ARTICLES

6/4/2009· Human Factors

Human Factors Experts: An Introduction

By: Robert C. Sugarman, PhD, PE

Back in graduate school, the Psychology Department chair at MIT liked to tell his classes about the three Laws of Nature: the Law of Falling Bricks, the Law of Falling Cats, and the Law of Falling People. Physicists have formulated the precise laws that describe how a brick falls from a table to the floor. Biologists have discovered how cats fall differently from bricks, twisting reflexively to always land on their feet. But what laws completely describe a person falling from a roof? This is the challenge of behavioral scientists.

6/4/2009· Human Factors

Human Factors Experts: To Err Is Human; To Design Is Divine

By: Robert C. Sugarman, PhD, PE

To err is human; to design is divine. Forensic Human Factors specialists help lawyers analyze the root cause of an accident by determining who erred and why. Human factors applies research from a number of fields to design and evaluate things that people use in work and everyday activities

5/25/2009· Human Factors

Application of Human Factors Engineering in Medical Product Design

By: Andrew Le Cocq

Advancements in medical instrumentation are often judged on technical factors such as increased accuracy or increased capabilities without regard to the operator, or to the degree of knowledge or training required to make the instrument perform all of the advanced functions for which it was designed. Because patient safety and efficient use of an instrument are ultimately determined by the operator, it is imperative that medical instruments be designed not only with capability and functionality in mind

5/22/2009· Automotive - Vehicular

The Top Ten Questions About Event Data Recorders (Vehicle Black Boxes)

By: Shawn Gyorke

Event Data Recorders (EDRs) are electronic devices, commonly called Black Boxes, that are installed in motor vehicles. EDRs have the ability to record information about what a vehicle did before, during and immediately after a traffic crash

5/14/2009· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

The Frye Standard: Determining the Admissibility of Event Data Recorders for Traffic Accident Reconstruction in Illinois

By: Shawn Gyorke

While the information recorded on event data recorders (EDRs), commonly referred to as vehicle black boxes, is tremendously helpful in determining how a traffic accident occurred and in improving safety, it was not until recently that EDR data was legally challenged in Illinois and ultimately accepted

5/14/2009· Automotive - Vehicular

Deciphering the NHTSA Event Data Recorder Ruling

By: Shawn Gyorke

Vehicle Event Data Recorders (EDRs), commonly referred to as Black Boxes, are part of a vehicle’s airbag control module or powertrain control module. EDRs can be configured to record a variety of data when a vehicle is involved in a crash event. The data sets range from pre-impact speed and brake use, to airbag and restraint system

4/21/2009· Banking

Banking Regulation: Now is Time to do Away with the Too Big To Fail Doctrine

By: Catherine A. Ghiglieri

For almost thirty years, bank regulators have operated under the Too Big To Fail (TBTF) Doctrine, whereby insolvent large banks are treated differently than insolvent community banks by keeping the large banks open and closing the community banks. Now is the time to do away with TBTF once and for all

4/6/2009· Injury

Imaging of Sports Injuries of the Ankle and Foot

By: Douglas K. Smith, MD

The foot and ankle are frequently injured during sporting events and may produce considerable disability in many athletes. Injuries of the foot and ankle may be acute or chronic problems. Cass and Morrey1 reported that acute foot and ankle injuries accounted for 10% of emergency room visits

4/3/2009· Jails - Prisons - Correctional Facilities

Suicides Within The Juvenile Justice System: The Need for Administrative Oversight

By: Dr. Alvin W. Cohn

Suicides among youths in the United States is a national tragedy. A successful suicide by an adolescent within the juvenile justice system is both preventable and unconscionable and tends to occur as a consequence of poor or inappropriate staffing, inadequate training, and/or the lack of policy and procedure enforcement

4/3/2009· Workplace Violence

Workplace Violence: A Legal Perspective

By: Rebecca A. Speer

Workplace violence presents one of the greatest challenges an organization can face. Poised at the intersection of corporate oversight and law enforcements purview, threats and violence that affect the workplace generate a wealth of concerns for management