From Mary Voice, Ivanhoe, Victoria, Australia
Emma Young discusses styles of navigation (15 December 2018, p 38). As a teenager in the southern hemisphere, I learned to find north using a watch and the sun. I trained as a meteorologist in the days when students went outside to do field experiments.
When I first visited the northern hemisphere, it became clear how much I subconsciously use the sun to gauge approximate time and points of the compass, because I had to consciously readjust these assessments. Many friends who didn’t get my training don’t use these cues in navigation or for a sense of direction.
It seems there is a significant component of learned skill in sense of direction, as the article suggests, although I am not sure whether or not this helps when navigating at night.
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