For much of the last half century, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has seemed the outlier in global peace. Today Iraq, Libya, Israel/Palestine, Yemen, and Syria are not just countries, but synonyms for prolonged and brutal wars. But why is MENA so exceptionally violent? More importantly, can it change? Exploring the causes and consequences of wars and conflicts in this troubled region, Ariel Ahram helps readers answer these questions. In Part I, Ahram shows how MENA's conflicts evolved with the formation of its states. Violence varied from civil wars and insurgencies to traditional interstate conflicts and affected some countries more frequently than others. The strategies rulers employed to stay in power constrained how they recruited, trained, and equipped their armies. Part II explores dynamics that trap the region in conflict--oil dependence, geopolitical interference, and embedded identity cleavages. The catastrophic wars of the 2010s reflect the confounding effects of these traps, culminating in state collapse and intervention from the US and Russia, as well as regional powers like Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Finally, Ahram considers the possibilities of peace, highlighting the disjuncture between local peacebuilding and national and internationally-backed mediation. War and Conflict in the Middle East and North Africa will be an essential resource for students of peace and security studies and MENA politics, and anyone wanting to move beyond headlines and soundbites to understand the historical and social roots of MENA's conflicts.

Based on recent research, this book discusses physical ergonomics, which is concerned with human anatomical, anthropometric, physiological and biomechanical characteristics as they relate to physical activity. Topics include working postures, materials handling, repetitive movements, work-related musculoskeletal disorders, workplace layout, safety, and health.

Since 2011, civil wars and state failure have wracked the Arab world, underlying the misalignment between national identity and political borders. In Break all the Borders, Ariel I. Ahram examines the separatist movements that aimed to remake those borders and create new independent states. With detailed studies of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, the federalists in eastern Libya, the southern resistance in Yemen, and Kurdish nationalist parties, Ahram explains how separatists captured territory and handled the tasks of rebel governance, including managing oil exports, electricity grids, and irrigation networks. Ahram emphasizes that the separatism arose not just as an opportunistic response to state collapse. Rather, separatists drew inspiration from the legacy of Woodrow Wilson and ideal of self-determination. They sought to reinstate political autonomy that had been lost during the early and mid-twentieth century. Speaking to the international community, separatist promised a more just and stable world order. In Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and Libya, they served as key allies against radical Islamic groups. Yet their hopes for international recognition have gone unfulfilled. Separatism is symptomatic of the contradictions in sovereignty and statehood in the Arab world. Finding ways to integrate, instead of eliminate, separatist movements may be critical for rebuilding regional order.

This volume of the Handbook of Usability and User Experience (UX) presents research and case studies used to design products, systems and environments with good usability and consequent acceptance, pleasure in use, good user experience, and understanding of human interaction issues with products and systems for their improvement. The book presents concepts and perspectives of UX; it also discusses methods and tools that use requirements analysis activity elicitation, recording, and analysis to guarantee a good user experience. In addition, it introduces usability and UX in the automotive industry, usability and UX in a digital interface, game design and digital media, usability and UX in fashion design, and some case studies on usability and UX in various contexts in product design. We hope that this second volume will be helpful to a larger number of professionals, students and practitioners who strive to incorporate usability and UX principles and knowledge in a variety of applications. We trust that the knowledge presented in this volume will ultimately lead to an increased appreciation of the benefits of usability and incorporate the principles of usability and UX knowledge to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of everyday consumer products, systems, and environments.

Taking the field of human factors and ergonomics beyond state of the art, this volume focuses on advances in the use of ergonomics modeling and on the evaluation of usability, which is a critical aspect of any human-technology system. The research described in the book's 70 chapters is an outcome of dedicated research by academics and practitioners from around the world, and across disciplines. The chapters are organized under five sections: I. Models and Methods II. Vision and Visual Displays , III. Product Design and User Interfaces IV. Input Devices and Computer Based Systems V. Individual and Environmental Technology Related Issues. This work provides an invaluable resource for evaluating products and environments and designing future ones that are intuitive, safe, and easy to use. Seven other titles in the Advances in Human Factors and Ergonomics Series are: Advances in Human Factors and Ergonomics in Healthcare Advances in Applied Digital Human Modeling Advances in Cross-Cultural Decision Making Advances in Cognitive Ergonomics Advances in Occupational, Social and Organizational Ergonomics Advances in Human Factors, Ergonomics and Safety in Manufacturing and Service Industries Advances in Neuroergonomics and Human Factors of Special Populations

