In this column William F. Moroney reports on human factors/ergonomics issues that have appeared in the press. Contributions are invited. Please send electronic copy with references to moroney@udayton.edu.
The Hazards of Going on Autopilot. By M. Konnikova, New Yorker, September 4, 2014, http://nyr.kr/1lGCgip. This nontechnical article describes the work of HFES members Earl Weiner and Stephen Casner and others about the deleterious effects of automation on performance. Casner concluded that as automation increases, pilots’ ability to make the correct response decreases. Manual skills remain intact while decision making degrades considerably. Ideally, Casner says, automation would adopt a human-centered approach – one that takes seriously people’s inability to sit and stare by alerting them when they need to be alerted rather than outright by replacing people’s routines with computerized ones. This kind of shift from passive observation to active monitoring would help to ensure that their minds remain stimulated. The bottom line: “Don’t just automate something because you can,” Casner said. “Automate it because you should.” The insightful report by the Flight Safety Foundation, A Practical Guide for Improving Flight Path Monitoring, proposes some solutions (http://bit.ly/1xYBmzb). For a broader perspective on automation’s impact, read Automation and Us (2014) by Nicholas Carr (http://n.pr/1DTqOWC).
How Apple Is Invading Our Bodies. By Lev Grossman and Matt Vella, Time, September 22, 2014, pp. 40–47. The authors describe wearable technology and how Apple’s new watch will create an environment in which users are “never offline.” The impact of the device as part of a technology that is attempting “to colonize our bodies” as it monitors/communicates our schedules, physical activity, work communications, and shopping behavior is discussed. Similarly, the watch represents the paradox of a wearable device that “gives you control and takes it away at the same time.” The authors caution, “Once you’re OK with wearing technology, the only way forward is inward: the next product launch after the Apple Watch would logically be the iMplant.”
It’s Personal: Technology’s Biggest Advances Have Come From Making Our Machines More Intimate. By Walter Isaacson, Time, September 22, 2014, p. 48. Isaacson, a historian of the digital age, describes the evolution of technology and the role that psychologists and engineers have played in developing “an intimate symbiosis and deeply personal partnership between humans and machines.” He believes that this approach is more powerful than the competing computer science approach, which emphasizes the development of an artificial intelligence that ultimately will make people irrelevant.
Industrial Society of America Design Competition. http://idsa.org/idea-2014-gallery. Awards were provided in 24 categories, including automotive and transportation; medical and scientific products; social impact; and sports, leisure, and recreation. Terse descriptions of the products are provided, as are links to the designer. Among the winners of particular interest to human factors/ergonomics personnel are the following: self-contained breathing apparatus for firefighters, a portable medical ventilator, and WalkNYCPedestrian Wayfinding Kiosks designed to “encourage people to walk, bike, and use public transit and to help guide them to major landmarks and transportation stations.”
High Reliability Management in Process Industries: Sustained by Human Factors. By S. Shemwell and D. Brooks, PennEnergy, November 5, 2014, http://bit.ly/1um8Fxa. The authors, whose work focuses on the energy sector of the economy, describe reliability as “the ability to maintain performance during complexity, uncertainty, and the unexpected.” They provide an interesting figure describing the “mindful infrastructure for high reliability.” They expand on the contribution of macroergonomics (developed by HFES Fellow Hal Hendrick) in developing safe and reliable systems. They emphasize the need for a culture of safety as part of the safety and environmental management systems regulations as promulgated by the Bureau of Safety and Environmental enforcement (http://www.bsee.gov/).
New Crash Test Dummy to Gain Pounds to Reflect Fatalities Among Obese. By Krishnadev Calamur, NPR, October 30, 2014, http://n.pr/1ubC0bR. More than 33% of Americans are obese (body mass index [BMI] ≥ 30), and obese drivers are more likely to die in a car crash. “Having a body mass index of 35–39.9 percent increases your risk of death by 51 percent.” The large crash dummy currently in use weighs approximately 170 pounds; the new obese crash test dummy will weigh 271 pounds with a BMI of 35.
Did Human Factors Contribute to the SpaceShipTwo Tragedy? (+video) By Pete Spotts, Christian Science Monitor, November 4, 2014, http://bit.ly/1sgGZoz. This link provides an interesting video and commentary on the loss of SpaceShipTwo and its copilot. It was reported (http://bit.ly/14o2rmx) that the copilot unlocked the feathering system (similar to speed brakes) lever but did not take the second step and activate the system. According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the pilot was unaware that the feathering system had been unlocked by the copilot (http://1.usa.gov/117inaI).
Active Design Guidelines. By Center for Active Design, http://bit.ly/NKPhqR. “The Active Design Guidelines provides architects and urban designers with a manual of strategies for creating healthier buildings, streets, and urban spaces, based on the latest academic research and best practices in the field.” Checklists for urban designs and building designs, which can reduce obesity and chronic disease, are available at this site. The innovative active design award winners can be seen at http://bit.ly/1iED0Qd.
Additional links:
Cell Phone Distraction and the White House Fence Jumper:
http://n.pr/1xxED9k
Air France 447 Rio-Paris Crash:
http://vnty.fr/1pjdaRL
Texting and Driving:
http://bit.ly/1wLtlNV; http://bit.ly/1yFmaqJ
Google Glass and Driving:
http://reut.rs/1x1NBg3; http://bit.ly/1EL2LbM
Sleep Regulations and Driving:
http://bit.ly/1EF5ulk
Human Error and Oil Spills:
http://bit.ly/1Hb3kOi
Flight Safety Foundation Award, Dr. Klinect:
http://bit.ly/1zpagSI
Noise Pollution and Health:
http://bit.ly/1unLbVy
