[Actuality and originality in the scientific thought of Angelo Iannaccone (1925 - 1982).] / Attualità e originalità nel pensiero e nell'azione scientifica del Prof. Angelo Iannaccone (1925 - 1982).

SUMMARY: Background. Angelo Iannaccone is certainly one of the most important personalities in the field of occupational medicine of the last century. Aims. The fiftieth anniversary of the Post-graduate School of Occupational Medicine of the Catholic University of Rome gives us the opportunity to define this extraordinary figure of man and scientist, at over 35 years from his death. Results. Prof. Iannaccone was among the very first, if not the first to deal with chronobiology and occupational ergonomics in Italy, adopting the modern perspective of "upstream" prevention, since the design phase, which had to be based on the adaptation of work to man and not vice versa. He carried out important and pioneering studies on the effects of benzene on the hematopoietic apparatus and of various industrial toxicants on the neuroendocrine system. In establishing the formative principles for the occupational physician, he devoted a significant space to industrial hygiene, in the interdisciplinary perspective of prevention sciences. He gave a significant contribution to the scientific society of occupational medicine, first as a member of the board, then as the president of the Italian Society of Occupational Medicine and Industrial Hygiene. He realized the Institute of Occupational Medicine of the Catholic University of Rome and founded the post-graduate school. Conclusions. Prof. Iannaccone's contribution to occupational health and industrial hygiene emphasized applied research and prevention in the workplace.

The handaxe reconsidered.

The Acheulean handaxe is one of the longest-known and longest-surviving artifacts of the Palaeolithic and, despite its experimentally tested functionality, is often regarded as puzzling. It is unnecessary to invoke a unique-for-mammals genetic mechanism to explain the handaxe phenomenon. Instead, we propose that two nongenetic processes are sufficient. The first is a set of ergonomic design principles linked to the production of sturdy, hand-held cutting tools in the context of a knapped-stone technology that lacked hafting. The second is an esthetic preference for regular forms with gradual curves and pleasing proportions. Neither process is a cultural meme but, operating together in a cultural context, they can account for all of the supposedly puzzling time-space patterns presented by handaxes.

Between Two Worlds.

OBJECTIVE: To provide an evaluative overview of the life and contributions of Raja Parasuraman. BACKGROUND: From his earliest contributions in clarifying and explaining the problematic area of vigilance to his most recent interdisciplinary advances in understanding how genotype relates to behavior in complex technical environments, Raja Parasuraman was a giant of human factors and ergonomics. Our present exposition articulates and recounts his many contributions to our science and to science in general beyond the confines of our own discipline. METHOD: We use the history of scientific contributions, biographical analysis, and reported personal experience to accomplish our overall assessment of the man and his work. RESULTS: We conclude that Parasuraman's contributions were unique, substantive, and seminal, and will continue to influence our science for many years to come. APPLICATION: This work will serve as a record for those to come who look to make significant contributions to the goals, aims, and aspirations that we set ourselves in human factors and ergonomics in seeking to improve the human condition.

[AVIATION MEDICINE: THEORETICAL CONCEPTS AND FOCAL FUNDAMENTAL AND PRACTICAL ISSUES (for the 80th anniversary of the Research Test Center of Aerospace Medicine and Military Ergonomics)].

The article discloses postulates of theoretical concepts that make the methodological basis for addressing the real-world aviation medicine challenges of humanizing aviator's environment, labor content and means, and health and performance maintenance. Under consideration are focal fundamental and practical issues arising with the technological progress in aviation and dealt with at the AF CRI Research Test Center of Aerospace Medicine and Military Ergonomics.

Measurement of human energy expenditure, with particular reference to field studies: an historical perspective.

Over the years, techniques for the study of human movement have ranged in complexity and precision from direct observation of the subject through activity diaries, questionnaires, and recordings of body movement, to the measurement of physiological responses, studies of metabolism and indirect and direct calorimetry. This article reviews developments in each of these domains. Particular reference is made to their impact upon the continuing search for valid field estimates of activity patterns and energy expenditures, as required by the applied physiologist, ergonomist, sports scientist, nutritionist and epidemiologist. Early observers sought to improve productivity in demanding employment. Direct observation and filming of workers were supplemented by monitoring of heart rates, ventilation and oxygen consumption. Such methods still find application in ergonomics and sport, but many investigators are now interested in relationships between habitual physical activity and chronic disease. Even sophisticated questionnaires still do not provide valid information on the absolute energy expenditures associated with good health. Emphasis has thus shifted to use of sophisticated pedometer/accelerometers, sometimes combining their output with GPS and other data. Some modern pedometer/accelerometers perform well in the laboratory, but show substantial systematic errors relative to laboratory reference criteria such as the metabolism of doubly labeled water when assessing the varied activities of daily life. The challenge remains to develop activity monitors that are sufficiently inexpensive for field use, yet meet required accuracy standards. Possibly, measurements of oxygen consumption by portable respirometers may soon satisfy part of this need, although a need for valid longer term monitoring will remain.

