Heuristic Learning

I've done quite a lot of work in the field of heuristics (specifically traps) in the outdoors though I often tell students that Human Factors is a better explanation for the way in which we tend to use it.
Classically heuristic learning is an experiment based, trial and error, learning through evolution and experience process - perhaps best being seen now with the development (can we say birth yet...) of AI computing brains such as Google's AlphaZero . Chess is most often cited as an example of high functioning heuristic performance - which is apt. Those of you who don't follow such things might be a little taken aback (I was) to read that AlphaZero recently taught itself to play chess in under four hours - it didn't interact with any human learning or theories, but started from scratch with just the rules. At the four hour mark it beat the best chess program in existence (Stockfish8) by winning or drawing all of 100 matches.

Why have I rambled on about this today? Well sat at Butterbers this morning, looking along the forming Eden to Wild Boar Fell it dawned on me that physiotherapy seems to be an almost entirely heuristic endeavour. Today's long session has hopefully narrowed the sharp pain down to my Calcaneofibular ligament, which runs directly over the subtalar joint, the physio says the ligament probably took a huge battering during the operation (it's tiny so can't stretch far, but it's also very important for foot mechanics). It's annoying as ligaments take a long time to heal, but it's also potentially* good news as its not the joint itself (that is the dull ache of bones, nothing to write home about). In fact A. confirmed that the pain point is quite a way from the joint surfaces, though it does interact with them. So a new set of gentle physio actions and yet more couch time!

*I'm going for potentially as I accept its an intelligent guess.