Relying on GPS for directions makes your brain lazy. Here's how to give it a workout
Travel writer Tara McAndrew discusses her decision to reduce reliance on GPS navigation to improve her spatial memory. Research suggests that habitual GPS use can lead to a decline in the hippocampus's ability to map surroundings.
Why it matters
It addresses the cognitive trade-offs of modern convenience and the importance of maintaining basic human navigational skills.
Perhaps, she decided, it was time to rely less heavily on GPS for navigation.
In the decade since making that decision, the Ontario-based travel writer has criss-crossed Europe, Asia and North America. Now, when she lands in an unfamiliar city, she'll turn to Waze or Google Maps for directions as she drives or walks to her destination.
"That's my way of kind of straddling the super tech side of things and also working the cognitive muscles that I realize have declined with use of GPS," McAndrew said. "Tech has its place … but, especially when it comes to travel, I'm very much about talking to people and getting lost and making mistakes."
The numbers suggest McAndrew may be an outlier. Roughly two billion users a month have Google Maps direct them, while hundreds of millions turn to Apple Maps or Waze.
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