Transnational Actors in War and Peace provides a comparative examination of a range of transnational actors who have been key to the conduct of war and peace promotion, and of how they interact with states and each other. It explores the identities, organization, strategies and influence of transnational actors involved in contentious politics, armed conflict, and peacemaking. While the study of transnational politics has been a rapidly growing field, to date, the disparate actors have not been analyzed alongside each other, making it difficult to develop a common theoretical framework or determine their influence on international security. This book brings together a diverse set of scholars focused on a range of transnational actors, such as: foreign fighters, terrorists, private military security companies, religious groups, diasporas, NGOs, and women's peace groups. Malet and Anderson provide the standard for future study of transnational actors in this work intended for those interested in security studies, international relations, conflict resolution, and global governance.

In the post-World War II era, the emergence of 'area studies' marked a signal development in the social sciences. As the social sciences evolved methodologically, however, many dismissed area studies as favoring narrow description over general theory. Still, area studies continues to plays a key, if unacknowledged, role in bringing new data, new theories, and valuable policy-relevant insights to social sciences. In Comparative Area Studies, three leading figures in the field have gathered an international group of scholars in a volume that promises to be a landmark in a resurgent field. The book upholds two basic convictions: that intensive regional research remains indispensable to the social sciences and that this research needs to employ comparative referents from other regions to demonstrate its broader relevance. Comparative Area Studies (CAS) combines the context-specific insights from traditional area studies and the logic of cross- and inter-regional empirical research. This first book devoted to CAS explores methodological rationales and illustrative applications showing how area-based expertise can link into cutting-edge comparative analytical frameworks.

This two-volume handbook set introduces the state-of-the-art development in research and applications related to usability and user-experience. Volume one includes methods and techniques and volume two covers research and case Studies. This handbook set is essential for everyone that is interested in understanding how the principles of usability and user-experience can contribute to a design that ensures that the needs of the users have been properly met. The books will cover several areas, such as the conceptual aspects of usability and user-experience, the knowledge of human characteristics in design, the methodological aspects; the books will include intervention, examples of consumer products, digital systems, and augmented and virtual realities. This set will be of interest to those working in the fields of ergonomics, designers, engineers, as well as students and practitioners.

Taking the field of human factors and ergonomics beyond state of the art, this volume focuses on advances in the use of ergonomics modeling and on the evaluation of usability, which is a critical aspect of any human-technology system. The research described in the book's 70 chapters is an outcome of dedicated research by academics and practitioners from around the world, and across disciplines. The chapters are organized under five sections: I. Models and Methods II. Vision and Visual Displays , III. Product Design and User Interfaces IV. Input Devices and Computer Based Systems V. Individual and Environmental Technology Related Issues. This work provides an invaluable resource for evaluating products and environments and designing future ones that are intuitive, safe, and easy to use. Seven other titles in the Advances in Human Factors and Ergonomics Series are: Advances in Human Factors and Ergonomics in Healthcare Advances in Applied Digital Human Modeling Advances in Cross-Cultural Decision Making Advances in Cognitive Ergonomics Advances in Occupational, Social and Organizational Ergonomics Advances in Human Factors, Ergonomics and Safety in Manufacturing and Service Industries Advances in Neuroergonomics and Human Factors of Special Populations

This book addresses aspects of human factors in engineering and provides a detailed discussion of novel approaches, systems engineering tools, artificial cognitive systems, and intelligent technologies and automation. It presents applications in diverse areas including digital manufacturing, transportation, infrastructure development, and cybersecurity. This book: Merges the engineering perspective with the human factors and social dimension of Computing and artificial intelligence-based technologies. Covers technological development of human factors engineering and the human dimension in applications across all areas of modern society. Relates to human behavior in the context of technology and systems interactions. Discusses the design and the appropriation of 3D printing techniques in the management of an innovative product system. Presents systems engineering tools, user experience methodologies, artificial cognitive systems, intelligent technologies, and automation. The text is for students, professionals, and researchers in the fields of ergonomics, human factors, industrial engineering, and manufacturing engineering.

