Disease: H01855 [KEGG MEDICUS

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available nly half of the time. Approximately 80% of patients require one or more liver transplantations with the associated morbidity and mort...ality issues caused by life-long transplant-related immu

Human resources in innovation systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, René Nesgaard

2007-01-01

Human resources in innovation systems: With focus on introduction of highly educated labour in small Danish firms This thesis has two purposes: (1) a ‘general' purpose to enhance our knowledge on the relationship between innovation, technological and organisational change, and human resources......, including knowledge and skills embodied in human resources, and (2) a more ‘specific' purpose to enhance our knowledge on introduction of highly educated labour, innovation, and upgrading changes in small Danish firms. Chapter 1 establishes the relevance of this research interest, and it also states...... stemming from human resources - such as insight, understanding, creativity, and action - are inherently important to all innovation processes. The chapter also suggests a tentative conceptual and analytical framework for studying human resources and their development within a system of innovation approach...

Bifidogenic effect of grain larvae extract on serum lipid, glucose and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2015-07-19

Jul 19, 2015 ... sity, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes as a result of rapid aging and a ... crobial activity, immunity, and blood lipid metabolism and increase ..... Higgins DA 1975 Physical and chemical properties of fowl immu- noglobulins.

Lessons learned from HRA and human-system modeling efforts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hallbert, B.P.

1993-01-01

Human-System modeling is not unique to the field of Human Reliability Analysis (HRA). Since human factors professionals first began their explorations of human activities, they have done so with the concept of open-quotes systemclose quotes in mind. Though the two - human and system - are distinct, they can be properly understood only in terms of each other: the system provides a context in which goals and objectives for work are defined, and the human plays either a pre-defined or ad hoc role in meeting these goals. In this sense, every intervention which attempts to evaluate or improve upon some system parameter requires that an understanding of human-system interactions be developed. It is too often the case, however, that somewhere between the inception of a system and its implementation, the human-system relationships are overlooked, misunderstood, or inadequately framed. This results in mismatches between demands versus capabilities of human operators, systems which are difficult to operate, and the obvious end product-human error. The lessons learned from human system modeling provide a valuable feedback mechanism to the process of HRA, and the technologies which employ this form of modeling

Experiment list: SRX203393 [Chip-atlas[Archive

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available nology, 1989, p169 & Abbas et al., Cellular and Molecular Immunology...mphoid organs and at sites of immune responses and normally do not circulate in the blood or lymph. (Rosen et al., Dictionary of Immu

Experiment list: SRX203392 [Chip-atlas[Archive

Lifescience Database Archive (English)

Full Text Available nology, 1989, p169 & Abbas et al., Cellular and Molecular Immunology...mphoid organs and at sites of immune responses and normally do not circulate in the blood or lymph. (Rosen et al., Dictionary of Immu

Human Systems Integration (HSI) Practitioner's Guide

Science.gov (United States)

Zumbado, Jennifer Rochlis

2015-01-01

The NASA/SP-2015-3709, Human Systems Integration (HSI) Practitioner's Guide, also known as the "HSIPG," provides a tool for implementing HSI activities within the NASA systems engineering framework. The HSIPG is written to aid the HSI practitioner engaged in a program or project (P/P), and serves as a knowledge base to allow the practitioner to step into an HSI lead or team member role for NASA missions. Additionally, this HSIPG is written to address the role of HSI in the P/P management and systems engineering communities and aid their understanding of the value added by incorporating good HSI practices into their programs and projects. Through helping to build a community of knowledgeable HSI practitioners, this document also hopes to build advocacy across the Agency for establishing strong, consistent HSI policies and practices. Human Systems Integration (HSI) has been successfully adopted (and adapted) by several federal agencies-most notably the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)-as a methodology for reducing system life cycle costs (LCCs). These cost savings manifest themselves due to reductions in required numbers of personnel, the practice of human-centered design, decreased reliance on specialized skills for operations, shortened training time, efficient logistics and maintenance, and fewer safety-related risks and mishaps due to unintended human/system interactions. The HSI process for NASA establishes how cost savings and mission success can be realized through systems engineering. Every program or project has unique attributes. This HSIPG is not intended to provide one-size-fits-all recommendations for HSI implementation. Rather, HSI processes should be tailored to the size, scope, and goals of individual situations. The instructions and processes identified here are best used as a starting point for implementing human-centered system concepts and designs across programs and projects of varying types, including

Relational adaptivity - enacting human-centric systems design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Kjell Yngve

2016-01-01

Human centered design approaches places the experiencing human at the center of concern, situated in relation to the dynamics of the environmental condition and the variables of the system of control and sensing. Taking the approach of enacted design methods to enforce the experience...... of the inhabitant as core in human-centered design solutions, the intelligence of the connected sensors is suggested to be developed as an actual learning and self-adjusting adaptive environment, where the adaptive system is part of a negotiation with users on the qualities of the environment. We will present...... a fully functional sketching environment for adaptive sensor-control systems, which enable integration of the complex situation of everyday activities and human well-being. The proposed sketching environment allows for the development of sensor systems related to lighting conditions and human occupancy...

Integrated human-machine intelligence in space systems

Science.gov (United States)

Boy, Guy A.

1992-01-01

The integration of human and machine intelligence in space systems is outlined with respect to the contributions of artificial intelligence. The current state-of-the-art in intelligent assistant systems (IASs) is reviewed, and the requirements of some real-world applications of the technologies are discussed. A concept of integrated human-machine intelligence is examined in the contexts of: (1) interactive systems that tolerate human errors; (2) systems for the relief of workloads; and (3) interactive systems for solving problems in abnormal situations. Key issues in the development of IASs include the compatibility of the systems with astronauts in terms of inputs/outputs, processing, real-time AI, and knowledge-based system validation. Real-world applications are suggested such as the diagnosis, planning, and control of enginnered systems.

Human performance modeling for system of systems analytics :soldier fatigue.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lawton, Craig R.; Campbell, James E.; Miller, Dwight Peter

2005-10-01

The military has identified Human Performance Modeling (HPM) as a significant requirement and challenge of future systems modeling and analysis initiatives as can be seen in the Department of Defense's (DoD) Defense Modeling and Simulation Office's (DMSO) Master Plan (DoD 5000.59-P 1995). To this goal, the military is currently spending millions of dollars on programs devoted to HPM in various military contexts. Examples include the Human Performance Modeling Integration (HPMI) program within the Air Force Research Laboratory, which focuses on integrating HPMs with constructive models of systems (e.g. cockpit simulations) and the Navy's Human Performance Center (HPC) established in September 2003. Nearly all of these initiatives focus on the interface between humans and a single system. This is insufficient in the era of highly complex network centric SoS. This report presents research and development in the area of HPM in a system-of-systems (SoS). Specifically, this report addresses modeling soldier fatigue and the potential impacts soldier fatigue can have on SoS performance.

Microneedle Array Design Determines the Induction of Protective Memory CD8+ T Cell Responses Induced by a Recombinant Live Malaria Vaccine in Mice

Science.gov (United States)

Carey, John B.; Pearson, Frances E.; Vrdoljak, Anto; McGrath, Marie G.; Crean, Abina M.; Walsh, Patrick T.; Doody, Timothy; O'Mahony, Conor; Hill, Adrian V. S.; Moore, Anne C.

2011-01-01

Background Vaccine delivery into the skin has received renewed interest due to ease of access to the immune system and microvasculature, however the stratum corneum (SC), must be breached for successful vaccination. This has been achieved by removing the SC by abrasion or scarification or by delivering the vaccine intradermally (ID) with traditional needle-and-syringes or with long microneedle devices. Microneedle patch-based transdermal vaccine studies have predominantly focused on antibody induction by inactivated or subunit vaccines. Here, our principal aim is to determine if the design of a microneedle patch affects the CD8+ T cell responses to a malaria antigen induced by a live vaccine. Methodology and Findings Recombinant modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) expressing a malaria antigen was percutaneously administered to mice using a range of silicon microneedle patches, termed ImmuPatch, that differed in microneedle height, density, patch area and total pore volume. We demonstrate that microneedle arrays that have small total pore volumes induce a significantly greater proportion of central memory T cells that vigorously expand to secondary immunization. Microneedle-mediated vaccine priming induced significantly greater T cell immunity post-boost and equivalent protection against malaria challenge compared to ID vaccination. Notably, unlike ID administration, ImmuPatch-mediated vaccination did not induce inflammatory responses at the site of immunization or in draining lymph nodes. Conclusions/Significance This study demonstrates that the design of microneedle patches significantly influences the magnitude and memory of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cell responses and can be optimised for the induction of desired immune responses. Furthermore, ImmuPatch-mediated delivery may be of benefit to reducing unwanted vaccine reactogenicity. In addition to the advantages of low cost and lack of pain, the development of optimised microneedle array designs for the induction

Operator role definition and human-system integration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knee, H.E.; Schryver, J.C.

1989-01-01

This paper discusses operator role definition and human-system integration from a perspective of systems engineering and allocation of functions. Current and traditional allocation of tasks/functions can no longer by applied to systems that are significantly more sophisticated and dynamic than current system designs. For such advanced and automated designs, explicit attention must be given to the role of the operator in order to facilitate efficient system performance. Furthermore, such systems will include intelligent automated systems which will support the cognitive activities of the operator. If such systems share responsibility and control with the human operator, these computer-based assistants/associates should be viewed as intelligent team members. As such, factors such as trust, intentions, and expectancies, among team members must be considered by the systems designer. Such design considerations are discussed in this paper. This paper also discusses the area of dynamic allocation of functions, and the need for models of the human operator in support of machine forecast of human performance. The Integrated Reactor Operator/System (INTEROPS) model is discussed as an example of a cognitive model capable of functioning beyond a rule-based behavioral structure

An ontology for human-like interaction systems

OpenAIRE

Albacete García, Esperanza

2016-01-01

This report proposes and describes the development of a Ph.D. Thesis aimed at building an ontological knowledge model supporting Human-Like Interaction systems. The main function of such knowledge model in a human-like interaction system is to unify the representation of each concept, relating it to the appropriate terms, as well as to other concepts with which it shares semantic relations. When developing human-like interactive systems, the inclusion of an ontological module can be valuab...

Seroprevalence of cytomegalovirus among pregnant women ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2014-03-03

Mar 3, 2014 ... and 106/114(93.0%) were seropositive among women in the first, second and third trimesters respectively. .... transient depression of CMV- specific cellular immu- nity can be .... Malaysian Journal of Microbiology. 2007;3:23–8 ...

GENERAL OPHTHALMOLOGY

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2016-11-04

Nov 4, 2016 ... Nelson-Immu JC, Mowatt L, Walters C.A. Patterns of ocular trauma presenting to the ... 11 hospital, Addis Ababa. Ethiop J Health Dev 2001;15:131-7. 12. ... injuries in Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Irrua, Edo State Nigeria.

Human Systems Integration in Practice: Constellation Lessons Learned

Science.gov (United States)

Zumbado, Jennifer Rochlis

2012-01-01

NASA's Constellation program provided a unique testbed for Human Systems Integration (HSI) as a fundamental element of the Systems Engineering process. Constellation was the first major program to have HSI mandated by NASA's Human Rating document. Proper HSI is critical to the success of any project that relies on humans to function as operators, maintainers, or controllers of a system. HSI improves mission, system and human performance, significantly reduces lifecycle costs, lowers risk and minimizes re-design. Successful HSI begins with sufficient project schedule dedicated to the generation of human systems requirements, but is by no means solely a requirements management process. A top-down systems engineering process that recognizes throughout the organization, human factors as a technical discipline equal to traditional engineering disciplines with authority for the overall system. This partners with a bottoms-up mechanism for human-centered design and technical issue resolution. The Constellation Human Systems Integration Group (HSIG) was a part of the Systems Engineering and Integration (SE&I) organization within the program office, and existed alongside similar groups such as Flight Performance, Environments & Constraints, and Integrated Loads, Structures and Mechanisms. While the HSIG successfully managed, via influence leadership, a down-and-in Community of Practice to facilitate technical integration and issue resolution, it lacked parallel top-down authority to drive integrated design. This presentation will discuss how HSI was applied to Constellation, the lessons learned and best practices it revealed, and recommendations to future NASA program and project managers. This presentation will discuss how Human Systems Integration (HSI) was applied to NASA's Constellation program, the lessons learned and best practices it revealed, and recommendations to future NASA program and project managers on how to accomplish this critical function.

Opioid system and human emotions.

Science.gov (United States)

Nummenmaa, Lauri; Tuominen, Lauri

2017-04-10

Emotions are states of vigilant readiness that guide human and animal behaviour during survival-salient situations. Categorical models of emotions posit neurally and physiologically distinct basic human emotions (anger, fear, disgust, happiness, sadness and surprise) that govern different survival functions. Opioid receptors are expressed abundantly in the mammalian emotion circuit, and the opioid system modulates a variety of functions related to arousal and motivation. Yet, its specific contribution to different basic emotions has remained poorly understood. Here, we review how the endogenous opioid system and particularly the μ receptor contribute to emotional processing in humans. Activation of the endogenous opioid system is consistently associated with both pleasant and unpleasant emotions. In general, exogenous opioid agonists facilitate approach-oriented emotions (anger, pleasure) and inhibit avoidance-oriented emotions (fear, sadness). Opioids also modulate social bonding and affiliative behaviour, and prolonged opioid abuse may render both social bonding and emotion recognition circuits dysfunctional. However, there is no clear evidence that the opioid system is able to affect the emotions associated with surprise and disgust. Taken together, the opioid systems contribute to a wide array of positive and negative emotions through their general ability to modulate the approach versus avoidance motivation associated with specific emotions. Because of the protective effects of opioid system-mediated prosociality and positive mood, the opioid system may constitute an important factor contributing to psychological and psychosomatic resilience. © 2017 The British Pharmacological Society.

Study and application of human reliability analysis for digital human-system interface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jia Ming; Liu Yanzi; Zhang Jianbo

2014-01-01

The knowledge of human-orientated abilities and limitations could be used to digital human-system interface (HSI) design by human reliability analysis (HRA) technology. Further, control room system design could achieve the perfect match of man-machine-environment. This research was conducted to establish an integrated HRA method. This method identified HSI potential design flaws which may affect human performance and cause human error. Then a systematic approach was adopted to optimize HSI. It turns out that this method is practical and objective, and effectively improves the safety, reliability and economy of nuclear power plant. This method was applied to CRP1000 projects under construction successfully with great potential. (authors)

A case for human systems neuroscience.

