Our fascination with new technologies is based on the assumption that more powerful automation will overcome human limitations and make our systems 'faster, better, cheaper,' resulting in simple, easy tasks for people. But how does new technology and more powerful automation change our work? Research in Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE) looks at the intersection of people, technology, and work. What it has found is not stories of simplification through more automation, but stories of complexity and adaptation. When work changed through new technology, practitioners had to cope with new complexities and tighter constraints. They adapted their strategies and the artifacts to work around difficulties and accomplish their goals as responsible agents. The surprise was that new powers had transformed work, creating new roles, new decisions, and new vulnerabilities. Ironically, more autonomous machines have created the requirement for more sophisticated forms of coordination across people, and across people and machines, to adapt to new demands and pressures. This book synthesizes these emergent Patterns though stories about coordination and mis-coordination, resilience and brittleness, affordance and clumsiness in a variety of settings, from a hospital intensive care unit, to a nuclear power control room, to a space shuttle control center. The stories reveal how new demands make work difficult, how people at work adapt but get trapped by complexity, and how people at a distance from work oversimplify their perceptions of the complexities, squeezing practitioners. The authors explore how CSE observes at the intersection of people, technology, and work, how CSE abstracts patterns behind the surface details and wide variations, and how CSE discovers promising new directions to help people cope with complexities. The stories of CSE show that one key to well-adapted work is the ability to be prepared to be surprised. Are you ready?

Accident prevention is a common thread throughout every aspect of our society. However, even with the most current technological developments, keeping people safe and healthy, both at workplaces and at other daily activities, is still a continual challenge. When it comes to work environments, ergonomics and human factors knowledge can play an important role and, therefore, must be included in, or be a part of, the safety management as a cross-disciplinary area concerned with the understanding of actual work situations and potential variables. This multidisciplinary approach will ultimately ensure the safety, health, and well-being of all collaborators. The main goal of this book is to present theories and models, and to describe practices to foster and promote safer work and working environments. This book offers: * Examples of field practices that can be reproduced in other scenarios * Applications of new methods for risk assessment * Methods on how to apply and integrate human factors and ergonomics in accident prevention and safety management * Coverage of human factors and ergonomics in safety culture * New methods for accident analysis This book is a compilation of contributions from invited authors organized in three main topics from eleven countries and is intended to cover specific aspects of safety and human factors management ranging from case studies to the development of theoretical models. Hopefully, the works presented in the book can be an inspiration for translating research into useful actions and, ultimately, making a relevant and tangible contribution to the safety of our daily and work settings.

Most existing theoretical approaches to industrial relations and human resources management (IR/HRM) build their analyses and policy prescriptions on one of two foundational assumptions. They assume either that conflict between workers and employers is the natural and inevitable state of affairs; or that under normal circumstances, cooperation is what employers can and should expect from workers. By contrast, A New Theory of Industrial Relations: People, Markets and Organizations after Neoliberalism proposes a theoretical framework for IR/HRM that treats the existence of conflict or cooperation at work as an outcome that needs to be explained rather than an initial presupposition. By identifying the social and organizational roots of reasoned, positively chosen cooperation at work, this framework shows what is needed to construct a genuinely consensual form of capitalism. In broader terms, the book offers a critical theory of the governance of work under capitalism. 'The governance of work' refers to the structures of incentives and sanctions, authority, accountability and direct and representative participation within and beyond the workplace by which decisions about the content, conditions and remuneration of work are made, applied, challenged and revised. The most basic proposition made in the book is that work will be consensual-and, hence, that employees will actively and willingly cooperate with the implementation of organizational plans and strategies-when the governance of work is substantively legitimate. Although stable configurations of economic and organizational structures are possible in the context of a bare procedural legitimacy, it is only where work relationships are recognized as right and just that positive forms of cooperation will occur. The analytic purpose of the theory is to specify the conditions under which substantive legitimacy will arise. Drawing in particular on the work of Alan Fox, Robert Cox and Jurgen H

Sewer systems fall into the category "out of sight, out of mind" - they seldom excite interest. But when things go wrong with the air in the sewer system, they go very wrong. Consequences can be dramatic and devastating: sewer workers killed instantly by poisonous gas when they lift a sewer lid, or entire suburban blocks levelled by explosions. This book describes the atmospheric dangers commonly found in the sewer system. It provides easily-understood explanations of the science behind the hazards, combined with real-life examples of when things went dramatically wrong.