For much of the last half century, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has seemed the outlier in global peace. Today Iraq, Libya, Israel/Palestine, Yemen, and Syria are not just countries, but synonyms for prolonged and brutal wars. But why is MENA so exceptionally violent? More importantly, can it change? Exploring the causes and consequences of wars and conflicts in this troubled region, Ariel Ahram helps readers answer these questions. In Part I, Ahram shows how MENA's conflicts evolved with the formation of its states. Violence varied from civil wars and insurgencies to traditional interstate conflicts and affected some countries more frequently than others. The strategies rulers employed to stay in power constrained how they recruited, trained, and equipped their armies. Part II explores dynamics that trap the region in conflict--oil dependence, geopolitical interference, and embedded identity cleavages. The catastrophic wars of the 2010s reflect the confounding effects of these traps, culminating in state collapse and intervention from the US and Russia, as well as regional powers like Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Finally, Ahram considers the possibilities of peace, highlighting the disjuncture between local peacebuilding and national and internationally-backed mediation. War and Conflict in the Middle East and North Africa will be an essential resource for students of peace and security studies and MENA politics, and anyone wanting to move beyond headlines and soundbites to understand the historical and social roots of MENA's conflicts.

This book focuses on the human aspects of wearable technologies and game design, which are often neglected. It shows how user-centered practices can optimize the wearable experience, thus improving user acceptance, satisfaction and engagement with novel wearable gadgets. It addresses both research and best practices in the applications of human factors and ergonomics to sensors, wearable technologies and game design innovations, as well as new findings on the integration of wearability principles with regard to: aesthetics, affordance, comfort, contextual awareness, customization, ease of use, ergonomics, information overload, intuitiveness, obtrusiveness, privacy, reliability, responsiveness, satisfaction, subtlety, user-friendliness and wearability. Gathering the outcomes of both the AHFE 2019 Conference on Human Factors and Wearable Technologies and the AHFE 2019 Conference on Human Factors in Game Design and Virtual Environments, held on July 24-28, 2019 in Washington, DC, USA, the book addresses the needs of professionals, researchers, and students whose work involves the human aspects of wearable, smart and/or interactive technologies and game design research.

This book focuses on the importance of human factors in optimizing the learning and training process. It reports on the latest research and best practices and discusses key principles of behavioral and cognitive science, which are extremely relevant to the design of instructional content and new technologies to support mobile and multimedia learning, virtual training and web-based learning, among others, as well as performance measurements, social and adaptive learning and many other types of educational technologies, with a special emphasis on those important in the corporate, higher education, and military training contexts. Based on the AHFE 2019 Conference on Human Factors in Training, Education, and Learning Sciences, held on July 24-28, 2019, in Washington D.C., USA, the book offers a timely perspective on the role of human factors in education. It highlights important new ideas and will fosters new discussions on how to optimally design learning experiences.

This book focuses on emerging issues in usability, interface design, human-computer interaction, user experience and assistive technology. It highlights research aimed at understanding human interaction with products, services and systems, and focuses on finding effective approaches for improving user experience. It also discusses key issues in designing and providing assistive devices and services to individuals with disabilities or impairment, to assist mobility, communication, positioning, environmental control and daily living. The book covers modelling as well as innovative design concepts, with a special emphasis on user-centered design, and design for specific populations, particularly the elderly. Virtual reality, digital environments, heuristic evaluation and forms of device interface feedback of (e.g. visual and haptic) are also among the topics covered. Based on the both the AHFE 2019 Conference on Usability & User Experience and the AHFE 2019 Conference on Human Factors and Assistive Technology, held on July 24-28, 2019, Washington D.C., USA, this book reports on cutting-edge findings, research methods and user-centred evaluation approaches.

This book addresses emerging issues resulting from the integration of artificial intelligence systems in our daily lives. It focuses on the cognitive, visual, social and analytical aspects of computing and intelligent technologies, highlighting ways to improve the acceptance, effectiveness, and efficiency of said technologies. Topics such as responsibility, integration and training are discussed throughout. The book also reports on the latest advances in systems engineering, with a focus on societal challenges and next-generation systems and applications for meeting them. The book is based on two AHFE 2019 Affiliated Conferences - on Artificial Intelligence and Social Computing, and on Service, Software, and Systems Engineering -, which were jointly held on July 24-28, 2019, in Washington, DC, USA.