Science.gov (United States)

Gardner, J L

2015-06-18

Can the human brain itself serve as a model for a systems neuroscience approach to understanding the human brain? After all, how the brain is able to create the richness and complexity of human behavior is still largely mysterious. What better choice to study that complexity than to study it in humans? However, measurements of brain activity typically need to be made non-invasively which puts severe constraints on what can be learned about the internal workings of the brain. Our approach has been to use a combination of psychophysics in which we can use human behavioral flexibility to make quantitative measurements of behavior and link those through computational models to measurements of cortical activity through magnetic resonance imaging. In particular, we have tested various computational hypotheses about what neural mechanisms could account for behavioral enhancement with spatial attention (Pestilli et al., 2011). Resting both on quantitative measurements and considerations of what is known through animal models, we concluded that weighting of sensory signals by the magnitude of their response is a neural mechanism for efficient selection of sensory signals and consequent improvements in behavioral performance with attention. While animal models have many technical advantages over studying the brain in humans, we believe that human systems neuroscience should endeavor to validate, replicate and extend basic knowledge learned from animal model systems and thus form a bridge to understanding how the brain creates the complex and rich cognitive capacities of humans. Copyright © 2014 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Classification system for reporting events involving human malfunctions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Jens; Pedersen, O.M.; Mancini, G.

1981-01-01

The report describes a set of categories for reporting indus-trial incidents and events involving human malfunction. The classification system aims at ensuring information adequate for improvement of human work situations and man-machine interface systems and for attempts to quantify "human error......" rates. The classification system has a multifacetted non-hierarchical struc-ture and its compatibility with Isprals ERDS classification is described. The collection of the information in general and for quantification purposes are discussed. 24 categories, 12 of which being human factors oriented......, are listed with their respective subcategories, and comments are given. Underlying models of human data processes and their typical malfunc-tions and of a human decision sequence are described....

Classification system for reporting events involving human malfunctions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rasmussen, J.; Pedersen, O.M.; Mancini, G.; Carnino, A.; Griffon, M.; Gagnolet, P.

1981-03-01

The report describes a set of categories for reporting industrial incidents and events involving human malfunction. The classification system aims at ensuring information adequate for improvement of human work situations and man-machine interface systems and for attempts to quantify ''human error'' rates. The classification system has a multifacetted non-hierarchial structure and its compatibility with Ispra's ERDS classification is described. The collection of the information in general and for quantification purposes are discussed. 24 categories, 12 of which being human factors oriented, are listed with their respective subcategories, and comments are given. Underlying models of human data processes and their typical malfunctions and of a human decision sequence are described. (author)

Methylation and in vivo expression of the surface-exposed Leptospira interrogans outer membrane protein OmpL32

Science.gov (United States)

Recent studies have revealed that bacterial protein methylation is a widespread post-translational modification that is required for virulence in selected pathogenic bacteria. In particular, altered methylation of outer membrane proteins has been shown to modulate the effectiveness of the host immu...

Classification system for reporting events involving human malfunctions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rasmussen, J.; Pedersen, O.M.; Mancini, G.

1981-01-01

The report describes a set of categories for reporting industrial incidents and events involving human malfunction. The classification system aims at ensuring information adequate for improvement of human work situations and man-machine interface systems and for attempts to quantify ''human error'' rates. The classification system has a multifacetted non-hierarchical structure and its compatibility with Ispra's ERDS classification is described. The collection of the information in general and for quantification purposes are discussed. 24 categories, 12 of which being human factors-oriented, are listed with their respective subcategories, and comments are given. Underlying models of human data process and their typical malfuntions and of a human decision sequence are described. The work reported is a joint contribution to the CSNI Group of Experts on Human Error Data and Assessment

Clinical utility of immunoscintigraphy with the Immu-4 99mTc-Fab' antibody

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moffat, F.L.; Pinsky, C.M.; Hammershaimb, L.; Petrelli, N.J.; Patt, Y.Z.; Whaley, F.S.; Goldenberg, D.M.

1996-01-01

The purpose of these prospective, pivotal studies was to assess the performance and the potential clinical impact of a new antibody imaging agent, CEA-Scan TM , in 210 pre-surgical patients with advanced recurrent or metastatic colorectal carcinomas. CEA-Scan TM , an anti-carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) Fab' antibody fragment labeled with 99m Tc, was injected IV and external scintigraphy performed 2-5 h and 18-24 h later. Imaging with conventional diagnostic modalities (CDM) was also performed, and findings were confirmed by surgery and histology. The sensitivity of CEA-Scan TM was superior to that of CDM in the extrahepatic abdomen (55 % vs 32 %, ρ 0,007) and pelvis (69 % vs 48 %, p = 0,005), and CEA-Scan TM findings complemented those of CDM in the liver. Among 122 patients with known disease, the positive predictive value was significantly higher when both modalities were positive (98 %) as compared to each alone (68 % - 70 %), potentially obviating the need for histological confirmation when both tests are positive. Imaging accuracy also was significantly improved y adding CEA-Scan TM to CDM. In 88 patients with occult cancer, imaging accuracy was enhanced significantly by CEA-Scan TM combined with CDM (61 % vs 33 %). Potential clinical benefit from CEA-Scan TM was demonstrated in 89 of 210 patients. Only two patients developed human anti-mouse antibodies (HAMA) to CEA-Scan TM after a single injection, and none of 19 assessable patients after two injections. (author)

Human System Risk Management for Space Flight

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, Jeffrey

2015-01-01

This brief abstract reviews the development of the current day approach to human system risk management for space flight and the development of the critical components of this process over the past few years. The human system risk management process now provides a comprehensive assessment of each human system risk by design reference mission (DRM) and is evaluated not only for mission success but also for long-term health impacts for the astronauts. The discipline of bioastronautics is the study of the biological and medical effects of space flight on humans. In 1997, the Space Life Sciences Directorate (SLSD) initiated the Bioastronautics Roadmap (Roadmap) as the "Critical Path Roadmap", and in 1998 participation in the roadmap was expanded to include the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) and the external community. A total of 55 risks and 250 questions were identified and prioritized and in 2000, the Roadmap was base-lined and put under configuration control. The Roadmap took into account several major advisory committee reviews including the Institute of Medicine (IOM) "Safe Passage: Astronaut care for Exploration Missions", 2001. Subsequently, three collaborating organizations at NASA HQ (Chief Health and Medical Officer, Office of Space Flight and Office of Biological & Physical Research), published the Bioastronautics Strategy in 2003, that identified the human as a "critical subsystem of space flight" and noted that "tolerance limits and safe operating bands must be established" to enable human space flight. These offices also requested a review by the IOM of the Roadmap and that review was published in October 2005 as "A Risk Reduction Strategy for Human Exploration of Space: A Review of NASA's Bioastronautics Roadmap", that noted several strengths and weaknesses of the Roadmap and made several recommendations. In parallel with the development of the Roadmap, the Office of the Chief Health and Medical Officer (OCHMO) began a process in

Guidance for Human-system Interfaces to Automatic Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O' Hara, J.M.; Higgins, J.; Stephen Fleger; Valerie Barnes

2010-09-27

Automation is ubiquitous in modern complex systems, and commercial nuclear- power plants are no exception. Automation is applied to a wide range of functions, including monitoring and detection, situation assessment, response planning, and response implementation. Automation has become a 'team player' supporting personnel in nearly all aspects of system operation. In light of its increasing use and importance in new- and future-plants, guidance is needed to conduct safety reviews of the operator's interface with automation. The objective of this research was to develop such guidance. We first characterized the important HFE aspects of automation, including six dimensions: Levels, functions, processes, modes, flexibility, and reliability. Next, we reviewed literature on the effects of all of these aspects of automation on human performance, and on the design of human-system interfaces (HSIs). Then, we used this technical basis established from the literature to identify general principles for human-automation interaction and to develop review guidelines. The guidelines consist of the following seven topics: Automation displays, interaction and control, automation modes, automation levels, adaptive automation, error tolerance and failure management, and HSI integration.

Human Dimensions of Coral Reef Social-Ecological Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John N. Kittinger

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Coral reefs are among the most diverse ecosystems on the planet but are declining because of human activities. Despite general recognition of the human role in the plight of coral reefs, the vast majority of research focuses on the ecological rather than the human dimensions of reef ecosystems, limiting our understanding of social relationships with these environments as well as potential solutions for reef recovery. General frameworks for social-ecological systems (SESs have been advanced, but system-specific approaches are needed to develop a more nuanced view of human-environmental interactions for specific contexts and resource systems, and at specific scales. We synthesize existing concepts related to SESs and present a human dimensions framework that explores the linkages between social system structural traits, human activities, ecosystem services, and human well-being in coral reef SESs. Key features of the framework include social-ecological reciprocity, proximate and underlying dimensions, and the directionality of key relationships and feedback loops. Such frameworks are needed if human dimensions research is to be more fully integrated into studies of ecosystem change and the sustainability of linked SESs.

Human engineering in mobile radwaste systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, D.; McMahon, J.; Motl, G.

1988-01-01

To a large degree, mobile radwaste systems are replacing installed plant systems at US nuclear plants due to regulatory obsolescence, high capital and maintenance costs, and increased radiation exposure. Well over half the power plants in the United States now use some sort of mobile system similar to those offered by LN Technologies Corporation. Human engineering is reflected in mobile radwaste system design due to concerns about safety, efficiency, and cost. The radwaste services business is so competitive that vendors must reflect human engineering in several areas of equipment design in order to compete. The paper discusses radiation exposure control, contamination control, compact components, maintainability, operation, and transportability

Modeling of Embedded Human Systems

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-01

ISAT study [7] for DARPA in 20051 concretized the notion of an embedded human, who is a necessary component of the system. The proposed work integrates...Technology, IEEE Transactions on, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 229–244, March 2008. [7] C. J. Tomlin and S. S. Sastry, “Embedded humans,” tech. rep., DARPA ISAT

Design of an advanced human-centered supervisory system for a nuclear fuel reprocessing system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riera, B.; Lambert, M.; Martel, G.

1999-01-01

In the field of highly automated processes, our research concerns supervisory system design adapted to supervisory and default diagnosis by human operators. The interpretation of decisional human behaviour models shows that the tasks of human operators require different information, which has repercussions on the supervisory system design. We propose an advanced human-centred supervisory system (AHCSS) which is more adapted to human-beings, because it integrates new representation of the production system,(such as functional and behavioural aspects) with the use of advanced algorithms of detection and location. Based on an approach using these new concepts, and AHCSS was created for a nuclear fuel reprocessing system. (authors)

Humans vs Hardware: The Unique World of NASA Human System Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Anton, W.; Havenhill, M.; Overton, Eric

2016-01-01

Understanding spaceflight risks to crew health and performance is a crucial aspect of preparing for exploration missions in the future. The research activities of the Human Research Program (HRP) provide substantial evidence to support most risk reduction work. The Human System Risk Board (HSRB), acting on behalf of the Office of Chief Health and Medical Officer (OCHMO), assesses these risks and assigns likelihood and consequence ratings to track progress. Unfortunately, many traditional approaches in risk assessment such as those used in the engineering aspects of spaceflight are difficult to apply to human system risks. This presentation discusses the unique aspects of risk assessment from the human system risk perspective and how these limitations are accommodated and addressed in order to ensure that reasonable inputs are provided to support the OCHMO's overall risk posture for manned exploration missions.

Sustainability Indicators for Coupled Human-Earth Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Motesharrei, S.; Rivas, J. R.; Kalnay, E.

2014-12-01

Over the last two centuries, the Human System went from having a small impact on the Earth System (including the Climate System) to becoming dominant, because both population and per capita consumption have grown extremely fast, especially since about 1950. We therefore argue that Human System Models must be included into Earth System Models through bidirectional couplings with feedbacks. In particular, population should be modeled endogenously, rather than exogenously as done currently in most Integrated Assessment Models. The growth of the Human System threatens to overwhelm the Carrying Capacity of the Earth System, and may be leading to catastrophic climate change and collapse. We propose a set of Ecological and Economic "Sustainability Indicators" that can employ large data-sets for developing and assessing effective mitigation and adaptation policies. Using the Human and Nature Dynamical Model (HANDY) and Coupled Human-Climate-Water Model (COWA), we carry out experiments with this set of Sustainability Indicators and show that they are applicable to various coupled systems including Population, Climate, Water, Energy, Agriculture, and Economy. Impact of nonrenewable resources and fossil fuels could also be understood using these indicators. We demonstrate interconnections of Ecological and Economic Indicators. Coupled systems often include feedbacks and can thus display counterintuitive dynamics. This makes it difficult for even experts to see coming catastrophes from just the raw data for different variables. Sustainability Indicators boil down the raw data into a set of simple numbers that cross their sustainability thresholds with a large time-lag before variables enter their catastrophic regimes. Therefore, we argue that Sustainability Indicators constitute a powerful but simple set of tools that could be directly used for making policies for sustainability.

A review of human factors challenges of complex adaptive systems: discovering and understanding chaos in human performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Karwowski, Waldemar

2012-12-01

In this paper, the author explores a need for a greater understanding of the true nature of human-system interactions from the perspective of the theory of complex adaptive systems, including the essence of complexity, emergent properties of system behavior, nonlinear systems dynamics, and deterministic chaos. Human performance, more often than not, constitutes complex adaptive phenomena with emergent properties that exhibit nonlinear dynamical (chaotic) behaviors. The complexity challenges in the design and management of contemporary work systems, including service systems, are explored. Examples of selected applications of the concepts of nonlinear dynamics to the study of human physical performance are provided. Understanding and applications of the concepts of theory of complex adaptive and dynamical systems should significantly improve the effectiveness of human-centered design efforts of a large system of systems. Performance of many contemporary work systems and environments may be sensitive to the initial conditions and may exhibit dynamic nonlinear properties and chaotic system behaviors. Human-centered design of emergent human-system interactions requires application of the theories of nonlinear dynamics and complex adaptive system. The success of future human-systems integration efforts requires the fusion of paradigms, knowledge, design principles, and methodologies of human factors and ergonomics with those of the science of complex adaptive systems as well as modern systems engineering.

