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 wmoroney1@udayton.edu.
Researchers Show Parachutes Don’t Work, but There’s a Catch. By Richard Harris, NPR, December 22, 2018, https://n.pr/2EWGdOL. Using randomized controlled trials (N = 23), the author’s objective was to “determine if using a parachute prevents death or major traumatic injury when jumping from an aircraft.” Participants jumped from an aircraft or a helicopter with either a parachute or an empty backpack. They concluded “Parachute use did not significantly reduce death or major injury (0% for parachute v 0% for control; P>0.9).” You will have to read the article published in the prestigious British Journal of Medicine (http://bit.ly/2F2Brii ) to determine how they came to this accurate conclusion. The article, published in the “traditionally lighthearted Christmas issue of the medical journal, BMJ,” is a good illustration of the need to read beyond the abstract and understand context affects and constraints on generalizability. It would be appropriate for a review and critique assignment in statistics/experimental design courses as well as in introductory classes.
Indonesia Releases Preliminary Report on Lion Air Crash. By Robert Charette, IEEE, November 30, 2018, http://bit.ly/2EWR4Zo. It is still too early to identify the probable cause for the loss of 187 lives aboard Boeing’s new 737 Max aircraft after takeoff from Jakarta. However, the focus is on maintenance problems (a faulty angle of attack sensor) and the design of the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS). The belief is that the faulty angle of attack sensor led the MCAS to “believe” that the aircraft was about to stall. The MCAS is designed to avoid the stall by lowering the nose, which increases airspeed. The retrieved control input data indicated that during the period between taking off and crashing, the pilots tried 26 times to use their flight controls to manually raise the nose. The same problem had occurred on the flight immediately prior to this one, but the aircrew successfully disengaged the autopilot and recovered control of the aircraft. There is disagreement between airlines and Boeing as to how effectively this automation change was conveyed to the aircrew. http://bit.ly/2VcHgPL. The preliminary report is available at http://bit.ly/2Tl8Dp5. Additional related links include: http://bit.ly/2AjF9kj and http://bit.ly/2LH5kpr
When Everything Clicks: The Power of Judgment Free Learning. By Shanker Vedantam, NPR, Hidden Brain, December 2, 2018 (repeat of June 4, 2018), https://n.pr/2Ssubjs. Shankar Vedantam describes how task analysis and feedback from a simple clicker have been used to teach chickens, dogs, cats, horses, dolphins, and whales. It has been used to teach bunting to baseball players. tossing to frisbee players, and surgical skills to surgeons. Martin Levy, an orthopedic surgeon at Montefiore Medical Center, a teaching hospital, has developed a skills lab, which uses PVC, lumber, and so on from Home Depot in lieu of more expensive cadavers. Students practice removing casts from eggplants until they can do it without breaking the skin. He expects his students “to perform those skills in an environment where there’s huge pressure and many distractions.” When they go into an operating room, “surgeons need to have their technique down to muscle memory,” and reinforcement by using clickers facilitates their learning.
Teams in Space: It Isn’t Just Rocket Science. By Markio Hewer and Scott Sleek, APS Observer, November 2018, http://bit.ly/2AkN6Wi. In his 2017 book, Endurance, Scott Kelly provides insights into decision making both among the space station crew and between them and the ground controllers (Spoiler alert: It is not as smooth as it is portrayed). The book is replete with stories of cultural differences, ranging from food preferences to training strategies. Kelly describes one year in space. What can happen during the 18+ month, 250 million mile trip to Mars (not including time on the surface of Mars)? NASA is concerned about degradation of crew collaboration. During shorted simulations of long-duration space exploration, somewhere between 4 and 7 months, “one or more members start to desynchronize,” and teams of six break down into two or three subclusters. NASA-funded researchers are looking for countermeasures. While there is no one solution, it appears that a properly executed on-site debriefing can improve team cohesion. For some insight into the comparatively shorter flight (and fights) of Apollo 7, which confirmed that rendezvous could be completed manually, see http://bit.ly/2LGYkc9.
Whose Streets: Automated Vehicles vs Pedestrians. By Terry Gross, NPR, Fresh Air, December 10, 2018, https://n.pr/2GHLnjs. Terry Gross interviews the former New York City traffic commissioner Sam Schwartz, author of the 2018 book, No One at the Wheel. They discuss the intended and unintended effects of autonomous vehicles on traffic, infrastructure, and pedestrians. Schwartz advocates increased use of existing safety systems such as forward-collision warning and automatic emergency braking (see http://bit.ly/2FxevbQ). For a different perspective on public transportation and autonomous vehicles, listen to “Whose Streets?,” http://bit.ly/2LJkFWM. Also see: http://bit.ly/2EVtSK7 and http://bit.ly/2VhQtpR.
Self-Driving Cars Will Have to Decide Who Should Live and Who Should Die. Here’s Who Humans Would Kill. By Carolyn Johnson, Washington Post, October 24, 2018, https://wapo.st/2F1jG3s. Who/what gets to decide at this intersection of ethics and automation? Interesting application of the “runaway trolley problem.” Don’t miss the data analysis from approximately half a million respondents; see https://go.nature.com/2GShVaz and https://go.nature.com/2s2V9Td.
Police in the San Francisco Bay Area Took an Unusual Approach to Stop a Tesla Operating on Autopilot as a Drunk Driver Slept Behind the Wheel. By Brian Logan, Business Insider, December 1, 2018. Read about their novel strategy, which stopped the vehicle in 7 minutes: https://read.bi/2GLovzF.
Additional links
Why Election Ballots Are Still Confusing: https://n.pr/2R153Ub
Ergonomic Hazards in Otolaryngology: http://bit.ly/2RmrfYp
Warning of Imminent Missile Attack in Hawaii Allegedly Causes Heart Attack: http://bit.ly/2EUQV7F
Bots Responding to Surveys: http://bit.ly/2CG1HNu
Congress May Mandate More Legroom Between Aircraft Seats: http://bit.ly/2AlBqm4
Using Electronic Health Records (EHRs) to Improve Patient Safety in Real-Time: http://bit.ly/2QYIkbg
Catching Medical Errors in Real Time: https://politi.co/2TkmhJ2
One Hundred Ways Personal Protective Equipment Doffing Can Fail: http://bit.ly/2LEwhdh
Pentagon Invest in Super Soldier Exoskeletons: https://reut.rs/2AwdIE7
Autonomous Vehicle Driving Isn’t Just About Technology: http://bit.ly/2bjfbru
Transforming Healthcare With UX Design: http://bit.ly/2VjJr3O
