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Tobias Meilinger, Dr.
Research Scientist |
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MPI for Biological Cybernetics
Dept. Bülthoff
Spemannstraße 44
72076 Tübingen
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+49-7071-601 215 |
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+49-7071-601 616 |
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Spemannstr. 44, 1st floor |
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tobias.meilinger@tuebingen.mpg.de |
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My main research interests focus on examining orientation in space. Humans inherited several orientation mechanisms from their ancestors such as reorientation, updating, and route navigation. Overcoming the limitations of these mechanisms, humans are able to apply various strategies and other representational codes to reach a navigational goal.
One line of this research examines how spaces are represented and specifically which memory systems are involved in these processes. My research conducted in real and virtual environments indicates that participants not only use a spatial code, but also a verbal code to represent their environment. The usefulness of verbal encoding, however, seems to depend on already established associations between corresponding verbal and spatial elements, e.g., the label "T-intersection" and a spatial representation of a T-intersection. These associations can be considered to ground the verbal representations in the spatial ones.
A second question regarding the representation of space addresses the structure of spatial memory. Here the concept of reference frames is crucial. This incorporates the classical distinction between egocentric and allocentric reference frames. However, our results also support the distinction between figural spaces (e.g., objects, pictures, maps), vista spaces (e.g., rooms, plazas), and environmental spaces (e.g., buildings, cities) which can be associated with different reference frames. To examine this, I use experiments in real and virtual environments as well as the architectural techniques of isovist analysis and space syntax. These techniques are formal descriptions of spaces based on the geometry of a visible area and on visibility axes within an environmental space. Our results show that, unlike figural spaces, environmental spaces are not necessarily integrated within one frame of reference. The reference frames used to encode environmental spaces and to integrate different perspectives within a vista space seem to be mainly view-dependent. However, such view-dependent reference frames cannot be limited to representing merely egocentric vectors, but additional (allocentric) relations are required.
My research has also examined which strategies are applied in real wayfinding situations as a function of expertise, environmental and task structure. Further, I am interested in how this relates to the type of instructions provided, such as maps, signs, or verbal directions.
Finally, on a more fundamental theoretic level I am also interested in concepts of space, first, in comparison to non-spatial concepts, and second, in comparison to spatial concepts in other disciplines within cognitive science (e.g., computer science, philosophy, linguistics) and outside of cognitive sciences (e.g., physics, art).
Additional research interests which I have examined in past projects have ranged from, the influence of passengers on accidental risk, the influence of optic flow on steering accuracy, and the usability of menu systems.
Overall, the goal of my research is to identify the underlying principles which are sufficient to explain a domain such as orientation in space. This is examined using as realistic a stimulation as possible while keeping tight experimental control. This approach helps to bridge the gap between basic and applied research. In the future I would like to extend the methods applied in my research towards neural methods such as fMRI and towards a more explicit modelling of experimental data.
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