Cutaneous papules in a patient with AIDS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pascale Quatresooz

2010-01-01

Full Text Available During the past decade or so, the incidence of syphilis has increased in most parts of the world. In some urban regions, a coinfection with human immunodeficiency virus is disclosed in nearly 50% of the cases. Owing to the polymorphism of the lesions, the clinical diagnosis may be puzzling. The homing patterns and migration paths of Treponema pallidum in the skin during early syphilis represent the preliminary steps preceding dissemination to other organs. Immunohistochemistry directed to T. pallidum is a convenient means for reaching the diagnosis and for exploring the dissemination process. The present case illustrates the dermal clustering and the vascular spread of T. pallidum in a woman with acquired immu­no deficiency syndrome.

The Human-Robot Interaction Operating System

Science.gov (United States)

Fong, Terrence; Kunz, Clayton; Hiatt, Laura M.; Bugajska, Magda

2006-01-01

In order for humans and robots to work effectively together, they need to be able to converse about abilities, goals and achievements. Thus, we are developing an interaction infrastructure called the "Human-Robot Interaction Operating System" (HRI/OS). The HRI/OS provides a structured software framework for building human-robot teams, supports a variety of user interfaces, enables humans and robots to engage in task-oriented dialogue, and facilitates integration of robots through an extensible API.

Digital image analysis outperforms manual biomarker assessment in breast cancer

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stålhammar, Gustav; Fuentes Martinez, Nelson; Lippert, Michael

2016-01-01

In the spectrum of breast cancers, categorization according to the four gene expression-based subtypes 'Luminal A,' 'Luminal B,' 'HER2-enriched,' and 'Basal-like' is the method of choice for prognostic and predictive value. As gene expression assays are not yet universally available, routine immu...

S5-4: Formal Modeling of Affordance in Human-Included Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Namhun Kim

2012-10-01

Full Text Available In spite of it being necessary for humans to consider modeling, analysis, and control of human-included systems, it has been considered a challenging problem because of the critical role of humans in complex systems and of humans' capability of executing unanticipated actions–both beneficial and detrimental ones. Thus, to provide systematic approaches to modeling human actions as a part of system behaviors, a formal modeling framework for human-involved systems in which humans play a controlling role based on their perceptual information is presented. The theory of affordance provides definitions of human actions and their associated properties; Finite State Automata (FSA based modeling is capable of mapping nondeterministic humans into computable components in the system representation. In this talk, we investigate the role of perception in human actions in the system operation and examine the representation of perceptual elements in affordance-based modeling formalism. The proposed framework is expected to capture the natural ways in which humans participate in the system as part of its operation. A human-machine cooperative manufacturing system control example and a human agent simulation example will be introduced for the illustrative purposes at the end of the presentation.

Human System Simulation in Support of Human Performance Technical Basis at NPPs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

David Gertman; Katya Le Blanc; alan mecham; william phoenix; Magdy Tawfik; Jeffrey Joe

2010-06-01

This paper focuses on strategies and progress toward establishing the Idaho National Laboratory’s (INL’s) Human Systems Simulator Laboratory at the Center for Advanced Energy Studies (CAES), a consortium of Idaho State Universities. The INL is one of the National Laboratories of the US Department of Energy. One of the first planned applications for the Human Systems Simulator Laboratory is implementation of a dynamic nuclear power plant simulation (NPP) where studies of operator workload, situation awareness, performance and preference will be carried out in simulated control rooms including nuclear power plant control rooms. Simulation offers a means by which to review operational concepts, improve design practices and provide a technical basis for licensing decisions. In preparation for the next generation power plant and current government and industry efforts in support of light water reactor sustainability, human operators will be attached to a suite of physiological measurement instruments and, in combination with traditional Human Factors Measurement techniques, carry out control room tasks in simulated advanced digital and hybrid analog/digital control rooms. The current focus of the Human Systems Simulator Laboratory is building core competence in quantitative and qualitative measurements of situation awareness and workload. Of particular interest is whether introduction of digital systems including automated procedures has the potential to reduce workload and enhance safety while improving situation awareness or whether workload is merely shifted and situation awareness is modified in yet to be determined ways. Data analysis is carried out by engineers and scientists and includes measures of the physical and neurological correlates of human performance. The current approach supports a user-centered design philosophy (see ISO 13407 “Human Centered Design Process for Interactive Systems, 1999) wherein the context for task performance along with the

Human as the chief controller in the complex system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, Yeonsub

2012-01-01

Due to accuracy of measurement and improvement of control logic, human beings are freed from time consuming and repeated task. When there are situations where the control logic cannot calculate the next state of system, human beings interrupt the system and steer the system manually. The most scope of human factors is focused on this interruption, and economists are concern how to present information cognitively and reliably. Fukushima nuclear accident has considered the role of human beings again. Human beings are forced to do something without proper knowledge, procedure, and process information. Thus post Fukushima actions should include how for human beings to be trained and how to get real time information. Finally because safety culture can determine behaviors of human beings, the method to cultivate safety culture should be considered

[Comparison of eight screening tests for ant-HCV antibody].

Science.gov (United States)

Deguchi, Matsuo; Kagita, Masanori; Yamashita, Naoko; Nakano, Takasi; Tahara, Kazuko; Asari, Seishi; Iwatani, Yoshinori

2002-09-01

We compared eight HCV screening tests for detection of anti-HCV antibody; Ortho Quick Chaser HCV Ab (QC), Ortho HCV Ab ELISA III (ELISA), Ortho HVC Ab PA test III (PA), Lumipulse II Ortho HCV (LUMI), IMx HCV.DAINAPACKII (IMx), ARCHITECT HCV (ARCH), Immucheck.F-HCV C50 Ab (Immu), RANREAM HCV Ab Ex II (RAN). Sera from six hundred patients were examined by these eight screening tests. The positive rates of the eight screening tests were from 9.0% to 13.2%. Forty-five sera showed discrepant results between the eight screening tests, and about half of them showed weak positive reaction and/or false positive. Twenty-five of the forty-five sera were negative for ant-HCV antibody in the CHIRON RIBA III confirmatory test, and forty-four of them were negative for HCV-RNA in the PCR method. The agreement rates between the two reagents were from 95.5% to 99.2%, but were not always high between the two reagents that used similar antigen. The specificities and sensitivities evaluated by using the RIBA III confirmatory test were excellent in ELISA, LUMI, IMx, ARCH and Immu. Three BBI seroconversion panels were used to compare the positive readings in the initial stage of HCV infection by eight screening tests. ELISA and ARCH showed the earliest positive readings, and then IMx, LUMI = RAN, PA, QC and Immu in this order. These findings indicate that ELISA and ARCH were the most excellent in the sensitivity, specificity and early diagnosis of HCV infection. However, we must pay attention to the weak positive reaction in the screening tests, because there is a possibility of "false positive".

Human Factors and Their Effects on Human-Centred Assembly Systems - A Literature Review-Based Study

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Q.; Abubakar, M. I.

2017-09-01

If a product has more than one component, then it must be assembled. Assembly of products relies on assembly systems or lines in which assembly of each product is often carried out manually by human workers following assembly sequences in various forms. It is widely understood that efficiency of assembling a product by reducing assembly times (therefore costs) is vital particularly for small and medium-sized manufacturing companies to survive in an increasingly competitive market. Ideally, it is helpful for pre-determining efficiency or productivity of a human-centred assembly system at the early design stage. To date, most research on performance of an assembly system using modelling simulation methods is focused on its “operational functions”. The term used in a narrow sense always indicates the performance of the “operational system”, which does not incorporate the effect of human factors that may also affect the system performance. This paper presents a research outcome of findings through a literature review-based study by identifying possible human factors that mostly affect the performance on human-centred manufacturing systems as part of the research project incorporating parameters of human factors into a DES (discrete event simulation) tool.

Advancing coupled human-earth system models: The integrated Earth System Model Project

Science.gov (United States)

Thomson, A. M.; Edmonds, J. A.; Collins, W.; Thornton, P. E.; Hurtt, G. C.; Janetos, A. C.; Jones, A.; Mao, J.; Chini, L. P.; Calvin, K. V.; Bond-Lamberty, B. P.; Shi, X.

2012-12-01

As human and biogeophysical models develop, opportunities for connections between them evolve and can be used to advance our understanding of human-earth systems interaction in the context of a changing climate. One such integration is taking place with the Community Earth System Model (CESM) and the Global Change Assessment Model (GCAM). A multi-disciplinary, multi-institution team has succeeded in integrating the GCAM integrated assessment model of human activity into CESM to dynamically represent the feedbacks between changing climate and human decision making, in the context of greenhouse gas mitigation policies. The first applications of this capability have focused on the feedbacks between climate change impacts on terrestrial ecosystem productivity and human decisions affecting future land use change, which are in turn connected to human decisions about energy systems and bioenergy production. These experiments have been conducted in the context of the RCP4.5 scenario, one of four pathways of future radiative forcing being used in CMIP5, which constrains future human-induced greenhouse gas emissions from energy and land activities to stabilize radiative forcing at 4.5 W/m2 (~650 ppm CO2 -eq) by 2100. When this pathway is run in GCAM with the climate feedback on terrestrial productivity from CESM, there are implications for both the land use and energy system changes required for stabilization. Early findings indicate that traditional definitions of radiative forcing used in scenario development are missing a critical component of the biogeophysical consequences of land use change and their contribution to effective radiative forcing. Initial full coupling of the two global models has important implications for how climate impacts on terrestrial ecosystems changes the dynamics of future land use change for agriculture and forestry, particularly in the context of a climate mitigation policy designed to reduce emissions from land use as well as energy systems

The shaping of modern human immune systems by multiregional admixture with archaic humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Abi-Rached, Laurent; Jobin, Matthew J; Kulkarni, Subhash; McWhinnie, Alasdair; Dalva, Klara; Gragert, Loren; Babrzadeh, Farbod; Gharizadeh, Baback; Luo, Ma; Plummer, Francis A; Kimani, Joshua; Carrington, Mary; Middleton, Derek; Rajalingam, Raja; Beksac, Meral; Marsh, Steven G E; Maiers, Martin; Guethlein, Lisbeth A; Tavoularis, Sofia; Little, Ann-Margaret; Green, Richard E; Norman, Paul J; Parham, Peter

2011-10-07

Whole genome comparisons identified introgression from archaic to modern humans. Our analysis of highly polymorphic human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I, vital immune system components subject to strong balancing selection, shows how modern humans acquired the HLA-B*73 allele in west Asia through admixture with archaic humans called Denisovans, a likely sister group to the Neandertals. Virtual genotyping of Denisovan and Neandertal genomes identified archaic HLA haplotypes carrying functionally distinctive alleles that have introgressed into modern Eurasian and Oceanian populations. These alleles, of which several encode unique or strong ligands for natural killer cell receptors, now represent more than half the HLA alleles of modern Eurasians and also appear to have been later introduced into Africans. Thus, adaptive introgression of archaic alleles has significantly shaped modern human immune systems.

The Systems Engineering Process for Human Support Technology Development

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Harry

2005-01-01

Systems engineering is designing and optimizing systems. This paper reviews the systems engineering process and indicates how it can be applied in the development of advanced human support systems. Systems engineering develops the performance requirements, subsystem specifications, and detailed designs needed to construct a desired system. Systems design is difficult, requiring both art and science and balancing human and technical considerations. The essential systems engineering activity is trading off and compromising between competing objectives such as performance and cost, schedule and risk. Systems engineering is not a complete independent process. It usually supports a system development project. This review emphasizes the NASA project management process as described in NASA Procedural Requirement (NPR) 7120.5B. The process is a top down phased approach that includes the most fundamental activities of systems engineering - requirements definition, systems analysis, and design. NPR 7120.5B also requires projects to perform the engineering analyses needed to ensure that the system will operate correctly with regard to reliability, safety, risk, cost, and human factors. We review the system development project process, the standard systems engineering design methodology, and some of the specialized systems analysis techniques. We will discuss how they could apply to advanced human support systems development. The purpose of advanced systems development is not directly to supply human space flight hardware, but rather to provide superior candidate systems that will be selected for implementation by future missions. The most direct application of systems engineering is in guiding the development of prototype and flight experiment hardware. However, anticipatory systems engineering of possible future flight systems would be useful in identifying the most promising development projects.

Meaningful Human Control over Autonomous Systems: A Philosophical Account

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Filippo Santoni de Sio

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Debates on lethal autonomous weapon systems have proliferated in the past 5 years. Ethical concerns have been voiced about a possible raise in the number of wrongs and crimes in military operations and about the creation of a “responsibility gap” for harms caused by these systems. To address these concerns, the principle of “meaningful human control” has been introduced in the legal–political debate; according to this principle, humans not computers and their algorithms should ultimately remain in control of, and thus morally responsible for, relevant decisions about (lethal military operations. However, policy-makers and technical designers lack a detailed theory of what “meaningful human control” exactly means. In this paper, we lay the foundation of a philosophical account of meaningful human control, based on the concept of “guidance control” as elaborated in the philosophical debate on free will and moral responsibility. Following the ideals of “Responsible Innovation” and “Value-sensitive Design,” our account of meaningful human control is cast in the form of design requirements. We identify two general necessary conditions to be satisfied for an autonomous system to remain under meaningful human control: first, a “tracking” condition, according to which the system should be able to respond to both the relevant moral reasons of the humans designing and deploying the system and the relevant facts in the environment in which the system operates; second, a “tracing” condition, according to which the system should be designed in such a way as to grant the possibility to always trace back the outcome of its operations to at least one human along the chain of design and operation. As we think that meaningful human control can be one of the central notions in ethics of robotics and AI, in the last part of the paper, we start exploring the implications of our account for the design and use of non

Extended sequence diagram for human system interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, Jong Rok; Choi, Sun Woo; Ko, Hee Ran; Kim, Jong Hyun

2012-01-01

Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a modeling language in the field of object oriented software engineering. The sequence diagram is a kind of interaction diagram that shows how processes operate with one another and in what order. It is a construct of a message sequence chart. It depicts the objects and classes involved in the scenario and the sequence of messages exchanged between the objects needed to carry out the functionality of the scenario. This paper proposes the Extended Sequence Diagram (ESD), which is capable of depicting human system interaction for nuclear power plants, as well as cognitive process of operators analysis. In the conventional sequence diagram, there is a limit to only identify the activities of human and systems interactions. The ESD is extended to describe operators' cognitive process in more detail. The ESD is expected to be used as a task analysis method for describing human system interaction. The ESD can also present key steps causing abnormal operations or failures and diverse human errors based on cognitive condition

The Concept of Human Error and the Design of Reliable Human-Machine Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Jens

1995-01-01

The concept of human error is unreliable as a basis for design of reliable human-machine systems. Humans are basically highly adaptive and 'errors' are closely related to the process of adaptation and learning. Therefore, reliability of system operation depends on an interface that is not designed...... so as to support a pre-conceived operating procedure, but, instead, makes visible the deep, functional structure of the system together with the boundaries of acceptable operation in away that allows operators to 'touch' the boundaries and to learn to cope with the effects of errors in a reversible...... way. The concepts behind such 'ecological' interfaces are discussed, an it is argued that a 'typology' of visualization concepts is a pressing research need....