World War II and other historical influences on the formation of the Ergonomics Research Society.

Little has been written about wartime ergonomics and the role this played in prompting the need for a society dedicated to ergonomics within the UK, namely the formation of the Ergonomics Research Society (ERS) in early 1950. This article aims to fill this gap in our understanding of the history of ergonomics in the UK and provide further details of the types of research undertaken by wartime research groups and committees such as the Institute of Aviation Medicine, Medical Research Council Applied Psychology Unit and the Flying Personnel Research Committee. In addition, the role of societal developments such as wartime links with the USA, the post-war drive to increase productivity and collaboration with industry and the recommendations of government committees in stimulating the work of the ERS are described in detail. This article also offers some reflection on present-day ergonomics in the UK and how this contrasts with the past. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: This article will provide practitioners with a historical perspective on the development of ergonomics from its roots in the Second World War. These developments shed light on current trends and challenges within the discipline as a whole.

[The 75th anniversary of science research and development testing centre of air medicine and military ergonomics SSRDTI of military medicine of Ministry of Defense of the RF].

The article presents main stages of forming Science research and development testing centre of air medicine and military ergonomics, results of researches of three main directions: medical-technical (ergonomic) supply of creation, testing and exploitation of air techniques and armament; participating in organization of combat training activity for the purposes of saving professional health, securing of combativity and professional reliability of aircraft pilots; scientific grounding of improvement of medical supply of aviation (improvement of medical control for dynamics of state of health, physiological and psychological resources of organism in course of combat training, creation of automatized diagnostic complexes and etc.).

'1966 and all that': Trends and developments in UK ergonomics during the 1960s.

The 1960s represents a key decade in the expansion of ergonomics within the UK. This paper reviews trends and developments that emerged out of the 1960s and compares these with ergonomics research and practice today. The focus in particular is on the expansion of ergonomics as a discipline within industry, as well as more specific topics, such as the emergence of areas of interest, for example, computers and technology, automation and systems ergonomics and consumer ergonomics. The account is illustrated with a detailed timeline of developments, a set of industrial case studies and the contents of important publications during the decade. A key aim of the paper is to provide the opportunity to reflect on the past and the implications this may have for future directions for ergonomics within the UK. The paper provides practitioners with an insight into the development of ergonomics in the UK during one of the most important decades of its history. This is especially relevant given the fact that in 2009 the Ergonomics Society celebrates its 60th anniversary.

History of ergonomics and occupational therapy.

Ergonomics is commonly known as "the scientific study of human work" [14, p. 3] and "the application of scientific information concerning human beings to the design of objects, systems, and environments" (p. 4). The American Occupational Therapy Association defines occupational therapy as "skilled treatment that helps individuals achieve independence in all facets of their lives. It gives people the 'skills for the job of living' necessary for independent and satisfying lives [1]." Both professions share common backgrounds. Occupational therapy has been involved in health care and ergonomics is looking for its place in the health care field.

Rasmussen number greater than one.

This essay describes the ramifying influence of Jens Rasmussen, illustrating how his work lives on through people whom he has influenced, even though they may have never directly collaborated. I approach this in three ways: a social network analysis of the 'Rasmussen number' (an analogue of the Erdös number); and two citations network analyses based on different search domains and different network structures.

Rasmussen's legacy: A paradigm change in engineering for safety.

This paper describes three applications of Rasmussen's idea to systems engineering practice. The first is the application of the abstraction hierarchy to engineering specifications, particularly requirements specification. The second is the use of Rasmussen's ideas in safety modeling and analysis to create a new, more powerful type of accident causation model that extends traditional models to better handle human-operated, software-intensive, sociotechnical systems. Because this new model has a formal, mathematical foundation built on systems theory (as was Rasmussen's original model), new modeling and analysis tools become possible. The third application is to engineering hazard analysis. Engineers have traditionally either omitted human from consideration in system hazard analysis or have treated them rather superficially, for example, that they behave randomly. Applying Rasmussen's model of human error to a powerful new hazard analysis technique allows human behavior to be included in engineering hazard analysis.

Supporting the human life-raft in confronting the juggernaut of technology: Jens Rasmussen, 1961-1986.

