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Joe Coyne slides into the drivers eat,starts up the car and heads to town.The empty stretch of interstate gives way to urban congestion,and Coyne hits the brakes as a pedestrian suddenly crosses the street in front of him. The researchers want to know if such systems,which give audible or written directions,are too distractingor whether any distractions are offset by the benefits drivers get from having help finding their way in unfamiliar locations. The researchers just completed a study of the mental workload involved in driving through different kinds of environments and heavy vs.light traffic.Preliminary results show that as people get into more challenging driving situations,they dont have any extra mental energy to respond to something else in the environment,Baldwin said. Is it best if they see a picturethat shows their position,a map kind of display?Baldwin said.Is it best if they hear it?navigational systems now on the market give point-by-point directions that follow a prescribed route.Theyre very unforgiving,Baldwin said.If you miss a turn,they can almost seem to get angry. Perhaps manufacturers should allow drivers to choose the style of directions they want,or modify systems to present some information in a way that makes sense for people who prefer the survey style,she said. | 