NASA Space Flight Human-System Standard Human Factors, Habitability, and Environmental Health

Science.gov (United States)

Holubec, Keith; Connolly, Janis

2010-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the history, and development of NASA-STD-3001, NASA Space Flight Human-System Standard Human Factors, Habitability, and Environmental Health, and the related Human Integration Design Handbook. Currently being developed from NASA-STD-3000, this project standard currently in review will be available in two volumes, (i.e., Volume 1 -- VCrew Health and Volume 2 -- Human Factors, Habitability, and Environmental Health) and the handbook will be both available as a pdf file and as a interactive website.

Project and implementation of the human/system interface laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carvalho, Paulo Victor R. de; Obadia, Isaac Jose; Vidal, Mario Cesar Rodriguez

2002-01-01

Analog instrumentation is being increasingly replaced by digital technology in new nuclear power plants, such as Angra III, as well as in existing operating plants, such as Angra I and II, for modernization and life-extension projects. In this new technological environment human factors issues aims to minimize failures in nuclear power plants operation due to human error. It is well known that 30% to 50% of the detected unforeseen problems involve human errors. Presently, human factors issues must be considered during the development of advanced human-system interfaces for the plant. IAEA has considered the importance of those issues and has published TECDOC's and Safety Series Issues on the matter. Thus, there is a need to develop methods and criteria to asses, compare, optimize and validate the human-system interface associated with totally new or hybrid control rooms. Also, the use of computer based operator aids is en evolving area. In order to assist on the development of methods and criteria and to evaluate the effects of the new design concepts and computerized support systems on operator performance, research simulators with advanced control rooms technology, such the IEN's Human System Interface Laboratory, will provide the necessary setting. (author)

Research on operation and maintenance support system adaptive to human recognition and understanding in human-centered plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Numano, Masayoshi; Matsuoka, Takeshi; Mitomo, N.

2004-01-01

As a human-centered plant, advanced nuclear power plant needs appropriate role sharing between human and mobile intelligent agents. Human-machine cooperation for plant operation and maintenance activities is also required with an advanced interface. Plant's maintenance is programmed using mobile robots working under the radiation environments instead of human beings. Operation and maintenance support system adaptive to human recognition and understanding should be developed to establish adequate human and machine interface so as to induce human capabilities to the full and enable human to take responsibility for plan's operation. Plant's operation and maintenance can be cooperative activities between human and intelligent automonous agents having surveillance and control functions. Infrastructure of multi-agent simulation system for the support system has been investigated and developed based on work plans derived from the scheduler. (T. Tanaka)

Human Performance Considerations for Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS)

Science.gov (United States)

Shively, R. Jay; Hobbs, Alan; Lyall, Beth; Rorie, Conrad

2015-01-01

Successful integration of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) into civil airspace will not only require solutions to technical challenges, but will also require that the design and operation of RPAS take into account human limitations and capabilities. Human factors can affect overall system performance whenever the system relies on people to interact with another element of the system. Four types of broad interactions can be described. These are (1) interactions between people and hardware, such as controls and displays; (2) human use of procedures and documentation; (3) impact of the task environment, including lighting, noise and monotony; and lastly, (4) interactions between operational personnel, including communication and coordination. In addition to the human factors that have been identified for conventional aviation, RPAS operations introduce a set of unique human challenges. The purpose of document is to raise human factors issues for consideration by workgroups of the ICAO RPAS panel as they work to develop guidance material and additions to ICAO annexes. It is anticipated that the content of this document will be revised and updated as the work of the panel progresses.

Sensorimotor learning configures the human mirror system.

Science.gov (United States)

Catmur, Caroline; Walsh, Vincent; Heyes, Cecilia

2007-09-04

Cells in the "mirror system" fire not only when an individual performs an action but also when one observes the same action performed by another agent [1-4]. The mirror system, found in premotor and parietal cortices of human and monkey brains, is thought to provide the foundation for social understanding and to enable the development of theory of mind and language [5-9]. However, it is unclear how mirror neurons acquire their mirror properties -- how they derive the information necessary to match observed with executed actions [10]. We address this by showing that it is possible to manipulate the selectivity of the human mirror system, and thereby make it operate as a countermirror system, by giving participants training to perform one action while observing another. Before this training, participants showed event-related muscle-specific responses to transcranial magnetic stimulation over motor cortex during observation of little- and index-finger movements [11-13]. After training, this normal mirror effect was reversed. These results indicate that the mirror properties of the mirror system are neither wholly innate [14] nor fixed once acquired; instead they develop through sensorimotor learning [15, 16]. Our findings indicate that the human mirror system is, to some extent, both a product and a process of social interaction.

Human-computer interaction and management information systems

CERN Document Server

Galletta, Dennis F

2014-01-01

""Human-Computer Interaction and Management Information Systems: Applications"" offers state-of-the-art research by a distinguished set of authors who span the MIS and HCI fields. The original chapters provide authoritative commentaries and in-depth descriptions of research programs that will guide 21st century scholars, graduate students, and industry professionals. Human-Computer Interaction (or Human Factors) in MIS is concerned with the ways humans interact with information, technologies, and tasks, especially in business, managerial, organizational, and cultural contexts. It is distinctiv

Some factors associated with non-acceptance of measles ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Data from a child health survey in Chikwawa District was used to investigate characteristics of non-acceptance of measles immu- nization. 9.3% of the children with vaccination cards had not been vaccinated. Distance to a static health centre and failure to attend a growth monitoring clinic were predictors of lack of immuniza-.

Camera systems in human motion analysis for biomedical applications

Science.gov (United States)

Chin, Lim Chee; Basah, Shafriza Nisha; Yaacob, Sazali; Juan, Yeap Ewe; Kadir, Aida Khairunnisaa Ab.

2015-05-01

Human Motion Analysis (HMA) system has been one of the major interests among researchers in the field of computer vision, artificial intelligence and biomedical engineering and sciences. This is due to its wide and promising biomedical applications, namely, bio-instrumentation for human computer interfacing and surveillance system for monitoring human behaviour as well as analysis of biomedical signal and image processing for diagnosis and rehabilitation applications. This paper provides an extensive review of the camera system of HMA, its taxonomy, including camera types, camera calibration and camera configuration. The review focused on evaluating the camera system consideration of the HMA system specifically for biomedical applications. This review is important as it provides guidelines and recommendation for researchers and practitioners in selecting a camera system of the HMA system for biomedical applications.

Investigation of human system interface design in nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feng Yan; Zhang Yunbo; Wang Zhongqiu

2012-01-01

The paper introduces the importance of HFE in designing nuclear power plant, and introduces briefly the content and scope of HFE, discusses human system interface design of new built nuclear power plants. This paper also describes human system interface design of foreign nuclear power plant, and describes in detail human system interface design of domestic nuclear power plant. (authors)

A Model-based Framework for Risk Assessment in Human-Computer Controlled Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Hatanaka, Iwao

2000-01-01

The rapid growth of computer technology and innovation has played a significant role in the rise of computer automation of human tasks in modem production systems across all industries. Although the rationale for automation has been to eliminate "human error" or to relieve humans from manual repetitive tasks, various computer-related hazards and accidents have emerged as a direct result of increased system complexity attributed to computer automation. The risk assessment techniques utilized for electromechanical systems are not suitable for today's software-intensive systems or complex human-computer controlled systems. This thesis will propose a new systemic model-based framework for analyzing risk in safety-critical systems where both computers and humans are controlling safety-critical functions. A new systems accident model will be developed based upon modem systems theory and human cognitive processes to better characterize system accidents, the role of human operators, and the influence of software in its direct control of significant system functions. Better risk assessments will then be achievable through the application of this new framework to complex human-computer controlled systems.

Human-system safety methods for development of advanced air traffic management systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, William R.

1999-01-01

The Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) is supporting the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in the development of advanced air traffic management (ATM) systems as part of the Advanced Air Transportation Technologies program. As part of this program INEEL conducted a survey of human-system safety methods that have been applied to complex technical systems, to identify lessons learned from these applications and provide recommendations for the development of advanced ATM systems. The domains that were surveyed included offshore oil and gas, commercial nuclear power, commercial aviation, and military. The survey showed that widely different approaches are used in these industries, and that the methods used range from very high-level, qualitative approaches to very detailed quantitative methods such as human reliability analysis (HRA) and probabilistic safety assessment (PSA). In addition, the industries varied widely in how effectively they incorporate human-system safety assessment in the design, development, and testing of complex technical systems. In spite of the lack of uniformity in the approaches and methods used, it was found that methods are available that can be combined and adapted to support the development of advanced air traffic management systems (author) (ml)

Economics of human performance and systems total ownership cost.

Science.gov (United States)

Onkham, Wilawan; Karwowski, Waldemar; Ahram, Tareq Z

2012-01-01

Financial costs of investing in people is associated with training, acquisition, recruiting, and resolving human errors have a significant impact on increased total ownership costs. These costs can also affect the exaggerate budgets and delayed schedules. The study of human performance economical assessment in the system acquisition process enhances the visibility of hidden cost drivers which support program management informed decisions. This paper presents the literature review of human total ownership cost (HTOC) and cost impacts on overall system performance. Economic value assessment models such as cost benefit analysis, risk-cost tradeoff analysis, expected value of utility function analysis (EV), growth readiness matrix, multi-attribute utility technique, and multi-regressions model were introduced to reflect the HTOC and human performance-technology tradeoffs in terms of the dollar value. The human total ownership regression model introduces to address the influencing human performance cost component measurement. Results from this study will increase understanding of relevant cost drivers in the system acquisition process over the long term.

Human-Systems Integration (HSI) Methodology Development for NASA

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Human-Systems Integration (HSI) refers to design activities associated with ensuring that manpower, personnel, training, human factors engineering, safety, health...

Delay effects in the human sensory system during balancing.

Science.gov (United States)

Stepan, Gabor

2009-03-28

Mechanical models of human self-balancing often use the Newtonian equations of inverted pendula. While these mathematical models are precise enough on the mechanical side, the ways humans balance themselves are still quite unexplored on the control side. Time delays in the sensory and motoric neural pathways give essential limitations to the stabilization of the human body as a multiple inverted pendulum. The sensory systems supporting each other provide the necessary signals for these control tasks; but the more complicated the system is, the larger delay is introduced. Human ageing as well as our actual physical and mental state affects the time delays in the neural system, and the mechanical structure of the human body also changes in a large range during our lives. The human balancing organ, the labyrinth, and the vision system essentially adapted to these relatively large time delays and parameter regions occurring during balancing. The analytical study of the simplified large-scale time-delayed models of balancing provides a Newtonian insight into the functioning of these organs that may also serve as a basis to support theories and hypotheses on balancing and vision.

Human-computer systems interaction backgrounds and applications 3

CERN Document Server

Kulikowski, Juliusz; Mroczek, Teresa; Wtorek, Jerzy

2014-01-01

This book contains an interesting and state-of the art collection of papers on the recent progress in Human-Computer System Interaction (H-CSI). It contributes the profound description of the actual status of the H-CSI field and also provides a solid base for further development and research in the discussed area. The contents of the book are divided into the following parts: I. General human-system interaction problems; II. Health monitoring and disabled people helping systems; and III. Various information processing systems. This book is intended for a wide audience of readers who are not necessarily experts in computer science, machine learning or knowledge engineering, but are interested in Human-Computer Systems Interaction. The level of particular papers and specific spreading-out into particular parts is a reason why this volume makes fascinating reading. This gives the reader a much deeper insight than he/she might glean from research papers or talks at conferences. It touches on all deep issues that ...

Essential technologies for developing human and robot collaborative system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishikawa, Nobuyuki; Suzuki, Katsuo

1997-10-01

In this study, we aim to develop a concept of new robot system, i.e., 'human and robot collaborative system', for the patrol of nuclear power plants. This paper deals with the two essential technologies developed for the system. One is the autonomous navigation program with human intervention function which is indispensable for human and robot collaboration. The other is the position estimation method by using gyroscope and TV image to make the estimation accuracy much higher for safe navigation. Feasibility of the position estimation method is evaluated by experiment and numerical simulation. (author)

Human factors programs for high-level radioactive waste handling systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pond, D.J.

1992-04-01

Human Factors is the discipline concerned with the acquisition of knowledge about human capabilities and limitations, and the application of such knowledge to the design of systems. This paper discusses the range of human factors issues relevant to high-level radioactive waste (HLRW) management systems and, based on examples from other organizations, presents mechanisms through which to assure application of such expertise in the safe, efficient, and effective management and disposal of high-level waste. Additionally, specific attention is directed toward consideration of who might be classified as a human factors specialist, why human factors expertise is critical to the success of the HLRW management system, and determining when human factors specialists should become involved in the design and development process

Human factors programs for high-level radioactive waste handling systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pond, D.J.

