The efficient learner

The research to be reported examines the concept of efficiency, defined as the relation of metabolic energy expended to mechanical work done. The deve lopment of movement coordination was investigated in the context of the hyp othesis that an increase in coordination would be accompanied by a parallel reduction in overall energy expenditure, relative to the increase in energ y expenditure demanded by improvements in work output. The task involved le arning to make cyclical, slalom-like, ski movements on a ski apparatus. Dev elopment of coordination was indexed by changes in the timing of forcing wh ile on-line measurements of oxygen consumption were used as indices of ener gy expenditure. Six female volunteers served as subjects in nine training s essions. The change in the coordination pattern, between the subject and th e apparatus, as indexed by the development of the phase lag, was paralleled by an improvement in efficiency. It was concluded that learning the skill used in this study involves a search by the system for perception-action co uplings (phase relations in the present study) that require minimal energy expenditure.