Scientists have made a ground-breaking discovery - they've uncovered the best place to park your car.
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The best car parks are the ones closest to the shop doors, minimising your walk. However there's a lower chance of getting one during your first go, meaning you might have to circle the lot a few times before it opens up.
The carparks further away from the entrance are more likely to be free - but mean you have to spend more time walking to the store. How do you choose which one's best?
Physicists Paul Krapivsky and Sidney Redner analysed the classic optimisation problem, and mapped out three solutions in the Journal of Statistical Mechanics.
"Mathematics allows you to make intelligent decisions," Redner says. "It allows you to approach a complex world with some insights."
The first option is called the "meek" strategy. Drivers take the first spot available, even if it means a long walk.
"Prudent" drivers will drive past the first available space, and find the closest space between cars.
"Optimistic" drivers pass empty spaces in a gamble on finding the closest park to the entrance empty, then are forced to backtrack if there isn't one.
Overall, Krapivsky and Redner found the "prudent" strategy saved drivers the most amount of time, followed by the "optimistic" strategy. "Meek" came last.
Redner acknowledges the modelling doesn't take into account all the variables involved in car-parking, but says he enjoys applying analytical thinking to everyday events.
"We're living in a crowded society and we always encounter crowding phenomena in parking lots, traffic patterns, you name it," he says. "If you can look at it with the right eyes, you can account for something."
However there is no guarantee that you will remember where you've parked your car.
Newshub.