1992-01-01

Human Factors is the discipline concerned with the acquisition of knowledge about human capabilities and limitations, and the application of such knowledge to the design of systems. This paper discusses the range of human factors issues relevant to high-level radioactive waste (HLRW) management systems and, based on examples form other organizations, presents mechanisms through which to assure application of such expertise in the safe, efficient, and effective management and disposal of high-level waste. Additionally, specific attention is directed toward consideration of who might be classified as a human factors specialist, why human factors expertise is critical to the success of the HLRW management system, and determining when human factors specialists should become involved in the design and development process

MERIP - Design of Production Systems with focus on Human Ressources

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jacobsen, Peter; Knudsen, Mads Kristian Lund

1998-01-01

", "Employee-activated Production Development - MAPU", "Integrated Production Systems - IPS" and "Strategic Development of Staff - SUM". MERIP (Human resources in production) is a continuation of this type of projects, aiming at increasing the competitive power of the companies. However MERIP scientists want...... to involve the human resources in the production in new ways. Therefore the objective of the project is to develop methods for design of production systems, that use every possibility in human resources supported by the technology aiming at increasing the competitive power of the companies. The task force......The way in which the Industry has involved the human resources in production systems, has changed in last decades. Previously the human resources were mainly considered as means to link together the technical systems, while today they are key resources responsible for development, planning...

A REVIEW ON LOWER APPENDICULAR MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM OF HUMAN BODY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Akhtaruzzaman

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Rehabilitation engineering plays an important role in designing various autonomous robots to provide better therapeutic exercise to disabled patients. Hence it is necessary to study human musculoskeletal system and also needs to be presented in scientific manner in order to describe and analyze the biomechanics of human body motion. This review focuses on lower appendicular musculoskeletal structure of human body to represent joints and links architectures; to identify muscle attachments and functions; and to illustrate muscle groups which are responsible for a particular joint movement. Firstly, human lower skeletal structure, linking systems, joint mechanisms, and their functions are described with a conceptual representation of joint architecture of human skeleton. This section also represents joints and limbs by comparing with mechanical systems. Characteristics of ligaments and their functions to construct skeletal joints are also discussed briefly in this part. Secondly, the study focuses on muscular system of human lower limbs where muscle structure, functions, roles in moving endoskeleton structure, and supporting mechanisms are presented ellaborately. Thirdly, muscle groups are tabulated based on functions that provide mobility to different joints of lower limbs. Finally, for a particular movement action of lower extremity, muscles are also grouped and tabulated to have a better understanding on functions of individual muscle. Basically the study presents an overview of the structure of human lower limbs by characterizing and classifying skeletal and muscular systems.KEYWORDS:   Musculoskeletal system; Human lower limbs; Muscle groups; Joint motion; Biomechatronics; Rehabilitation.

Constellation Program Human-System Integration Requirements. Revision E, Nov. 19, 2010

Science.gov (United States)

Dory, Jonathan

2010-01-01

The Human-Systems Integration Requirements (HSIR) in this document drive the design of space vehicles, their systems, and equipment with which humans interface in the Constellation Program (CxP). These requirements ensure that the design of Constellation (Cx) systems is centered on the needs, capabilities, and limitations of the human. The HSIR provides requirements to ensure proper integration of human-to-system interfaces. These requirements apply to all mission phases, including pre-launch, ascent, Earth orbit, trans-lunar flight, lunar orbit, lunar landing, lunar ascent, Earth return, Earth entry, Earth landing, post-landing, and recovery. The Constellation Program must meet NASA's Agency-level human rating requirements, which are intended to ensure crew survival without permanent disability. The HSIR provides a key mechanism for achieving human rating of Constellation systems.

Protein phosphorylation systems in postmortem human brain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walaas, S.I.; Perdahl-Wallace, E.; Winblad, B.; Greengard, P.

1989-01-01

Protein phosphorylation systems regulated by cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cyclic AMP), or calcium in conjunction with calmodulin or phospholipid/diacylglycerol, have been studied by phosphorylation in vitro of particulate and soluble fractions from human postmortem brain samples. One-dimensional or two-dimensional gel electrophoretic protein separations were used for analysis. Protein phosphorylation catalyzed by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase was found to be highly active in both particulate and soluble preparations throughout the human CNS, with groups of both widely distributed and region-specific substrates being observed in different brain nuclei. Dopamine-innervated parts of the basal ganglia and cerebral cortex contained the phosphoproteins previously observed in rodent basal ganglia. In contrast, calcium/phospholipid-dependent and calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein phosphorylation systems were less prominent in human postmortem brain than in rodent brain, and only a few widely distributed substrates for these protein kinases were found. Protein staining indicated that postmortem proteolysis, particularly of high-molecular-mass proteins, was prominent in deeply located, subcortical regions in the human brain. Our results indicate that it is feasible to use human postmortem brain samples, when obtained under carefully controlled conditions, for qualitative studies on brain protein phosphorylation. Such studies should be of value in studies on human neurological and/or psychiatric disorders

Evaluating Models of Human Performance: Safety-Critical Systems Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Feary, Michael S.

2012-01-01

This presentation is part of panel discussion on Evaluating Models of Human Performance. The purpose of this panel is to discuss the increasing use of models in the world today and specifically focus on how to describe and evaluate models of human performance. My presentation will focus on discussions of generating distributions of performance, and the evaluation of different strategies for humans performing tasks with mixed initiative (Human-Automation) systems. I will also discuss issues with how to provide Human Performance modeling data to support decisions on acceptability and tradeoffs in the design of safety critical systems. I will conclude with challenges for the future.

An intelligent multi-media human-computer dialogue system

Science.gov (United States)

Neal, J. G.; Bettinger, K. E.; Byoun, J. S.; Dobes, Z.; Thielman, C. Y.

1988-01-01

Sophisticated computer systems are being developed to assist in the human decision-making process for very complex tasks performed under stressful conditions. The human-computer interface is a critical factor in these systems. The human-computer interface should be simple and natural to use, require a minimal learning period, assist the user in accomplishing his task(s) with a minimum of distraction, present output in a form that best conveys information to the user, and reduce cognitive load for the user. In pursuit of this ideal, the Intelligent Multi-Media Interfaces project is devoted to the development of interface technology that integrates speech, natural language text, graphics, and pointing gestures for human-computer dialogues. The objective of the project is to develop interface technology that uses the media/modalities intelligently in a flexible, context-sensitive, and highly integrated manner modelled after the manner in which humans converse in simultaneous coordinated multiple modalities. As part of the project, a knowledge-based interface system, called CUBRICON (CUBRC Intelligent CONversationalist) is being developed as a research prototype. The application domain being used to drive the research is that of military tactical air control.

A new method to evaluate human-robot system performance

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez, G.; Weisbin, C. R.

2003-01-01

One of the key issues in space exploration is that of deciding what space tasks are best done with humans, with robots, or a suitable combination of each. In general, human and robot skills are complementary. Humans provide as yet unmatched capabilities to perceive, think, and act when faced with anomalies and unforeseen events, but there can be huge potential risks to human safety in getting these benefits. Robots provide complementary skills in being able to work in extremely risky environments, but their ability to perceive, think, and act by themselves is currently not error-free, although these capabilities are continually improving with the emergence of new technologies. Substantial past experience validates these generally qualitative notions. However, there is a need for more rigorously systematic evaluation of human and robot roles, in order to optimize the design and performance of human-robot system architectures using well-defined performance evaluation metrics. This article summarizes a new analytical method to conduct such quantitative evaluations. While the article focuses on evaluating human-robot systems, the method is generally applicable to a much broader class of systems whose performance needs to be evaluated.

Guidelines for system modeling: pre-accident human errors, rev.0

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, Dae Il; Jung, W. D.; Lee, Y. H.; Hwang, M. J.; Yang, J. E

2004-01-01

The evaluation results of Human Reliability Analysis (HRA) of pre-accident human errors in the probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) for the Korea Standard Nuclear Power Plant (KSNP) using the ASME PRA standard show that more than 50% of 10 items to be improved are related to the identification and screening analysis for them. Thus, we developed a guideline for modeling pre-accident human errors for the system analyst to resolve some items to be improved for them. The developed guideline consists of modeling criteria for the pre-accident human errors (identification, qualitative screening, and common restoration errors) and detailed guidelines for pre-accident human errors relating to testing, maintenance, and calibration works of nuclear power plants (NPPs). The system analyst use the developed guideline and he or she applies it to the system which he or she takes care of. The HRA analyst review the application results of the system analyst. We applied the developed guideline to the auxiliary feed water system of the KSNP to show the usefulness of it. The application results of the developed guideline show that more than 50% of the items to be improved for pre-accident human errors of auxiliary feed water system are resolved. The guideline for modeling pre-accident human errors developed in this study can be used for other NPPs as well as the KSNP. It is expected that both use of the detailed procedure, to be developed in the future, for the quantification of pre-accident human errors and the guideline developed in this study will greatly enhance the PSA quality in the HRA of pre-accident human errors.

Guidelines for system modeling: pre-accident human errors, rev.0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Dae Il; Jung, W. D.; Lee, Y. H.; Hwang, M. J.; Yang, J. E.

2004-01-01

The evaluation results of Human Reliability Analysis (HRA) of pre-accident human errors in the probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) for the Korea Standard Nuclear Power Plant (KSNP) using the ASME PRA standard show that more than 50% of 10 items to be improved are related to the identification and screening analysis for them. Thus, we developed a guideline for modeling pre-accident human errors for the system analyst to resolve some items to be improved for them. The developed guideline consists of modeling criteria for the pre-accident human errors (identification, qualitative screening, and common restoration errors) and detailed guidelines for pre-accident human errors relating to testing, maintenance, and calibration works of nuclear power plants (NPPs). The system analyst use the developed guideline and he or she applies it to the system which he or she takes care of. The HRA analyst review the application results of the system analyst. We applied the developed guideline to the auxiliary feed water system of the KSNP to show the usefulness of it. The application results of the developed guideline show that more than 50% of the items to be improved for pre-accident human errors of auxiliary feed water system are resolved. The guideline for modeling pre-accident human errors developed in this study can be used for other NPPs as well as the KSNP. It is expected that both use of the detailed procedure, to be developed in the future, for the quantification of pre-accident human errors and the guideline developed in this study will greatly enhance the PSA quality in the HRA of pre-accident human errors

Validation of human factor engineering integrated system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fang Zhou

2013-01-01

Apart from hundreds of thousands of human-machine interface resources, the control room of a nuclear power plant is a complex system integrated with many factors such as procedures, operators, environment, organization and management. In the design stage, these factors are considered by different organizations separately. However, whether above factors could corporate with each other well in operation and whether they have good human factors engineering (HFE) design to avoid human error, should be answered in validation of the HFE integrated system before delivery of the plant. This paper addresses the research and implementation of the ISV technology based on case study. After introduction of the background, process and methodology of ISV, the results of the test are discussed. At last, lessons learned from this research are summarized. (authors)

Human factors evaluation of teletherapy: Human-system interfaces and procedures. Volume 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaye, R.D.; Henriksen, K.; Jones, R.; Morisseau, D.S.; Serig, D.I.

1995-07-01

A series of human factors evaluations was undertaken to better understand the contributing factors to human error in the teletherapy environment. Teletherapy is a multidisciplinary methodology for treating cancerous tissue through selective exposure to an external beam of ionizing radiation. The principal sources of radiation are a radioactive isotope, typically cobalt60 (Co-60), or a linear accelerator device capable of producing very high energy x-ray and electron beams. A team of human factors specialists conducted site visits to radiation oncology departments at community hospitals, university centers, and free-standing clinics. In addition, a panel of radiation oncologists, medical physicists, and radiation technologists served as subject matter experts. A function and task analysis was initially performed to guide subsequent evaluations in the areas of user-system interfaces, procedures, training and qualifications, and organizational policies and practices. The present report focuses on an evaluation of the human-system interfaces in relation to the treatment machines and supporting equipment (e.g., simulators, treatment planning computers, control consoles, patient charts) found in the teletherapy environment. The report also evaluates operating, maintenance and emergency procedures and practices involved in teletherapy. The evaluations are based on the function and task analysis and established human engineering guidelines, where applicable

Human factors evaluation of teletherapy: Human-system interfaces and procedures. Volume 3

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kaye, R.D.; Henriksen, K.; Jones, R. [Hughes Training, Inc., Falls Church, VA (United States); Morisseau, D.S.; Serig, D.I. [Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States). Div. of Systems Technology

1995-07-01

A series of human factors evaluations was undertaken to better understand the contributing factors to human error in the teletherapy environment. Teletherapy is a multidisciplinary methodology for treating cancerous tissue through selective exposure to an external beam of ionizing radiation. The principal sources of radiation are a radioactive isotope, typically cobalt60 (Co-60), or a linear accelerator device capable of producing very high energy x-ray and electron beams. A team of human factors specialists conducted site visits to radiation oncology departments at community hospitals, university centers, and free-standing clinics. In addition, a panel of radiation oncologists, medical physicists, and radiation technologists served as subject matter experts. A function and task analysis was initially performed to guide subsequent evaluations in the areas of user-system interfaces, procedures, training and qualifications, and organizational policies and practices. The present report focuses on an evaluation of the human-system interfaces in relation to the treatment machines and supporting equipment (e.g., simulators, treatment planning computers, control consoles, patient charts) found in the teletherapy environment. The report also evaluates operating, maintenance and emergency procedures and practices involved in teletherapy. The evaluations are based on the function and task analysis and established human engineering guidelines, where applicable.

Unmanned systems to support the human exploration of Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Gage, Douglas W.

2010-04-01

Robots and other unmanned systems will play many critical roles in support of a human presence on Mars, including surveying candidate landing sites, locating ice and mineral resources, establishing power and other infrastructure, performing construction tasks, and transporting equipment and supplies. Many of these systems will require much more strength and power than exploration rovers. The presence of humans on Mars will permit proactive maintenance and repair, and allow teleoperation and operator intervention, supporting multiple dynamic levels of autonomy, so the critical challenges to the use of unmanned systems will occur before humans arrive on Mars. Nevertheless, installed communications and navigation infrastructure should be able to support structured and/or repetitive operations (such as excavation, drilling, or construction) within a "familiar" area with an acceptable level of remote operator intervention. This paper discusses some of the factors involved in developing and deploying unmanned systems to make humans' time on Mars safer and more productive, efficient, and enjoyable.

