Jerk minimization
people might be minimizing some version of jerk
So writes the unnamed author of a research commentary called “We Move in Mysterious Ways,” which described research done by Konrad K?rding and colleagues. It appeared in the year 2004 in PLoS Biology, 2(10).
The full paragraph, with the jerk fragment in its proper context, says:
There’s a nearly infinite number of silly walks, throws, and lifts, but somehow people tend to settle on one best way of doing these things. However, scientists studying motor control have been hard pressed to figure out what exactly we’re doing when we move. People may be striking a balance between sloth and speed: too slow and our throws lack oomph; too fast, and instead of dunking our donuts in our coffee, we dunk our whole fist. Or people might be minimizing some version of jerk?physicists’ and engineers’ term for changes in acceleration. (Roller coaster engineers, for example, balance jerk against speed and g’s to keep the ride smooth and safe, but also fun.) But so far, such models that start by assuming people minimize error or jerk haven’t allowed researchers to deduce what dictates how people move.