Comments on: Walking in Circles

By: peg

peg — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 23:35:10 +0000

Any woman who has been in a car driven by her husband knows what it it like to travel in circles since men do not ask for directions.

By: Bicycle Bill

Bicycle Bill — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 03:16:42 +0000

In the woods, anyway, I heard a good way to keep from walking in circles is to cut a long pole (at least 10-12 feet long), tuck it under one arm, and drag it behind you. Supposedly the rigidity of the pole helps keep you going in a straight line.

The other thing would be to have a point of reference. In a desert, you could always look back at your footsteps behind you and see if you are veering to one side or the other. In woods, maybe if one could try to keep lining up three or more items in a line? As you reached the first one, line up the second, third and a new landmark/reference point, and repeat the process.

Walking in the dark is entirely different. Sit tight and stay put, unless you can find Polaris and consistently see it as you walk. The rotation of the earth will cause other celestial bodies like the moon to alter their position relative to you through the night.
-”BB”-

By: Steven

Steven — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 02:39:39 +0000

This reminds me of the movie, Flight of the Phoenix. The lead character even goes into depth as to why it is a bad idea to walk the desert during the day, and why you would walk in circles. He stated that everyone has a dominant foot, and it makes more dominant steps, but it’s minute so we don’t realize it. I can’t confirm the scientific accuracy, but I do find it interesting and probable.

reCaptcha: the Paterno. It’s good to know that reCaptcha knows who is worthy.

By: Kate

Kate — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:15:36 +0000

Sounds like these people were NASCAR drivers, always turning in the same direction!

By: Wayne

Wayne — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:12:33 +0000

I wonder what happened when they used people whose legs were the same length :)

By: Kelsey

Kelsey — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 18:14:00 +0000

@Gordon: According to the linked abstract, it sounds like the answer to your question is “no.”

“…[P]articipants walked in often surprisingly small circles (diameter < 20 m), though rarely in a systematic direction. These results rule out a general explanation in terms of biomechanical asymmetries or other general biases. Instead, they suggest that veering from a straight course is the result of accumulating noise in the sensorimotor system, which, without an external directional reference to recalibrate the subjective straight ahead, may cause people to walk in circles."

By: Gordon Daily

Gordon Daily — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:42:20 +0000

A question… I wonder if this has anything to do with the coriolis effect. Do the people always turn the circle in the same direction? If not do they walk in circles in relation to being right or left-handed?

By: Rachel

Rachel — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:23:58 +0000

Walked in a circle in Amsterdam one time with my niece. I was supposed to be the Great Expert at Travel…but when she said, “Isn’t that the same clock tower we walked by before?” I blushed at my ignorance. Still. Had a good time, and we had a good laugh about the proverbial “walking in a circle.”

By: Hyacinth

Hyacinth — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:32:52 +0000

I need GPS to get out of my own driveway, so I totally believe this! I am geographically challenged.