October brings National Ergonomics month
Eric Vaden
Issue date: 10/28/08 Section: Student Life
October is National Ergonomics month and the faculty and students of the Human Factors Psychology department would like to remind everyone that we should all work to put good ergonomics principles into action. I know you're going to run right out and look the term up on Wikipedia so let me help you with that - to summarize, Ergonomics is the scientific discipline dedicated to making tools, tasks, products, environments and systems safer and more comfortable for human use. It's a bit more than deciding where to put the cup holder in your car or how many degrees of freedom should be included in the adjustability of your seat back. While these may be the attributes that led to your last car purchase, we'd like to believe you are also aware of how human factors and ergonomics issues might affect your work and/or study environment here on campus. There are a number of workstation characteristics, for example, that can reduce various types of fatigue and potentially even injury. Without trying to make you a Board Certified Professional Ergonomist, here are just a couple of common issues to think about:
Eye Strain
o Problem: Eye strain at one time or another. This typically results from extended periods spent focusing on a monitor during which your blink rate is reduced.
o Solutions
o Place top of monitor slightly below your eye level - your natural eye resting position is about 15 degrees below.
o Exercise your eyes - Looking across the office/hall or out a window (distances greater than arms length) are great exercises. Now, this is not an excuse to daydream or be nosy!
o Take a break to blink. Every so often close your eyes and move them around for 10-15 seconds.
Repetitive Stress Injuries
o Problem: Repetitive stress injuries or cumulative trauma disorders result from making the same movements again and again. They increase in likelihood when your body is positioned improperly. Common forms include carpal tunnel syndrome and tendinitis. Both can result from keyboard and mouse use while the hands, wrists and arms are not in "neutral" positions.
Eye Strain
o Problem: Eye strain at one time or another. This typically results from extended periods spent focusing on a monitor during which your blink rate is reduced.
o Solutions
o Place top of monitor slightly below your eye level - your natural eye resting position is about 15 degrees below.
o Exercise your eyes - Looking across the office/hall or out a window (distances greater than arms length) are great exercises. Now, this is not an excuse to daydream or be nosy!
o Take a break to blink. Every so often close your eyes and move them around for 10-15 seconds.
Repetitive Stress Injuries
o Problem: Repetitive stress injuries or cumulative trauma disorders result from making the same movements again and again. They increase in likelihood when your body is positioned improperly. Common forms include carpal tunnel syndrome and tendinitis. Both can result from keyboard and mouse use while the hands, wrists and arms are not in "neutral" positions.
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