Each year billions of dollars are being spent in the area of nuclear power generation to design, construct, manufacture, operate, and maintain various types of systems around the globe. Many times these systems fail due to safety, reliability, human factors, and human error related problems. The main objective of this book is to combine nuclear power plant safety, reliability, human factors, and human error into a single volume for those individuals that work closely during the nuclear power plant design phase, as well as other phases, thus eliminating the need to consult many different and diverse sources in obtaining the desired information.

An Insightful Guide to Avoiding Offshore Oil- and Gas-Industry Disaster Designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining offshore oil and gas industry equipment and systems can sometimes result in accidents, injuries, and other serious problems. Safety and Reliability in the Oil and Gas Industry: A Practical Approach focuses on oil and gas industry equipment reliability, offers useful and up-to-date information on the subject, and covers in a single volume the most common safety and reliability engineering issues in the oil and gas industry. The book introduces the latest developments in the area, and provides relevant methods and approaches. It also presents important aspects of various case studies on major accidents in the oil and gas industry, and considers human factors that contribute to accidents and fatalities in the area of oil and gas. Additionally, this book describes: Mathematical concepts Oil and gas industry equipment reliability characteristics Accident data and analysis Mathematical models used for performing safety and reliability-related analyses in the industry Safety and Reliability in the Oil and Gas Industry: A Practical Approach covers important aspects of safety in the offshore oil and gas industry. A reference designed with engineering professionals in mind, this book can also be used in oil- and gas-industry-related courses, and serves as a guide for anyone concerned with safety and reliability in the area of oil and gas.

The Dictionary for Human Factors/Ergonomics is a major compilation of the basic terminology in the field of ergonomics. This unique dictionary contains over 8,000 terms representing all areas of human factors. For many terms, a commentary is provided to help place the term in perspective and elaborate on its use. Applicable acronyms and abbreviations are included. Two appendices are featured in the book as well. The first appendix is an alphabetical listing of abbreviations and acronyms with their respective terms for easy cross-referencing. The second appendix contains a list of national and international organizations involved in human factors/ergonomic research and/or applications. Peer-reviewed for accuracy and comprehensiveness, The Dictionary for Human Factors/Ergonomics is an essential reference for professionals, academics, and students in engineering, psychology, safety, law, and management. It is especially useful for human factors professionals working in government and industry.

The interest of AI in problems related to understanding sounds has a rich history dating back to the ARPA Speech Understanding Project in the 1970s. While a great deal has been learned from this and subsequent speech understanding research, the goal of building systems that can understand general acoustic signals--continuous speech and/or non-speech sounds--from unconstrained environments is still unrealized. Instead, there are now systems that understand "clean" speech well in relatively noiseless laboratory environments, but that break down in more realistic, noisier environments. As seen in the "cocktail-party effect," humans and other mammals have the ability to selectively attend to sound from a particular source, even when it is mixed with other sounds. Computers also need to be able to decide which parts of a mixed acoustic signal are relevant to a particular purpose--which part should be interpreted as speech, and which should be interpreted as a door closing, an air conditioner humming, or another person interrupting. Observations such as these have led a number of researchers to conclude that research on speech understanding and on nonspeech understanding need to be united within a more general framework. Researchers have also begun trying to understand computational auditory frameworks as parts of larger perception systems whose purpose is to give a computer integrated information about the real world. Inspiration for this work ranges from research on how different sensors can be integrated to models of how humans' auditory apparatus works in concert with vision, proprioception, etc. Representing some of the most advanced work on computers understanding speech, this collection of papers covers the work being done to integrate speech and nonspeech understanding in computer systems.

For novices and experienced health and safety professionals alike, the Respiratory Protection Handbook fills a critical gap in the respiratory protection literature. This extensive guide provides all the information you need to dramatically expand your understanding of the concepts and day-to-day operations of respiratory protection. It is a fully self-contained text that expertly accomplishes two goals: first, for the novice, it clearly explains how to establish and implement an effective respiratory protection program; and second, for the experienced professional, it provides in-depth knowledge that goes beyond basics. Respiratory Protection Handbook addresses the development of respiratory protection devices, the capabilities and limitations of specific respirators, the respirator certification system, how to select appropriate filters, how to predict the service life of sorbents, fit testing methods, assigned protection factors, and much more. Nowhere else will you find a single source on this topic containing so much information.

