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Science 28 April 1995:
Vol. 268. no. 5210, pp. 569 - 573
DOI: 10.1126/science.7725104
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Articles

Science, Vol 268, Issue 5210, 569-573
Copyright © 1995 by American Association for the Advancement of Science

articles

How baseball outfielders determine where to run to catch fly balls

MK McBeath, DM Shaffer, and MK Kaiser

Department of Psychology, Kent State University, OH 44242-0001, USA.

Current theory proposes that baseball outfielders catch fly balls by selecting a running path to achieve optical acceleration cancellation of the ball. Yet people appear to lack the ability to discriminate accelerations accurately. This study supports the idea that outfielders convert the temporal problem to a spatial one by selecting a running path that maintains a linear optical trajectory (LOT) for the ball. The LOT model is a strategy of maintaining "control" over the relative direction of optical ball movement in a manner that is similar to simple predator tracking behavior.


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On Catching Fly Balls.
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Response: On Catching Fly Balls.
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