Computational Human Performance Modeling For Alarm System Design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jacques Hugo

2012-07-01

The introduction of new technologies like adaptive automation systems and advanced alarms processing and presentation techniques in nuclear power plants is already having an impact on the safety and effectiveness of plant operations and also the role of the control room operator. This impact is expected to escalate dramatically as more and more nuclear power utilities embark on upgrade projects in order to extend the lifetime of their plants. One of the most visible impacts in control rooms will be the need to replace aging alarm systems. Because most of these alarm systems use obsolete technologies, the methods, techniques and tools that were used to design the previous generation of alarm system designs are no longer effective and need to be updated. The same applies to the need to analyze and redefine operators’ alarm handling tasks. In the past, methods for analyzing human tasks and workload have relied on crude, paper-based methods that often lacked traceability. New approaches are needed to allow analysts to model and represent the new concepts of alarm operation and human-system interaction. State-of-the-art task simulation tools are now available that offer a cost-effective and efficient method for examining the effect of operator performance in different conditions and operational scenarios. A discrete event simulation system was used by human factors researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory to develop a generic alarm handling model to examine the effect of operator performance with simulated modern alarm system. It allowed analysts to evaluate alarm generation patterns as well as critical task times and human workload predicted by the system.

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM DESIGN AT HUMAN RESOURCES DIVISION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yanti Yanti

2009-05-01

Full Text Available The Human Resources Division of a company is a vital division. Most of the time, they perform their work manually, and therefore creating limitations to their capacity. The knowledge contained is very important for human resources development and subsequently for developing the company. In order to manage this knowledge well, the company shall require a knowledge management system. This knowledge management system would be a solution to be used for the company to manage all knowledge contained in that particular division. Phases in designing knowledge managements starts from analyzing knowledge sources of the company, knowledge identification and definition, and determining knowledge goals. Knowledge management systems contain many functions such as collecting, recording and managing the knowledge and sharing this to all related employees easily. The company may also use knowledge management systems to share and inform employees regarding updates of information, news and/or activity regarding the employees themselves. Information from knowledge management systems may also be used by employees to monitor their performance and thereby increasing it. Knowledge management systems may also help employees in their learning activities.Keywords: knowledge management, human resources, employee

Improving Human/Autonomous System Teaming Through Linguistic Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Meszaros, Erica L.

2016-01-01

An area of increasing interest for the next generation of aircraft is autonomy and the integration of increasingly autonomous systems into the national airspace. Such integration requires humans to work closely with autonomous systems, forming human and autonomous agent teams. The intention behind such teaming is that a team composed of both humans and autonomous agents will operate better than homogenous teams. Procedures exist for licensing pilots to operate in the national airspace system and current work is being done to define methods for validating the function of autonomous systems, however there is no method in place for assessing the interaction of these two disparate systems. Moreover, currently these systems are operated primarily by subject matter experts, limiting their use and the benefits of such teams. Providing additional information about the ongoing mission to the operator can lead to increased usability and allow for operation by non-experts. Linguistic analysis of the context of verbal communication provides insight into the intended meaning of commonly heard phrases such as "What's it doing now?" Analyzing the semantic sphere surrounding these common phrases enables the prediction of the operator's intent and allows the interface to supply the operator's desired information.

The human factor data management system of Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Li; Zhang Ning; Guo Jianbing; Huang Weigang; Zhu Minhong; Wang Jin

1999-12-01

The collection, analysis and quantification of human factor data are very important parts of human reliability analysis and probabilistic risk assessment. Therefore various human databases have been created. But a human data management system with the functions of data collection, classification, analysis, computation and forecast is scarcely seen at home and abroad. So the authors have developed the human data management system of Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station. The system includes three modules and four databases. The authors firstly set forth some basic problems on the human factor data, which are concerned during the development of the system. Then the structure and function of the system are described. In view of the important role of human factor databases in the system, the authors also discuss the structure problems of the data in the databases in detail

Enhanced/Synthetic Vision Systems - Human factors research and implications for future systems

Science.gov (United States)

Foyle, David C.; Ahumada, Albert J.; Larimer, James; Sweet, Barbara T.

1992-01-01

This paper reviews recent human factors research studies conducted in the Aerospace Human Factors Research Division at NASA Ames Research Center related to the development and usage of Enhanced or Synthetic Vision Systems. Research discussed includes studies of field of view (FOV), representational differences of infrared (IR) imagery, head-up display (HUD) symbology, HUD advanced concept designs, sensor fusion, and sensor/database fusion and evaluation. Implications for the design and usage of Enhanced or Synthetic Vision Systems are discussed.

CORRELATION BETWEEN HUMAN NEEDS SYSTEM - PERSONALITY - HUMAN MOTIVATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mirela MINICA

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The article highlights the main attributes of an economic approach of needs and preferences, with detailed focus on the correlation between meta-needs and personality, by correlating the principle of hierarchy established by Maslow with the balance theory. Adopting an integrated system of human capital motivation, which takes into account the complex aspects involved in the knowledge society, represents a managerial requirement for any organisation.

Informal Justice Systems: Charting a Course for Human Rights-Based Engagement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kerrigan, Fergus; McKay, Anne Louise; Kristiansen, Annali

engagement with informal justice systems can build greater respect and protection for human rights. It highlights the considerations that development partners should have when assessing whether to implement programmes involving informal justice systems, the primary consideration being that engagement......Providing accessible justice is a state obligation under international human rights standards, but this obligation does not require that all justice be provided through formal justice systems. If done in ways to respect and uphold human rights, the provision of justice through informal justice...... systems is not against human rights standards and can be a mechanism to enhance the fulfilment of human rights obligations by delivering accessible justice to individuals and communities where the formal justice system does not have the capacity or geographical reach. This study seeks to identify how...

A compact human-powered energy harvesting system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rao, Yuan; McEachern, Kelly M; Arnold, David P

2013-01-01

This paper presents a fully functional, self-sufficient body-worn energy harvesting system for passively capturing energy from human motion, with the long-term vision of supplying power to portable, wearable, or even implanted electronic devices. The system requires no external power supplies and can bootstrap from zero-state-of-charge to generate electrical energy from walking, jogging and cycling; convert the induced ac voltage to a dc voltage; and then boost and regulate the dc voltage to charge a Li-ion-polymer battery. Tested under normal human activities (walking, jogging, cycling) when worn on different parts of the body, the 70 cm 3 system is shown to charge a 3.7 V rechargeable battery at charge rates ranging from 33 μW to 234 μW

Human care system for heart-rate and human-movement trajectory in home and its application to detect mental disease

Science.gov (United States)

Hata, Yutaka; Kanazawa, Seigo; Endo, Maki; Tsuchiya, Naoki; Nakajima, Hiroshi

2012-06-01

This paper proposes a heart rate monitoring system for detecting autonomic nervous system by the heart rate variability using an air pressure sensor to diagnose mental disease. Moreover, we propose a human behavior monitoring system for detecting the human trajectory in home by an infrared camera. In day and night times, the human behavior monitoring system detects the human movement in home. The heart rate monitoring system detects the heart rate in bed in night time. The air pressure sensor consists of a rubber tube, cushion cover and pressure sensor, and it detects the heart rate by setting it to bed. It unconstraintly detects the RR-intervals; thereby the autonomic nervous system can be assessed. The autonomic nervous system analysis can examine the mental disease. While, the human behavior monitoring system obtains distance distribution image by an infrared camera. It classifies adult, child and the other object from distance distribution obtained by the camera, and records their trajectories. This behavior, i.e., trajectory in home, strongly corresponds to cognitive disorders. Thus, the total system can detect mental disease and cognitive disorders by uncontacted sensors to human body.

Personnel Selection Influences on Remotely Piloted Aircraft Human-System Integration.

Science.gov (United States)

Carretta, Thomas R; King, Raymond E

2015-08-01

Human-system integration (HSI) is a complex process used to design and develop systems that integrate human capabilities and limitations in an effective and affordable manner. Effective HSI incorporates several domains, including manpower, personnel and training, human factors, environment, safety, occupational health, habitability, survivability, logistics, intelligence, mobility, and command and control. To achieve effective HSI, the relationships among these domains must be considered. Although this integrated approach is well documented, there are many instances where it is not followed. Human factors engineers typically focus on system design with little attention to the skills, abilities, and other characteristics needed by human operators. When problems with fielded systems occur, additional training of personnel is developed and conducted. Personnel selection is seldom considered during the HSI process. Complex systems such as aviation require careful selection of the individuals who will interact with the system. Personnel selection is a two-stage process involving select-in and select-out procedures. Select-in procedures determine which candidates have the aptitude to profit from training and represent the best investment. Select-out procedures focus on medical qualification and determine who should not enter training for medical reasons. The current paper discusses the role of personnel selection in the HSI process in the context of remotely piloted aircraft systems.

Signed language and human action processing: evidence for functional constraints on the human mirror-neuron system.

Science.gov (United States)

Corina, David P; Knapp, Heather Patterson

2008-12-01

In the quest to further understand the neural underpinning of human communication, researchers have turned to studies of naturally occurring signed languages used in Deaf communities. The comparison of the commonalities and differences between spoken and signed languages provides an opportunity to determine core neural systems responsible for linguistic communication independent of the modality in which a language is expressed. The present article examines such studies, and in addition asks what we can learn about human languages by contrasting formal visual-gestural linguistic systems (signed languages) with more general human action perception. To understand visual language perception, it is important to distinguish the demands of general human motion processing from the highly task-dependent demands associated with extracting linguistic meaning from arbitrary, conventionalized gestures. This endeavor is particularly important because theorists have suggested close homologies between perception and production of actions and functions of human language and social communication. We review recent behavioral, functional imaging, and neuropsychological studies that explore dissociations between the processing of human actions and signed languages. These data suggest incomplete overlap between the mirror-neuron systems proposed to mediate human action and language.

Human Systems Roadmap Review

Science.gov (United States)

2016-02-09

Impact of Human Systems Community of Interest D O T M L P F $450M COI Budget Has Broad Impact in Several DOTMLPF Areas Decision Making Selection...and fit to a military career. • 26 personality dimensions such as optimism, excitement seeking, and non- delinquency • Applicant chooses from...Adaptive Collaborative Control Technologies ( IMPACT ) architecture designed • IMPACT “DoD Virtual Lab” established (Year 1) • 1 operator x 6 vehicles

Aquarium Viromes: Viromes of Human-Managed Aquatic Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Yiseul; Van Bonn, William; Aw, Tiong G.; Rose, Joan B.

2017-01-01

An aquarium ecosystem is home to many animal species providing conditions similar to native aquatic habitats but under highly controlled management. With a growing interest in understanding the interaction of microbiomes and resident animal health within aquarium environments, we undertook a metagenomic survey of viromes in seven aquarium systems with differing physicochemical and resident animal profiles. Our results show that a diverse array of viruses was represented in aquarium viromes, many of which were widespread in different aquarium systems (27 common viral families in all of the aquarium systems). Most viromes were dominated by DNA phages of the order Caudovirales as commonly found in other aquatic environments with average relative abundance greater than 64%. The composition and structure of aquarium viromes were associated with controlled system parameters, including nitrate, salinity, and temperature as well as resident animal profiles, indicating the close interaction of viromes with aquarium management practices. Furthermore, finding human associated viruses in a touch exhibit suggested that exposure of aquarium systems to human contact may lead to introduction of human cutaneous viruses into aquaria. This is consistent with the high abundance of skin microflora on the palms of healthy individuals and their detection in recreational waters, such as swimming pools. Lastly, assessment of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in aquarium viromes revealed a unique signature of ARGs in different aquarium systems with trimethoprim being the most common. This is the first study to provide vital information on viromes and their unique relationships with management practices in a human-built and controlled aquarium environment. PMID:28713358

Aquarium Viromes: Viromes of Human-Managed Aquatic Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yiseul Kim

2017-06-01

Full Text Available An aquarium ecosystem is home to many animal species providing conditions similar to native aquatic habitats but under highly controlled management. With a growing interest in understanding the interaction of microbiomes and resident animal health within aquarium environments, we undertook a metagenomic survey of viromes in seven aquarium systems with differing physicochemical and resident animal profiles. Our results show that a diverse array of viruses was represented in aquarium viromes, many of which were widespread in different aquarium systems (27 common viral families in all of the aquarium systems. Most viromes were dominated by DNA phages of the order Caudovirales as commonly found in other aquatic environments with average relative abundance greater than 64%. The composition and structure of aquarium viromes were associated with controlled system parameters, including nitrate, salinity, and temperature as well as resident animal profiles, indicating the close interaction of viromes with aquarium management practices. Furthermore, finding human associated viruses in a touch exhibit suggested that exposure of aquarium systems to human contact may lead to introduction of human cutaneous viruses into aquaria. This is consistent with the high abundance of skin microflora on the palms of healthy individuals and their detection in recreational waters, such as swimming pools. Lastly, assessment of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs in aquarium viromes revealed a unique signature of ARGs in different aquarium systems with trimethoprim being the most common. This is the first study to provide vital information on viromes and their unique relationships with management practices in a human-built and controlled aquarium environment.

High School Students' Understanding of the Human Body System

Science.gov (United States)

Assaraf, Orit Ben-Zvi; Dodick, Jeff; Tripto, Jaklin

2013-01-01

In this study, 120 tenth-grade students from 8 schools were examined to determine the extent of their ability to perceive the human body as a system after completing the first stage in their biology curriculum--"The human body, emphasizing homeostasis". The students' systems thinking was analyzed according to the STH thinking model, which roughly…

Activities of IAEA related to human interface in man-machine system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishiwaki, Yasushi

1988-01-01

The present paper outlines some activities of IAEA related to human interface in man-machine systems. It has been recognized for quite some time that in large and complex man-machine interactive systems human errors can contribute substantially to failures of these systems, and that the improvement in the human interface in man-machine systems is essential for the safety of the plant. Many important surveys have been made in some member countries. These studies and operational experience have shown that it is possible to substantially reduce this adverse impact of human errors in nuclear power plant operations by the application of human factors technology. This technology. This technology includes: (1) selection of people with the requisite skills and knowledge and providing them with job-relevant training, (2) maintenance of the necessary job qualifications for each person in the plant, (3) design of man-machine interfaces which are fully compatible with the capabilities and limitations of the people in the system, and (4) design of job operations, including written materials, to facilitate required quality of human performance. A review is made of education/training, operator support systems, human error data collection, analysis of safety significant events and future activities. (Nogami, K.)