This book focuses on the human aspects of wearable technologies and game design, which are often neglected. It shows how user centered practices can optimize wearable experience, thus improving user acceptance, satisfaction and engagement towards novel wearable gadgets. It describes both research and best practices in the applications of human factors and ergonomics to sensors, wearable technologies and game design innovations, as well as results obtained upon integration of the wearability principles identified by various researchers for aesthetics, affordance, comfort, contextual-awareness, customization, ease of use, ergonomy, intuitiveness, obtrusiveness, information overload, privacy, reliability, responsiveness, satisfaction, subtlety, user friendliness and wearability. The book is based on the AHFE 2018 Conference on Human Factors and Wearable Technologies and the AHFE 2018 Conference on Human Factors in Game Design and Virtual Environments , held on July 21-25, 2018 in Orlando, Florida, and addresses professionals, researchers, and students dealing with the human aspects of wearable, smart and/or interactive technologies and game design research.

This book reports on the latest research and developments in the field of cybersecurity, particularly focusing on personal security and new methods for reducing human error and increasing cyber awareness, as well as innovative solutions for increasing the security of advanced Information Technology (IT) infrastructures. It covers a broad range of topics, including methods for human training; novel cyber-physical and process-control systems; social, economic, and behavioral aspects of cyberspace; issues concerning the cybersecurity index; security metrics for enterprises; and risk evaluation. Based on the AHFE 2019 International Conference on Human Factors in Cybersecurity, held on July 24-28, 2019, in Washington D.C., USA, the book not only presents innovative cybersecurity technologies, but also discusses emerging threats, current gaps in the available systems, and future challenges that may be successfully overcome with the help of human factors research.

In this book, Ariel Ahram offers a new perspective on a growing threat to international and human security--the reliance of 'weak states' on quasi-official militias, paramilitaries, and warlords.
Tracing the history of several "high profile" paramilitary organizations, including Indonesia's various militia factions, Iraq's tribal "awakening," and Iran's Revolutionary Guard and Basij corps, the book shows why and how states co-opt these groups, turning former rebels into state-sponsored militias. Building on an historical and comparative empirical approach that emphasizes decolonization, revolution, and international threat, the author offers a new set of policy prescriptions for addressing this escalating international crisis--with particular attention to strategies for mitigating the impact of this devolution of violence on the internal and international stability of states.

This book reports on research on innovative human systems integration and human-machine interaction, with an emphasis on artificial intelligence and automation, as well as computational modeling and simulation. It covers a wide range of applications in the area of design, construction and operation of products, systems and services, including lifecycle development and human-technology interaction. The book describes advanced methodologies and tools for evaluating and improving interface usability, new models, as well as case studies and best practices in virtual, augmented and mixed reality systems, with a special focus on dynamic environments. It also discusses different factors concerning the human, hardware, and artificial intelligence software. Based on the proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Intelligent Human Systems Integration (IHSI 2018), held on January 7-9, 2018, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the book also examines the forces that are currently shaping the nature of computing and cognitive systems, such as the need for decreasing hardware costs; the importance of infusing intelligence and automation, and the related trend toward hardware miniaturization and power reduction; the necessity for a better assimilation of computation in the environment; and the social concerns regarding access to computers and systems for people with special needs. It offers a timely survey and a practice-oriented reference guide to policy- and decision-makers, human factors engineers, systems developers and users alike.

This book focuses on emerging issues in usability, interface design, human-computer interaction, user experience and assistive technology. It highlights research aimed at understanding human interaction with products, services and systems, and focuses on finding effective approaches for improving user experience. It also discusses key issues in designing and providing assistive devices and services to individuals with disabilities or impairment, to assist mobility, communication, positioning, environmental control and daily living. The book covers modelling as well as innovative design concepts, with a special emphasis on user-centered design, and design for specific populations, particularly the elderly. Virtual reality, digital environments, heuristic evaluation and forms of device interface feedback of (e.g. visual and haptic) are also among the topics covered. Based on the AHFE 2018 Conference on Usability & User Experience and the AHFE 2018 Conference on Human Factors and Assistive Technology, held on July 21-25, 2018, in Orlando, Florida, USA, this book reports on cutting-edge findings, research methods and user-centred evaluation approaches.