This book is a comprehensive examination of the phenomenon of poor indoor air quality (IAQ) characterized as sick or problem buildings. Significant emphasis is given to defining the nature of the problem, the various potential causal and risk factors, problem building diagnostic protocols and contaminant measurements, and the mitigation of IAQ problems, including case histories. The book features a discussion on the potential causal factors studied extensively in Europe and recognized in North America as well.

The Workplace Walk-Through is the first volume in a series dedicated to providing physicians with more advanced tools for performing not only the routine tasks involved in occupational medicine, but also the most unusual and challenging assignments.

This book is a useful reference work for practicing engineers in their evaluation and design of systems for the control of the industrial in-plant environment. It provides design criteria, useful calculations and proven techniques to control the environment in oil refineries and chemical industries.

This volume seeks to answer the question: "Can findings from cognitive science enhance the user-computer interaction process?" In so doing, it recognizes that user-computer interfaces (UCIs) are often essential parts of an information or decision support system -- and often critical components of software-intensive systems of all kinds. From the outset, the authors note that the design, prototyping, and evaluation of user-computer interfaces are part of larger systems and are therefore ideally designed, developed, and evaluated as part of a larger design and developmental process or "life cycle." Thus, this book describes the process by which functional, nonfunctional, or display-oriented requirements are converted first into prototypes and then into working systems. While the process may at times seem almost mysterious, there is in fact a methodology that drives the process -- a methodology that is defined in terms of an adaptive life cycle. There are a number of steps or phases that comprise the standard life cycle, as well as methods, tools and techniques that permit each step to be taken. Describing the effort to implement this process to enhance user-computer interaction, this book presents a methodological approach that seeks to identify and apply findings from cognitive science to the design, prototyping, and evaluation of user-computer interfaces.

Every place has its quirky attributes, cultural reputation, and distinctive flair. But when we travel across America, do we also experience distinct gender norms and expectations? In his groundbreaking Gendered Places, William Scarborough examines metropolitan commuting zones to see how each region's local culture reflects gender roles and gender equity. He uses surveys and social media data to measure multiple dimensions of gender norms, including expectations toward women in leadership, attitudes toward working mothers, as well as the division of household labor. Gendered Places reveals that different locations, even within the same region of the country, such as Milwaukee and Madison Wisconsin, have distinct gender norms and highly influential cultural environments. Scarboroughshows how these local norms shape the attitudes and behaviors of residents with implications on patterns of inequality such as the gender wage gap. His findings offer valuable insight for community leaders and organizers making efforts to promote equality in their region. Scarboroughrecognizes local culture as not value-neutral, but highly crucial to the gender structure that perpetuates, or challenges, gender inequality. Gendered Places questions how these gender norms are sustained and their social consequences.

Nothing has been more prolific over the past century than human/machine interaction. Automobiles, telephones, computers, manufacturing machines, robots, office equipment, machines large and small; all affect the very essence of our daily lives. However, this interaction has not always been efficient or easy and has at times turned fairly hazardous. Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE) seeks to improve this situation by the careful study of human/machine interaction as the meaningful behavior of a unified system. Written by pioneers in the development of CSE, Joint Cognitive Systems: Foundations of Cognitive Systems Engineering offers a principled approach to studying human work with complex technology. The authors use a top-down, functional approach and emphasize a proactive (coping) perspective on work that overcomes the limitations of the structural human information processing view. They describe a conceptual framework for analysis with concrete theories and methods for joint system modeling that can be applied across the spectrum of single human/machine systems, social/technical systems, and whole organizations. The book explores both current and potential applications of CSE illustrated by examples. Understanding the complexities and functions of the human/machine interaction is critical to designing safe, highly functional, and efficient technological systems. This is a critical reference for students, designers, and engineers in a wide variety of disciplines.

