Watch it online (Canada only) at cbc.ca

Are men really better with directions than women? Are some people just natural navigators? Is GPS killing our natural wayfinding ability?

Where Am I? is a new documentary that searches the world for answers about how we find our way in it.

Created for CBC Television’s “The Nature of Things” with David Suzuki, Where Am I? explores the navigational skills we share with animals – and some we wish we had. Experts from around the world explain why some of us are naturally good at finding our way, while others are not. It’s all about using both memory and imagination: remembering where we’ve been and imagining where we’re going.

The program examines how the use of GPS is transforming wayfinding – and how it may be affecting our brains. When you don’t need to build “mental maps” to find your way, you’re not building a healthy hippocampus, the part of the brain linked to Alzheimer’s disease and other mental disorders. This is the basis of a growing belief that GPS may even lead to early senility.

Where Am I? also looks at the widely-held assumption that men are better navigators than women. Is navigation ability affected by nature or nurture?

This compelling look at wayfinding will change the way you think about finding your way around.

Directed and written by Bruce Mohun, produced by Sue Ridout.  Narrated by David Suzuki.  Director of Photography John Collins; edited by Chris Holmes, with an original music score composed by Daniel Séguin.  Graphic design by Erwin Chiong, with additional animation by AXS Biomedical Animation Studio.