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Conflict Detection

Who is pointing at whom?

EUROCONTROL's "detect conflicts" exercise. Each image shows a field of triangles. A conflict is two triangles pointing DIRECTLY at each other — horizontally or vertically — with no other triangle between them. Press Conflict when you see one. Images change every few seconds whether or not you have answered, so hesitation costs you the image.

Duration
~3 min
Length
Continuous
Difficulty
Medium

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What to expect

  • Around a dozen triangles per image, each pointing up, down, left or right.
  • Roughly half the images contain a conflict.
  • A new image every few seconds, answered or not.
  • Catch one and the pair lights up green; press when there is nothing there and the button turns red.

What it measures

  • Visual search under time pressure
  • Holding a precise rule while scanning
  • Resisting false alarms

Instructions

  1. 1Scan rows and columns, not the whole picture — a conflict can only ever be two triangles in line with each other.
  2. 2Check what sits between them. Two triangles facing each other with a third in the way is NOT a conflict, and that is the trap.
  3. 3Facing away from each other, or both pointing the same way, is never a conflict however close together they are.
  4. 4If you cannot see one, leave it. A wrong press costs the same as a miss.

Tips

  • Sweep left-to-right along each row first, then top-to-bottom down each column. Trying to see the whole field at once is what makes people miss the obvious ones.
  • Only neighbouring triangles can conflict — if there is anything at all between two that face each other, move on.
Sample question

Conflict Detection

Conflict detection. Two aircraft, two headings, and one question: are they going to be a problem?

Two aircraft are at the same level. One is tracking east, the other is tracking north, and their tracks cross ahead of both. What decides whether this is a conflict?

Practise the full test
Format: Signal detection · a new image every 4 seconds · 3 minutes