This book presents cutting-edge research on innovative human systems integration and human-machine interaction, with an emphasis on artificial intelligence and automation, as well as computational modeling and simulation. It covers a wide range of applications in the area of design, construction and operation of products, systems and services, including lifecycle development and human-technology interaction. The book describes advanced methodologies and tools for evaluating and improving interface usability, new models, and case studies and best practices in virtual, augmented and mixed reality systems, with a special focus on dynamic environments. It also discusses various factors concerning the human user, hardware, and artificial intelligence software. Based on the proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Intelligent Human Systems Integration (IHSI 2019), held on February 7-10, 2019, in San Diego, California, USA, the book also examines the forces that are currently shaping the nature of computing and cognitive systems, such as the need to reduce hardware costs; the importance of infusing intelligence and automation; the trend toward hardware miniaturization and power reduction; the need for a better assimilation of computation in the environment; and social concerns regarding access to computers and systems for people with special needs. It offers a timely survey and a practice-oriented reference guide for policy- and decision-makers, human factors engineers, systems developers and users alike.

This book describes cutting-edge applications of human factors for sports, injury prevention and outdoor recreation disciplines and provide practical guidance on a range of methods for describing, representing, and evaluating human, team, and system performance in various domains. Contributions in this book show how various human factors methods, applied historically in the complex safety critical domains, are suited to describing and understanding sports performance and sports injury prevention. The book discusses a wealth of methods for different purposes, such as data collection, task analysis (including cognitive task analysis), workload measurement, assessing situation awareness, performance assessment (including team performance assessment),decision making and cognition in sports, human error identification, and interface evaluation methods. With respect to other publications in human factors and ergonomics, which have been more focused on the biomechanical, physiological, environmental, and equipment-related aspects of sports performance, this book gives a special emphasis to research on analysis of individual and team sports, cognitive and social human factors, and covers both sports and outdoor recreation disciplines. Based on the AHFE 2017 Conference on Human Factors in Sports, Injury Prevention and Outdoor Recreation, held on July 17-21, 2017, in Los Angeles, California, USA, this book provides readers with a timely survey of new methods that can be implemented during any sport or outdoor recreation event, and for analyzing and improving the performance and safety of both individuals and teams.

This book focuses on emerging issues in usability, interface design, human computer interaction and user experience, with a special emphasis on the research aimed at understanding human-interaction and usability issues with products, services and systems for improved experience. It covers modeling as well as innovative design concepts, with a special emphasis to user-centered design, and design for special populations, particularly the elderly. Virtual reality, digital environments, heuristic evaluation and feedback of devices' interfaces (visual and haptic) are also among the topics covered in this book. Based on the AHFE 2017 Conference on Usability & User Experience, held on July 17-21, 2017, in Los Angeles, California, USA, the book describes new findings, research methods and user-centered evaluation approaches.

This book provides a platform for addressing human factors in software and systems engineering, both pushing the boundaries of current research and responding to new challenges, fostering new research ideas in the process. Topics include evolutionary and complex systems, human systems integration, smart grids and infrastructure, workforce training requirements, systems engineering education, and defense and aerospace. Based on the AHFE 2017 International Conference on Human Factors, Software, and Systems Engineering, held on July 17-21, 2017, Los Angeles, USA, this book is an inspiring guide for all researchers and professionals in the field of human factors, software and systems engineering.

This book focuses on emerging issues following the integration of artificial intelligence systems in our daily lives. It focuses on the cognitive, visual, social and analytical aspects of computing and intelligent technologies, highlighting ways to improve technology acceptance, effectiveness, and efficiency. Topics such as responsibility, integration and training are discussed throughout. The book also reports on the latest advances in systems engineering, with a focus on societal challenges and next-generation systems and applications for meeting them. It also discusses applications in smart grids and infrastructures, systems engineering education as well as defense and aerospace. The book is based on both the AHFE 2018 International Conference on Human Factors in Artificial Intelligence and Social Computing, Software and Systems Engineering, The Human Side of Service Engineering and Human Factors in Energy, July 21-25, 2018, Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, USA.