THIS IS a preliminary report of the results obtained to date in the study of fatigue incident to motor travel, which is part of the Society's Riding-Qualities Research program. A series of physiological tests were conducted after muscular fatigue had been induced by a known amount of work, with the hope of finding some tests sufficiently sensitive to measure less pronounced types of fatigue.
These fatigue tests conducted on subjects after riding showed that a decrease in the carbon-dioxide combining power of the blood and an increase in metabolism are fairly satisfactory indications of muscular fatigue, but the results led to the conclusion that the fatigue which accompanies riding in automobiles does not represent a very marked muscular fatigue, and suggested that it may represent a condition more closely similar to nerve fatigue. Consequently, a rather extensive study of various tests of nerve fatigue was undertaken.
It is proposed to make a further study of some of the more prominent tests with a view to selecting the two or three that are most valid, reliable, and easily administered. The research is being conducted by the Department of Psychology of George Washington University in cooperation with the United States Bureau of Standards under the auspices of the Society with funds subscribed by representative companies in the industry.2