The fact that faces are strongly affected by picture-plane inversion has often been cited as evidence for face-specific mechanisms. It is unclear, however, whether this "face inversion effect" is driven by properties shared by faces or whether the effect is specific to faces as a category. To address this issue, we compared the recognition of faces and novel Greebles, which were specifically matched to faces along various stimulus dimensions. In two experiments, participants were required to name individual faces or Greebles following training at either single or multiple orientations. We found that performance systematically decreased with increasing misorientation from either the upright (Experiment 1) or nearest trained orientation (Experiment 2). Importantly, the magnitude of this orientation effect was similar for both faces and Greebles. Taken together, these results suggest that the face inversion effect may be a consequence of the visual homogeneity of the stimulus category, regardless of the category.Face inversion 2

The caricature advantage demonstrates that performance is better when exaggerated stimuli are presented rather than a faithful image. This can be understood with respect to a theoretical framework in which caricaturing maximises the distinctiveness and thus minimises any perceptual or representational confusion. In this study we examine the possibility to harness caricatures to enhance learning. Thus, during learning the caricatures help the cognitive system pick up the unique and distinctive features of the learned material. This in turn helps to construct representations that correctly direct attention to the critical information. We trained 113 participants to identify aircraft across any orientation and found that the use of caricature is advantageous. However, the caricature advantage was most effective in complex learning where it is difficult to differentiate among different aircraft. Furthermore, the caricature advantage for subsequent recognition is attenuated when over-learning has been achieved. These results are discussed in terms of the learning situations in which caricatures can be most effective in enhancing learning.To maximise the potential of learning one must consider the workings of the human cognitive system. Understanding and correctly tapping into the human cognitive mechanisms involved in learning should enable to construct more efficient learning (Dror, 2007; Dror, in press). By efficient learning we mean that maximum knowledge is learned and remembered with minimal time and cognitive investment. The complicated and tricky step is how to connect and translate our understanding of the cognitive system to practical implications in learning. In this paper we try to do just that; namely to take the 'caricature advantage' effect and see if and how it can be utilised to enhance learning.Within the face processing literature, a phenomenon known as the 'caricature advantage' has emerged. This describes the situation in which the processing of a familiar face is achieved more quickly or more accurately when presented with a distorted image of the person than when viewing an accurate image (see Rhodes, 1996 for a review). On the face of it, the fact that performance is improved despite the presentation of an image that is no longer faithful would seem to be counter-intuitive, especially given evidence which suggests that a mere change in viewpoint or expression can adversely affect subsequent recognition performance (Bruce, 1982). Nevertheless, the effect remains strong, and is APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

Aircraft that were relatively similar (homogeneous) and relatively dissimilar (heterogeneous) in appearance were studied at orientations either consistent (canonical) or inconsistent (noncanonical) with the environmental frame of reference. At test, participants' identification performance was measured with stimuli rotated to novel orientations within the picture plane. During learning and testing, identification of heterogeneous aircraft was better than that of homogeneous aircraft. At test, only identification of homogeneous aircraft revealed a strong linear degradation of performance as angular disparity between the novel test orientations and the original learning orientations increased. During learning and testing, identification was better for aircraft studied at canonical orientations than for those studied at noncanonical orientations. The results are discussed in terms of object identification, aircraft recognition training, categorization, mental representations, and visual mental rotation.

Today's technological advances in weaponry and communications systems, along with military drawbacks, leaner budgets, and the changing nature of modern warfare, combine to place serious demands on Department of Defense (DOD) training programs. One consequence of this interaction is a push within the DOD for distributed learning and training (DLT) systems. In this chapter, we discuss the unique training needs of the DOD and how DLT can be exploited to address the increased training demands. We also discuss the important distinction between physical and cognitive fidelity and how these dimensions relate to the efficiency and effectiveness of training. We define fidelity as the degree to which a training system accurately reflects a particular characteristic of the domain to be learned. The distinction between physical and cognitive fidelity is critical, because many training developers try to maximize physical fidelity in the hopes of maximizing transfer. Often, this leads to poor training because the critical cognitive elements are not apparent to learners and must be divined through repetition. We argue that cognitive fidelity is critical early in training, whereas physical 93

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