model human processor
a model of human information processing that is used in evaluating the usability of products and systems. The model, which is derived from empirical findings, consists of three interacting subsystems—perceptual, motor, and cognitive. Estimates of processing capacity and of processing and decay times (see decay theory) can be used to quantify human performance under a variety of constraints. See also human operator modeling. [developed in 1983 by U.S. psychologist Stuart K. Card (1943– ), U.S. computer scientist Thomas P. Moran (1942– ), and U.S. cognitive and computer scientist Allen Newell (1927–1992)]