The Traveling Salesman Problem in the Natural Environment

Abstract

Is it possible for humans to navigate in the natural environment wherein the path taken between various destinations is 'optimal' in some way? In the domain of optimization this challenge is traditionally framed as the "Traveling Salesman Problem" (TSP). What strategies and ecological considerations are plausible for human navigation? When given a two-dimensional map-like presentation of the destinations, participants solve this optimization exceptionally well (only 2-3% longer than optimum)^1, 2^. In the following experiments we investigate the effect of effort and its environmental affordance on navigation decisions when humans solve the TSP in the natural environment. Fifteen locations were marked on two outdoor landscapes with flat and varied terrains respectively. Performance in the flat-field condition was excellent (&8764;6% error) and was worse but still quite good in the variable-terrain condition (&8764;20% error), suggesting participants do not globally pre-plan routes but rather develop them on the fly. We suggest that perceived effort guides participant solutions due to the dynamic constraints of effortful locomotion and obstacle avoidance.