Getting to Grips with Economic Sustainability: A Case Study in Human Computation Through Movement

The field of human computation creates novel user interfaces in order to leverage human capabilities to help solve problems that are difficult to solve using conventional computational techniques alone. One human capability that has received limited attention from the human computation community to date is human motor learning and control. In previous work the authors have developed a technique known as Continuous Interactive Simulation in which our natural ability to explore and master movement in novel physical situations is used to help solve problems concerning the control of nonlinear dynamical systems. The technique allows human motor learning capabilities to be applied to two broad classes of problem: strategy discovery and strategy refinement. This paper draws this work together in a complete case study that illustrates the application of the technique to a nonlinear model of economic growth and environmental sustainability. The results of the case study reveal new policy strategies that extend previous work on this model. Finally, the approach is reviewed in terms of its relation to the broader field of human computation in order to suggest potential paths for wider deployment and future research.