Digital tripwire: a small automated human detection system

Science.gov (United States)

Fischer, Amber D.; Redd, Emmett; Younger, A. Steven

2009-05-01

A low cost, lightweight, easily deployable imaging sensor that can dependably discriminate threats from other activities within its field of view and, only then, alert the distant duty officer by transmitting a visual confirmation of the threat would provide a valuable asset to modern defense. At present, current solutions suffer from a multitude of deficiencies - size, cost, power endurance, but most notably, an inability to assess an image and conclude that it contains a threat. The human attention span cannot maintain critical surveillance over banks of displays constantly conveying such images from the field. DigitalTripwire is a small, self-contained, automated human-detection system capable of running for 1-5 days on two AA batteries. To achieve such long endurance, the DigitalTripwire system utilizes an FPGA designed with sleep functionality. The system uses robust vision algorithms, such as a partially unsupervised innovative backgroundmodeling algorithm, which employ several data reduction strategies to operate in real-time, and achieve high detection rates. When it detects human activity, either mounted or dismounted, it sends an alert including images to notify the command center. In this paper, we describe the hardware and software design of the DigitalTripwire system. In addition, we provide detection and false alarm rates across several challenging data sets demonstrating the performance of the vision algorithms in autonomously analyzing the video stream and classifying moving objects into four primary categories - dismounted human, vehicle, non-human, or unknown. Performance results across several challenging data sets are provided.

Morphology of Design of Aerospace Systems with Inclusion of Human Factors

Science.gov (United States)

1977-08-01

Visual Indicators," Human Factors, 1971, 13(5), pp. 427-433. 22. Mayer, Sylvia R., "Trends in Human Factors Research for Military Information Systems...34The Standardi- zation of Human Factors Data," Human Factors, 1970, 12(1), pp. 55-62. 29. Plath , D.W., "Th’ Readability of Segmented and Con... Sylvia R., "Trends in Human Factors Research for Military Information Systems," Human Factors, 1970, 12(2), pp. 177-186. 35. Meister, David, Dennis 3

A Systems Model for Teaching Human Resource Management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

George R. Greene

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Efficient and effective human resource management is a complex, involved, and interactive process. This article presents and discusses a unique systems approach model for teaching human resource (people management processes, and the important inter-relationships within that process. The model contains two unique components related to key sub-processes: incentives management and performance evaluation. We have not observed a model applying a systems thinking paradigm presented in any textbook, journal article, business publication, or other literature addressing the topic. For nearly three decades, the model has been used in teaching a comprehensive, meaningful understanding of the human resource management process that can be effectively implemented in both corporate and academic learning venues.

Incidence of cervical human papillomavirus infection in systemic lupus erythematosus women.

Science.gov (United States)

Mendoza-Pinto, C; García-Carrasco, M; Vallejo-Ruiz, V; Méndez-Martínez, S; Taboada-Cole, A; Etchegaray-Morales, I; Muñóz-Guarneros, M; Reyes-Leyva, J; López-Colombo, A

2017-08-01

Objectives Our objective was to study the incidence, persistence and clearance of human papillomavirus infection in systemic lupus erythematosus women and assess risk factors for persistence of human papillomavirus infection. Methods We carried out a prospective, observational cohort study of 127 systemic lupus erythematosus women. Patients were evaluated at baseline and at three years. Traditional and systemic lupus erythematosus women-related disease risk factors were collected. Gynaecological evaluations and cervical cytology screening were made. Human papillomavirus detection and genotyping were made by polymerase chain reaction and linear array. Results The cumulative prevalence of human papillomavirus infection increased from 22.8% at baseline to 33.8% at three years; p = lupus erythematosus women, the cumulative prevalence of human papillomavirus infection, including high risk-human papillomavirus and multiple human papillomavirus infections, may increase over time. Most persistent infections were low risk-human papillomavirus. The number of lifetime sexual partners and the cumulative cyclophosphamide dose were independently associated with incident human papillomavirus infection.

Information Systems and the Humanities: A Symbiotic Relationship?

OpenAIRE

Kroeze, JH

2009-01-01

The lecture explores the nature of the relationship between the study fields of Information Systems and the humanities. Although literature on Humanities Computing states in principle that there is a bi-directional, beneficial symbiotic relationship, most studies and reflections investigate only the application of information technology in the humanities. This suggests that the relation is commensalistic rather that mutualistic. However, studies do exist that implement theor...

The human performance evaluation system at Virginia Power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, R.G. III.

1989-01-01

The safe operation of nuclear power plants requires high standards of performance, extensive training, and responsive management. Despite a utility's best efforts, inappropriate human actions do occur. Although such inappropriate actions will occur, it is believed that such actions can be minimized and managed. The Federal Aviation Administration has a successful program administered by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. This program is called the Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS). Established in 1975, it is anonymous and nonpunitive. A trial program for several utilities was developed by the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations which used a concept similar to the ASRS reporting process. Based on valuable lessons learned by Virginia Power during the pilot program, an effort was made in 1986 to formalize the Human Performance Evaluation System (HPES) to establish an ongoing problem-solving system for evaluating human performance. Currently, 34 domestic utilities and 3 international utilities voluntarily participate in the implementation of the HPES. Each participating utility has selected and trained personnel to evaluate events involving human error and provide corrective action recommendations to prevent recurrence. It is believed that the use of the HPES can lead to improved safety and operation availability

Cybernics fusion of human, machine and information systems

CERN Document Server

Suzuki, Kenji; Hasegawa, Yasuhisa

2014-01-01

Cybernics plays a significant role in coping with an aging society using state-of-the-art technologies from engineering, clinical medicine and humanities. This new interdisciplinary field studies technologies that enhance, strengthen, and support physical and cognitive functions of human beings, based on the fusion of human, machine, and information systems. The design of a seamless interface for interaction between the interior and exterior of the human body is described in this book from diverse aspects such as the physical, neurophysiological, and cognitive levels. It is the first book to cover the many aspects of cybernics, allowing readers to understand the life support robotics technology for the elderly, including remote, in-home, hospital, institutional, community medical welfare, and vital-sensing systems. Serving as a valuable resource, this volume will interest not only graduate students, scientists, and engineers but also newcomers to the field of cybernics.

System ergonomics as an approach to improve human reliability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bubb, H.

1988-01-01

The application of system technics on ergonomical problems is called system ergonomics. This enables improvements of human reliability by design measures. The precondition for this is the knowledge of how information processing is performed by man and machine. By a separate consideration of sensory processing, cognitive processing, and motory processing it is possible to have a more exact idea of the system element 'man'. The system element 'machine' is well described by differential equations which allow an ergonomical assessment of the manouverability. The knowledge of information processing of man and machine enables a task analysis. This makes appear on one hand the human boundaries depending on the different properties of the task and on the other hand suitable ergonomical solution proposals which improve the reliability of the total system. It is a disadvantage, however, that the change of human reliability by such measures may not be quoted numerically at the moment. (orig.)

Psychosocial and Cultural Modeling in Human Computation Systems: A Gamification Approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sanfilippo, Antonio P.; Riensche, Roderick M.; Haack, Jereme N.; Butner, R. Scott

2013-11-20

“Gamification”, the application of gameplay to real-world problems, enables the development of human computation systems that support decision-making through the integration of social and machine intelligence. One of gamification’s major benefits includes the creation of a problem solving environment where the influence of cognitive and cultural biases on human judgment can be curtailed through collaborative and competitive reasoning. By reducing biases on human judgment, gamification allows human computation systems to exploit human creativity relatively unhindered by human error. Operationally, gamification uses simulation to harvest human behavioral data that provide valuable insights for the solution of real-world problems.

Structure design of human factor data management system for Daya Bay NPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Li; Zhang Ning; Guo Jianbing; Huang Weigang; Zhu Minhong; Wang Jin

2000-01-01

Collection, analysis and quantification of human factor data are important compositions of human reliability analysis (HRA) and probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). Various human factor databases have been set up, but there are comparatively little human factor data management systems which can be uses for collection, classification, analysis, calculation and predication of the human factor data. Therefore, the human factor data management system for Daya Bay NPP is developed, with the following three modules and four databases: original data module, computing module, introduced data module, and basic database, other data source of the plant, external database and introduced database. The foundational problems about human factor data and the systemic structure and function are described. The data structure in the database is also discussed, because it is of the most importance in the system

Vision Systems with the Human in the Loop

Science.gov (United States)

Bauckhage, Christian; Hanheide, Marc; Wrede, Sebastian; Käster, Thomas; Pfeiffer, Michael; Sagerer, Gerhard

2005-12-01

The emerging cognitive vision paradigm deals with vision systems that apply machine learning and automatic reasoning in order to learn from what they perceive. Cognitive vision systems can rate the relevance and consistency of newly acquired knowledge, they can adapt to their environment and thus will exhibit high robustness. This contribution presents vision systems that aim at flexibility and robustness. One is tailored for content-based image retrieval, the others are cognitive vision systems that constitute prototypes of visual active memories which evaluate, gather, and integrate contextual knowledge for visual analysis. All three systems are designed to interact with human users. After we will have discussed adaptive content-based image retrieval and object and action recognition in an office environment, the issue of assessing cognitive systems will be raised. Experiences from psychologically evaluated human-machine interactions will be reported and the promising potential of psychologically-based usability experiments will be stressed.

Group & Intergroup Relations in Living Human Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

1980-06-01

organizational diagnosis , the group is itself a living human system. A group may be underbounded, overbounded, or optimally bounded. The state of group...very im- portant to understand and to use in order to conduct organizational diagnosis " using group methods. 2 -43 (Alderfer, 1977b). The group...Boundary Relations and Organizational Diagnosis . In H. Meltzer and F.W. Wickert (eds.) Humanizing Organizational Behavior. Springfield, Illinois: Thomas

Virginia power's human performance evaluation system (HPES)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patterson, W.E.

1991-01-01

This paper reports on the Human Performance Evaluation System (HPES) which was initially developed by the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) using the Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) as a guide. After a pilot program involving three utilities ended in 1983, the present day program was instituted. A methodology was developed, for specific application to nuclear power plant employees, to aid trained coordinators/evaluators in determining those factors that exert a negative influence on human behavior in the nuclear power plant environment. HPES is for anyone and everyone on site, from contractors to plant staff to plant management. No one is excluded from participation. Virginia Power's HPES program goal is to identify and correct the root causes of human performance problems. Evaluations are performed on reported real or perceived conditions that may have an adverse influence on members of the nuclear team. A report is provided to management identifying root cause and contributing factors along with recommended corrective actions

Quantification of human error and common-mode failures in man-machine systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lisboa, J.J.

1988-01-01

Quantification of human performance, particularly the determination of human error, is essential for realistic assessment of overall system performance of man-machine systems. This paper presents an analysis of human errors in nuclear power plant systems when measured against common-mode failures (CMF). Human errors evaluated are improper testing, inadequate maintenance strategy, and miscalibration. The methodology presented in the paper represents a positive contribution to power plant systems availability by identifying sources of common-mode failure when operational functions are involved. It is also applicable to other complex systems such as chemical plants, aircraft and motor industries; in fact, any large man-created, man-machine system could be included

Human machine interface for research reactor instrumentation and control system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohd Sabri Minhat; Mohd Idris Taib; Izhar Abu Hussin; Zareen Khan Abdul Jalil Khan; Nurfarhana Ayuni Joha

2010-01-01

Most present design of Human Machine Interface for Research Reactor Instrumentation and Control System is modular-based, comprise of several cabinets such as Reactor Protection System, Control Console, Information Console as well as Communication Console. The safety, engineering and human factor will be concerned for the design. Redundancy and separation of signal and power supply are the main factor for safety consideration. The design of Operator Interface absolutely takes consideration of human and environmental factors. Physical parameters, experiences, trainability and long-established habit patterns are very important for user interface, instead of the Aesthetic and Operator-Interface Geometry. Physical design for New Instrumentation and Control System of RTP are proposed base on the state-of- the-art Human Machine Interface design. (author)

Strategic Human Resource Metrics: A Perspective of the General Systems Theory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chux Gervase Iwu

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Measuring and quantifying strategic human resource outcomes in relation to key performance criteria is essential to developing value-adding metrics. Objectives This paper posits (using a general systems lens that strategic human resource metrics should interpret the relationship between attitudinal human resource outcomes and performance criteria such as profitability, quality or customer service. Approach Using the general systems model as underpinning theory, the study assesses the variation in response to a Likert type questionnaire with twenty-four (24 items measuring the major attitudinal dispositions of HRM outcomes (employee commitment, satisfaction, engagement and embeddedness. Results A Chi-square test (Chi-square test statistic = 54.898, p=0.173 showed that variation in responses to the attitudinal statements occurred due to chance. This was interpreted to mean that attitudinal human resource outcomes influence performance as a unit of system components. The neutral response was found to be associated with the ‘reject’ response than the ‘acceptance’ response. Value The study offers suggestion on the determination of strategic HR metrics and recommends the use of systems theory in HRM related studies. Implications This study provides another dimension to human resource metrics by arguing that strategic human resource metrics should measure the relationship between attitudinal human resource outcomes and performance using a systems perspective.

Systems biology of human metabolism - Defining the epithelial to mesenchymal transition and the activity of human gluconokinase

OpenAIRE

Rohatgi, Neha

2016-01-01

Studying human metabolism is crucial for the understanding of diseases and improvement of therapy as metabolic alterations are central to a number of human diseases. A variety of experimental disciplines, such as biochemistry, biophysics and systems biology are involved in the elucidation of metabolic pathways. The work presented in this thesis is divided into three main studies, which expand the knowledge of human metabolism using systems biology and biochemical techniques....

Human action contribution to ET-RR-II reactor systems unstems unavailability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sabek, M.G.