There is perhaps no facet of modern society where the influence of computer automation has not been felt. Flight management systems for pilots, diagnostic and surgical aids for physicians, navigational displays for drivers, and decision-aiding systems for air-traffic controllers, represent only a few of the numerous domains in which powerful new automation technologies have been introduced. The benefits that have been reaped from this technological revolution have been many. At the same time, automation has not always worked as planned by designers, and many problems have arisen--from minor inefficiencies of operation to large-scale, catastrophic accidents. Understanding how humans interact with automation is vital for the successful design of new automated systems that are both safe and efficient. The influence of automation technology on human performance has often been investigated in a fragmentary, isolated manner, with investigators conducting disconnected studies in different domains. There has been little contact between these endeavors, although principles gleaned from one domain may have implications for another. Also, with a few exceptions, the research has tended to be empirical and only theory-driven. In recent years, however, various groups of investigators have begun to examine human performance in automated systems in general and to develop theories of human interaction with automation technology. This book presents the current theories and assesses the impact of automation on different aspects of human performance. Both basic and applied research is presented to highlight the general principles of human-computer interaction in several domains where automation technologies are widely implemented. The major premise is that a broad-based, theory-driven approach will have significant implications for the effective design of both current and future automation technologies. This volume will be of considerable value to researchers in human

This single source asbestos reference/text book incorporates major legal issues and cost estimating methods. Every aspect of abatement work from initial survey through final cleanup is detailed. In addition, medical aspects, respirator use, training, sample contracts and other topics, coupled with a practical approach, make this the book to have when the goal is to get the job done. The book contains lots of valuable information and data, including CFR 1910 and NFPA 220/241, and will serve as an ideal reference source for asbestos contractors, building owners, industrial hygienists, consultants, and schools.

Completely revised and updated, taking the scientific rigor to a whole new level, the second edition of the Occupational Ergonomics Handbook is now available in two volumes. This new organization demonstrates the enormous amount of advances that have occurred in the field since the publication of the first edition. The editors have brought together researchers from a wide range of disciplines with pioneering practitioners in industry to cover a diverse list of ergonomics topics. The second edition not only provides more information but makes it more accessible. Each individual volume narrows the focus while broadening the coverage, supplying immediate access to important information. One of the most comprehensive sources for ergonomic knowledge available, providing both sound theory and practical examples, this book is a valuable resource for anyone in the field. Interventions, Controls, and Applications in Occupational Ergonomics begins with descriptions of the elements of the ergonomics processes, including success factors for implementation of industrial ergonomics programs. It includes coverage of injury surveillance database systems and corporate health management for the design and evaluation of health in industrial organizations, ergonomics processes from the small and large industry perspectives, and human digital modeling, as well as facilities planning and organizational design and macro-ergonomics. Additional chapters present methods and techniques for engineering control, including tried and true strategies and pitfalls to avoid, and discuss the theory and practice of ergonomics interventions in the workplace. Using this information as a cornerstone, the book addresses the issues of medical management of work-related musculoskeletal disorders, systems approach to rehabilitation, wrist splints, and application of the clinical lumbar motion monitor. It provides an overview of best practices for ergonomics intervention with respect to the des

Occupational accidents have a massive personal and social cost as well as a major financial cost. The construction industry is one of the most dangerous industries, accounting for around 20-30% of all occupational deaths worldwide. The accompanying financial cost is either absorbed directly or passed on in the form of higher insurance costs. In addition, regulatory bodies have started to impose legal accountability on all the parties along the construction supply chain. OHS is hard to implement. Construction projects are complex, with a fluid workforce, and the regulatory framework is highly elaborate. OHS Electronic Management Systems for Construction presents a theoretical framework which is designed to overcome these difficulties, integrating OHS management in construction using knowledge management and web technologies. This framework is explained in a clear step-by-step way, as are features such as a systematically developed corporate safety memory, and a virtual learning portal to facilitate on-demand safety training. The ultimate aim of this book is to aid the development of an established safety culture at the organisational level, and the formation of an industry-wide community of safety practice. This is essential reading for OHS professionals and construction managers attempting to change their industry for the better, as well as advanced students and researchers.

While it has aided far many more than it has harmed, radiation is forever etched in the public's mind as an indiscriminate and particularly pernicious killer. Consequently, it is especially critical in this age of terrorist threats that we equip ourselves with accurate information and practical tools that will serve us in the rare chance that we find ourselves in a radiation crisis. Radiation Threats and Your Safety: A Guide to Preparation and Response for Professionals and Community offers a calm and authoritative approach to crisis preparation. Written by a health physicist from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the book informs us about what we should know ahead of time, how to prepare, and the best ways to respond to a nuclear or radiological incident either as an emergency responder or community/family member. Organized to serve both as a preparation guide and as a reference in a crisis, this book - Uses common language while avoiding unnecessary scientific jargon Details protocols for both accidental and intentional radiation emergencies such as nuclear explosions and dirty bombs Shows how to prepare a family emergency plan Covers medical responses to radiation emergencies including radiation drugs Provides an emergency supply list Discusses radiation from microwaves and cellular phones as well as food irradiation There is no reason why we should feel helpless when faced with a radiation emergency. We can take action to protect ourselves, our families, and our communities. How we react to a radiation emergency will determine its true final impact. To this end, we need information and leaders we can depend upon. This book provides the factual details and the approach needed to proactively prepare for any radiation emergency, while a

