Best of: Barbara Tversky & Spatial Cognition

One of our long-time subscribers recently said to us: “What I love about you is that you’re regularly talking about things three years ahead of everyone else.” That inspired us to look back through our catalog of conversations to see which ones we think are most relevant now.

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Today, we're revisiting one of our most thought-provoking episodes, originally recorded in April 2022, featuring Barbara Tversky, the author of Mind in Motion: How Action Shapes Thought. This episode is great way to start 2024 because we are all about to experience what are known as Large Multimodal Models or LMMs, models which go beyond text and bring in more sensory modalities including spatial information.

Tversky's insights into spatial reasoning and embodied cognition are more relevant than ever in the era of multimodal models in AI. These models, which combine text, images, and other data types, mirror our human ability to process information across various sensory inputs.

The parallels between Tversky's research and Large Multimodal Models (LMMs) in AI are striking. Just as our physical interactions with the world shape our cognitive processes, these AI models learn and adapt by integrating diverse data types, offering a more holistic understanding of the world.

Her work sheds light on how we might improve AI's ability to 'think' and 'reason' spatially, enhancing its application in fields ranging from navigation systems to virtual reality.

As we revisit our interview with Tversky, we're reminded of the importance of considering human-like spatial reasoning and embodied cognition in advancing AI technology.

Join us as we explore these intriguing concepts with Barbara Tversky, uncovering the essential role of spatial reasoning in both human cognition and artificial intelligence.

Barbara Tversky is an emerita professor of psychology at Stanford University and a professor of psychology at Teachers College at Columbia University. She is also the President of the Association for Psychological Science. Barbara has published over 200 scholarly articles about memory, spatial thinking, design, and creativity, and regularly speaks about embodied cognition at interdisciplinary conferences and workshops around the world. She lives in New York.

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Thanks to Jonathan Coulton for our music