-length investigation into this subject.Opening with the vivid story of Puluwat sailors who navigate in the open ocean with no mechanical aids, the authors begin by dissecting the behavioral basis of human spatial navigation. They then focus on its neural basis, describing neural recordings, brain imaging experiments, and patient studies. Recent advances give unprecedented insights into what is known about the cognitive map and the neural systems that facilitate navigation. The authors discuss how aging and diseases can impede navigation, and they introduce cutting-edge network models that show how the brain can act as a highly integrated system underlying spatial navigation. Throughout, the authors touch on fascinating examples of able navigators, from the Inuit of northern Canada to London taxi drivers, and they provide a critical lens into previous navigation research, which has primarily focused on other species, such as rodents.An ideal book for students and researchers seeking an accessible introduction to this important topic, Human Spatial Navigation offers a rich look into spatial memory and the neuroscientific foundations for how we make our way in the world.

The secrets of human navigation, from Polynesian sailors who navigate without a compass to Inuit trekkers in the Arctic tundraHow did humans come to occupy virtually every corner of the earth? How did Polynesian sailors navigate thousands of miles without compasses or sextants? Why does one person get lost two blocks from home while another treks fearlessly through the forest? The secrets of navigation are intimately connected to our survival as a species, but current science is limited in explaining them. In How the Brain Finds Its Way, Arne Ekstrom offers a new theory of human navigation that emphasizes the interaction between brain and behavior. Theories to explain navigation are largely based on lab studies of rats and rely on the metaphor of the map. Yet, Ekstrom points out, much of human navigation predated the invention of maps. He proposes a novel way to think about navigation that focuses on the actions of humans in the wild.Polynesian and native navigators, whom Ekstrom extensively researched and interviewed for this book, demonstrate a highly developed and intricate ability to detect and act on cues in nature. Human navigation, he shows, can involve a range of different environmental conditions and a number of different strategies. Ekstrom argues that the best way to understand human spatial navigation is through the lens of probability and dynamic feedback. He explores ancient migration; the master navigators of Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia; wilderness wayfinding and the dangers of getting off the trail; the effect of Alzheimer’s disease on the ability to navigate, and the navigational capacities of taxi drivers. Humans, Ekstrom shows, have a unique ability to develop the tools they need to explore and survive in a range of different environments.