Jens Rasmussen's contribution to the field of human factors and ergonomics has had a lasting impact. Six prominent interrelated themes can be extracted from his research between 1961 and 1986. These themes form the basis of an engineering epistemology which is best manifested by his abstraction hierarchy. Further, Rasmussen reformulated technical reliability using systems language to enable a proper human-machine fit. To understand the concept of human-machine fit, he included the operator as a central component in the system to enhance system safety. This change resulted in the application of a qualitative and categorical approach for human-machine interaction design. Finally, Rasmussen's insistence on a working philosophy of systems design as being a joint responsibility of operators and designers provided the basis for averting errors and ensuring safe and correct system functioning.

Reflecting on Jens Rasmussen's legacy (2) behind and beyond, a 'constructivist turn'.

This article is the second part of a study on the legacy of Jens Rasmussen. The first article, subtitled 'A Strong Program for a Hard Problem', looks back on his 30 years of scientific contribution, from 1969 to 2000. This second article explores and investigates some of the intellectual roots which influenced his thinking, using them as a basis to understand some limits and move forward. Indeed, historically oriented studies such as this one are not only tributes to researchers, but a way to differentiate and contrast our present situation with the past in order to integrate contemporary trends, be they theoretical or empirical, or oriented towards research and new models. In the first section of this article, I offer a synthesis of the background covered in the previous article, but I use a tree here as a graphical complement. Branches of the tree show the many fruitful directions opened by Jens Rasmussen, directions which inspired many researchers. In the second part, I address what I believe to be behind this wealth of engineering legacy: cybernetics. I contend that cybernetics has had a profound influence on his thinking and provided him key principles for his inspiring and successful models. To develop the tree image, one might say that cybernetics is the trunk of the tree. Finally, in the third part, I take the opportunity to explore the relevance of extending and sensitising his program to constructivist discourses. After an introduction to this discourse, identifying four types of constructivisms (cognitive, social, epistemological and anthropological), I characterise this move as a 'constructivist turn'.

Cognitive work analysis: An influential legacy extending beyond human factors and engineering.

Jens Rasmussen's multifaceted legacy includes cognitive work analysis (CWA), a framework for the analysis, design, and evaluation of complex sociotechnical systems. After considering the framework's origins, this paper reviews its progress, predictably covering experimental research on ecological interface design, case studies of the application of CWA to human factors and engineering problems in industry, and methods and modelling tools for CWA. Emphasis is placed, however, on studying the nexus between some of the recent results obtained with CWA and the original field studies of human problem-solving that motivated the framework's development. Of particular interest is a case study of the use of CWA for military doctrine development, a problem commonly regarded as lying outside the fields of human factors and engineering. It is concluded that the value of CWA, even for such diverse problems, is likely to result from its conceptual grounding in empirical observations of patterns of human reasoning in complex systems.

A review and exploration of sociotechnical ergonomics.

A holistic review of ergonomic history shows that science remains important for general occupational health and safety (OSH), the broad society, culture, politics and the design of everyday things. Science provides an unconventional and multifaceted viewpoint exploring ergonomics from a social, corporate and OSH perspective. Ergonomic solutions from this mindset may redefine the science, and it will change with companies that change within this socially hyper-connected world. Authentic corporate social responsibility will counter 'misleadership' by not approaching ergonomics with an afterthought. The review concludes that ergonomics will be stronger with social respect and ergonomic thinking based on the optimisation of anthropometric data, digital human models, computer-aided tools, self-empowerment, job enrichment, work enlargement, physiology, industrial psychology, cybernetic ergonomics, operations design, ergonomic-friendly process technologies, ergonomic empowerment, behaviour-based safety, outcome-based employee wellness and fatigue risk management solutions, to mention a few.

Ergonomics in Latin America: background, trends and challenges.

This paper offers an introduction to ergonomics in Latin America through a brief overview of ergonomics practice in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru. It provides a short description of the history of ergonomics in each country, ergonomics teaching, its organisation through the ergonomics associations, and some highlights of the areas of interest, and examples of ergonomics practice.

Revolutions and shifting paradigms in human factors & ergonomics.

The "Revolution in Information Technology" has spawned a series of transformational revolutions in the nature and practice of human factors and ergonomics (HFE). "Generation 1" HFE evolved with a focus on adapting equipment, workplace and tasks to human capabilities and limitations. Generation 2, focused on cognitive systems integration, arose in response to the need to manage automation and dynamic function allocation. Generation 3 is focused on symbiotic technologies that can amplify human physical and cognitive capabilities. Generation 4 is emergent and is focused on biological enhancement of physical or cognitive capabilities. The shift from HFE Generations 1 and 2 to Generations 3 and 4 profoundly alters accepted boundary constraints on the adaptability of humans in complex systems design. Furthermore, it has opened an ethical divide between those that see cognitive and physical enhancement as a great benefit to society and those who perceive this as tampering with the fundamentals of human nature.