This volume examines the nature of human error -- its causes and origins, its classifications, and the extent to which it is possible to predict and prevent errors and their impact. One of the first texts to deal with this topic in detail, it draws into a single cohesive account contributions from experts in a range of disciplines including psychology, philosophy, and engineering. Offering an insightful discussion of fundamental and necessary questions about the nature and source of human error, the book draws significant conclusions and identifies areas worthy of further exploration. This volume will be of interest to all who are concerned with the impact human error has on both the individual and society.

Household Chemicals and Emergency First Aid is an essential manual that covers 386 household chemicals, discusses their hazards when mixed with other chemicals, describes the symptoms of overexposure, and provides instructions for emergency first aid treatment. The book is intended to be used in the event that label instructions on household chemicals have not been followed. It describes what may possibly happen and how to handle the situation if it does occur. Poison control centers are listed by state with phone numbers and addresses. Because household accidents involving chemicals are so prevalent, this manual is a ""must have"" book for all emergency medical technicians, paramedics, and other emergency first aid providers. It is also useful for anyone wanting detailed information regarding emergency situations with household chemicals.

Professionals in environmental health and safety (EHS) management use statistics every day in making decisions. This book was created to provide the quantitative tools and techniques necessary to make important EHS assessments. Readers need not be statistically or mathematically inclined to make the most of this book-mathematical derivations are kept to a minimum and subjects are approached in a simple and factual manner, complemented with plenty of real-world examples. Chapters 1-3 cover knowledge of basic statistical concepts such as presentation of data, measurements of location and dispersion, and elementary probability and distributions. Data gathering and analysis topics including sampling methods, sampling theory, testing, and interference as well as skills for critically evaluating published numerical material is presented in Chapters 4-6. Chapters 7-11 discuss information generation topics-regression and correlation analysis, time series, linear programming, network and Gnatt charting, and decision analysis-tools that can be used to convert data into meaningful information. Chapter 12 features six examples of projects made successful through statistical approaches being applied. Readers can use these approaches to solve their own unique problems. Whether you are a EHS professional, manager, or student, Health, Safety, and Environmental Data Analysis: A Business Approach will help you communicate statistical data effectively.

A Practical Guide to the Safety Profession: The Relentless Pursuit will help reshape the way we talk about safety, prompt action, and engage workers from all levels of an organization. The book includes real-life experiences and characters that are relatable to anyone who has worked in the safety and health field for any amount of time. It will provide answers for every safety professional who has ever asked: "Is this actually making people safer?" It shines a light on ineffective practices that drive a wedge between the safety professional and the people they support and then provides meaningful alternative practices. Features Provides a streamlined process for eliminating high impact hazards Emphasizes concepts that are immediately actionable with little to no investment costs Includes real-life studies and examples

The fourteen years between 1960 and-1974 saw the trade union and labour movement transformed. In 1959 Labour had been beaten at the polls for the third successive time - with political commentators claiming that class politics in Britain were dead. By 1974 a mobilised trade union movement had forced a Conservative government from office, compelled the abandonment of its anti-trade union legislation, released imprisoned dockers from Pentonville prison and twice provided the miners with the solidarity required for victory. The climax in 1974 was Labour victory in the 1974 general election with a programme calling for an irreversible shift of wealth and power in favour of working people. This volume of the TGWU's centenary history documents the role of Britain's biggest union in this transformation. Two remarkable general secretaries, Frank Cousins and Jack Jones, provided leadership. However, it was the TGWU's members who achieved it: the women and men in the factories, transport depots and docks, who forged the new class unity. The book records their voices. It brings together their struggles from Clydeside, Dublin and Belfast to Longbridge, Dagenham and Heathrow - and it does so with a wealth of new material revealing the tactics of government and employers and the complexity of the struggles for sex equality and against racial discrimination that helped cement the new class unity.