2001-01-01

This paper gives a study on the human action contribution to the systems unavailability of ET-RR-II reactor as a result of the test and maintenance procedures. The human contribution is expressed in terms of Fussel-Vesely importance which is defined by the probability that event is contributing to system failure (unavailability). The human error basic events contribution was analyzed for all initiating events and systems fault trees. The calculations result shows a high contribution value (61%) for the human error to systems unavailability. This means that the operator and the maintenance people should be highly qualified trained. Moreover, there should be programs for continuous training. Also, the procedures of tests and maintenance should be in a simple way and clear in order to minimize the contribution of the human errors. The calculations were done using the IRRAS cods

Human Factors and Data Fusion as Part of Control Systems Resilience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

David I. Gertman

2009-05-01

Human performance and human decision making is counted upon as a crucial aspect of overall system resilience. Advanced control systems have the potential to provide operators and asset owners a wide range of data, deployed at different levels that can be used to support operator situation awareness. However, the sheer amount of data available can make it challenging for operators to assimilate information and respond appropriately. This paper reviews some of the challenges and issues associated with providing operators with actionable state awareness and argues for the over arching importance of integrating human factors as part of intelligent control systems design and implementation. It is argued that system resilience is improved by implementing human factors in operations and maintenance. This paper also introduces issues associated with resilience and data fusion and highlights areas in which human factors including field studies hold promise.

Human monitoring and decision-making in man/machine systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johannsen, G.

1979-01-01

Monitoring and decision-making together are very well characterizing the role of the human operator in highly automated systems. In this report, the analysis of human monitoring and decision-making behavior as well as its modeling are described. The goal is to present a survey. 'Classic' and optimal control theoretic monitoring models are dealt with. The relationship between attention allocation and eye movements is discussed. As an example for applications, the evaluation of predictor displays by means of the optimal control model is explained. Fault detection in continuous signals and decision-making behavior of the human operator in fault diagnosis during different operation and maintenance situations are illustrated. The computer-aided decision-making is considered as a queueing problem. It is shown to what extent computer-aiding may be based on the state of human activity as measured by psychophysiological quantities. Finally, management information systems for different application areas are mentioned. As an appendix, the report includes an English-written paper in which the possibilities of mathematical modeling of human behavior in complex man-machine systems are critically assessed. (orig.) 891 GL/orig. 892 MKO [de

How to combine human resource management systems and human capital portfolios to achieve superior innovation performance

OpenAIRE

Rupietta, Christian; Backes-Gellner, Uschi

2013-01-01

Firms generate new knowledge that leads to innovations by recombining existing knowledge sources. A successful recombination depends on both the availability of a knowledge stock (human capital pool) that contains innovation-relevant knowledge and the regulation of the knowledge flow through the application of human resource management practices. However, while human resource theory expects complementarities between both the human capital pool and the human resource management system it does ...

Improving human reliability through better nuclear power plant system design. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Golay, Michael W.

1998-01-01

Increasing task complexity is claimed to be responsible for causing human operating errors, while a significant number of system failures are due to operating errors. An experimental study reported here was conducted to isolate varying task complexity as an important factor affecting human performance quality. Earlier work concerning problems of nuclear power plants has shown that human capability declined when dealing with increasing system complexity. The goal of this study was to investigate further the relationship between human operator performance quality and the complexity of tasks served to human operators. This was done by using a simple, interactive, dynamic and generalizable computer model to simulate the behavior of a human-operated dynamic fluid system. Twenty-two human subjects participated

Vision Systems with the Human in the Loop

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bauckhage Christian

2005-01-01

Full Text Available The emerging cognitive vision paradigm deals with vision systems that apply machine learning and automatic reasoning in order to learn from what they perceive. Cognitive vision systems can rate the relevance and consistency of newly acquired knowledge, they can adapt to their environment and thus will exhibit high robustness. This contribution presents vision systems that aim at flexibility and robustness. One is tailored for content-based image retrieval, the others are cognitive vision systems that constitute prototypes of visual active memories which evaluate, gather, and integrate contextual knowledge for visual analysis. All three systems are designed to interact with human users. After we will have discussed adaptive content-based image retrieval and object and action recognition in an office environment, the issue of assessing cognitive systems will be raised. Experiences from psychologically evaluated human-machine interactions will be reported and the promising potential of psychologically-based usability experiments will be stressed.

A design condition for incorporating human judgement into monitoring systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanaka, K.; Klir, G.J.

1999-01-01

In safety monitoring, there exists an uncertainty situation in which the sensor cannot detect whether or not the monitored object is in danger. For the uncertainty zone identified by a non-homogeneous safety monitoring system that utilizes two types of sensors with different thresholds, operators or experts are expected to judge whether the real state is safe or dangerous on the basis of additional information from a detailed inspection or other related sensors output. However, the activities for inspection performed by relevant humans may require additional cost and introduce inspection errors. The present article proposes two types of an automatic monitoring system not involving any human inspection or a human-machine (H-M) cooperative monitoring system with inspection. In order to compare the systems, an approach based on the Dempster-Shafer theory is proposed as uncertainty analysis by this theory (it is simpler than by the traditional Bayesian approach). By comparing their expected losses as a result of failed dangerous failures or failed safe failures as well as the inspection errors, the condition is determined under which H-M cooperative systems incorporating human judgements are more effective than automatic monitoring systems

Neuromuscular junction formation between human stem cell-derived motoneurons and human skeletal muscle in a defined system.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Xiufang; Gonzalez, Mercedes; Stancescu, Maria; Vandenburgh, Herman H; Hickman, James J

2011-12-01

Functional in vitro models composed of human cells will constitute an important platform in the next generation of system biology and drug discovery. This study reports a novel human-based in vitro Neuromuscular Junction (NMJ) system developed in a defined serum-free medium and on a patternable non-biological surface. The motoneurons and skeletal muscles were derived from fetal spinal stem cells and skeletal muscle stem cells. The motoneurons and skeletal myotubes were completely differentiated in the co-culture based on morphological analysis and electrophysiology. NMJ formation was demonstrated by phase contrast microscopy, immunocytochemistry and the observation of motoneuron-induced muscle contractions utilizing time-lapse recordings and their subsequent quenching by d-Tubocurarine. Generally, functional human based systems would eliminate the issue of species variability during the drug development process and its derivation from stem cells bypasses the restrictions inherent with utilization of primary human tissue. This defined human-based NMJ system is one of the first steps in creating functional in vitro systems and will play an important role in understanding NMJ development, in developing high information content drug screens and as test beds in preclinical studies for spinal or muscular diseases/injuries such as muscular dystrophy, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and spinal cord repair. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Human-system Interfaces to Automatic Systems: Review Guidance and Technical Basis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.; Higgins, J.C.

2010-01-01

Automation has become ubiquitous in modern complex systems and commercial nuclear power plants are no exception. Beyond the control of plant functions and systems, automation is applied to a wide range of additional functions including monitoring and detection, situation assessment, response planning, response implementation, and interface management. Automation has become a 'team player' supporting plant personnel in nearly all aspects of plant operation. In light of the increasing use and importance of automation in new and future plants, guidance is needed to enable the NRC staff to conduct safety reviews of the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of modern automation. The objective of the research described in this report was to develop guidance for reviewing the operator's interface with automation. We first developed a characterization of the important HFE aspects of automation based on how it is implemented in current systems. The characterization included five dimensions: Level of automation, function of automation, modes of automation, flexibility of allocation, and reliability of automation. Next, we reviewed literature pertaining to the effects of these aspects of automation on human performance and the design of human-system interfaces (HSIs) for automation. Then, we used the technical basis established by the literature to develop design review guidance. The guidance is divided into the following seven topics: Automation displays, interaction and control, automation modes, automation levels, adaptive automation, error tolerance and failure management, and HSI integration. In addition, we identified insights into the automaton design process, operator training, and operations.

Computer aided systems human engineering: A hypermedia tool

Science.gov (United States)

Boff, Kenneth R.; Monk, Donald L.; Cody, William J.

1992-01-01

The Computer Aided Systems Human Engineering (CASHE) system, Version 1.0, is a multimedia ergonomics database on CD-ROM for the Apple Macintosh II computer, being developed for use by human system designers, educators, and researchers. It will initially be available on CD-ROM and will allow users to access ergonomics data and models stored electronically as text, graphics, and audio. The CASHE CD-ROM, Version 1.0 will contain the Boff and Lincoln (1988) Engineering Data Compendium, MIL-STD-1472D and a unique, interactive simulation capability, the Perception and Performance Prototyper. Its features also include a specialized data retrieval, scaling, and analysis capability and the state of the art in information retrieval, browsing, and navigation.

Heat Exchange in “Human body - Thermal protection - Environment” System

Science.gov (United States)

Khromova, I. V.

2017-11-01

This article is devoted to the issues of simulation and calculation of thermal processes in the system called “Human body - Thermal protection - Environment” under low temperature conditions. It considers internal heat sources and convective heat transfer between calculated elements. Overall this is important for the Heat Transfer Theory. The article introduces complex heat transfer calculation method and local thermophysical parameters calculation method in the system called «Human body - Thermal protection - Environment», considering passive and active thermal protections, thermophysical and geometric properties of calculated elements in a wide range of environmental parameters (water, air). It also includes research on the influence that thermal resistance of modern materials, used in special protective clothes development, has on heat transfer in the system “Human body - Thermal protection - Environment”. Analysis of the obtained results allows adding of the computer research data to experiments and optimizing of individual life-support system elements, which are intended to protect human body from exposure to external factors.

Integrating spaceflight human system risk research

Science.gov (United States)

Mindock, Jennifer; Lumpkins, Sarah; Anton, Wilma; Havenhill, Maria; Shelhamer, Mark; Canga, Michael

2017-10-01

NASA is working to increase the likelihood of exploration mission success and to maintain crew health, both during exploration missions and long term after return to Earth. To manage the risks in achieving these goals, a system modelled after a Continuous Risk Management framework is in place. ;Human System Risks; (Risks) have been identified, and 32 are currently being actively addressed by NASA's Human Research Program (HRP). Research plans for each of HRP's Risks have been developed and are being executed. Inter-disciplinary ties between the research efforts supporting each Risk have been identified; however, efforts to identify and benefit from these connections have been mostly ad hoc. There is growing recognition that solutions developed to address the full set of Risks covering medical, physiological, behavioural, vehicle, and organizational aspects of exploration missions must be integrated across Risks and disciplines. This paper discusses how a framework of factors influencing human health and performance in space is being applied as the backbone for bringing together sometimes disparate information relevant to the individual Risks. The resulting interrelated information enables identification and visualization of connections between Risks and research efforts in a systematic and standardized manner. This paper also discusses the applications of the visualizations and insights into research planning, solicitation, and decision-making processes.

Human-rating Automated and Robotic Systems - (How HAL Can Work Safely with Astronauts)

Science.gov (United States)

Baroff, Lynn; Dischinger, Charlie; Fitts, David

2009-01-01

Long duration human space missions, as planned in the Vision for Space Exploration, will not be possible without applying unprecedented levels of automation to support the human endeavors. The automated and robotic systems must carry the load of routine housekeeping for the new generation of explorers, as well as assist their exploration science and engineering work with new precision. Fortunately, the state of automated and robotic systems is sophisticated and sturdy enough to do this work - but the systems themselves have never been human-rated as all other NASA physical systems used in human space flight have. Our intent in this paper is to provide perspective on requirements and architecture for the interfaces and interactions between human beings and the astonishing array of automated systems; and the approach we believe necessary to create human-rated systems and implement them in the space program. We will explain our proposed standard structure for automation and robotic systems, and the process by which we will develop and implement that standard as an addition to NASA s Human Rating requirements. Our work here is based on real experience with both human system and robotic system designs; for surface operations as well as for in-flight monitoring and control; and on the necessities we have discovered for human-systems integration in NASA's Constellation program. We hope this will be an invitation to dialog and to consideration of a new issue facing new generations of explorers and their outfitters.

Cultural selection drives the evolution of human communication systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Tamariz, Monica; Ellison, T Mark; Barr, Dale J; Fay, Nicolas

2014-08-07

Human communication systems evolve culturally, but the evolutionary mechanisms that drive this evolution are not well understood. Against a baseline that communication variants spread in a population following neutral evolutionary dynamics (also known as drift models), we tested the role of two cultural selection models: coordination- and content-biased. We constructed a parametrized mixed probabilistic model of the spread of communicative variants in four 8-person laboratory micro-societies engaged in a simple communication game. We found that selectionist models, working in combination, explain the majority of the empirical data. The best-fitting parameter setting includes an egocentric bias and a content bias, suggesting that participants retained their own previously used communicative variants unless they encountered a superior (content-biased) variant, in which case it was adopted. This novel pattern of results suggests that (i) a theory of the cultural evolution of human communication systems must integrate selectionist models and (ii) human communication systems are functionally adaptive complex systems.

An evolving research agenda for human-coastal systems

Science.gov (United States)

Lazarus, Eli D.; Ellis, Michael A.; Brad Murray, A.; Hall, Damon M.

2016-03-01

Within the broad discourses of environmental change, sustainability science, and anthropogenic Earth-surface systems, a focused body of work involves the coupled economic and physical dynamics of developed shorelines. Rapid rates of change in coastal environments, from wetlands and deltas to inlets and dune systems, help researchers recognize, observe, and investigate coupling in natural (non-human) morphodynamics and biomorphodynamics. This same intrinsic quality of fast-paced change also makes developed coastal zones exemplars of observable coupling between physical processes and human activities. In many coastal communities, beach erosion is a natural hazard with economic costs that coastal management counters through a variety of mitigation strategies, including beach replenishment, groynes, revetments, and seawalls. As cycles of erosion and mitigation iterate, coastline change and economically driven interventions become mutually linked. Emergent dynamics of two-way economic-physical coupling is a recent research discovery. Having established a strong theoretical basis, research into coupled human-coastal systems has passed its early proof-of-concept phase. This paper frames three major challenges that need resolving in order to advance theoretical and empirical treatments of human-coastal systems: (1) codifying salient individual and social behaviors of decision-making in ways that capture societal actions across a range of scales (thus engaging economics, social science, and policy disciplines); (2) quantifying anthropogenic effects on alongshore and cross-shore sediment pathways and long-term landscape evolution in coastal zones through time, including direct measurement of cumulative changes to sediment cells resulting from coastal development and management practices (e.g., construction of buildings and artificial dunes, bulldozer removal of overwash after major storms); and (3) reciprocal knowledge and data exchange between researchers in coastal

Human IgG repertoire of malaria antigen-immunized human immune system (HIS) mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Nogueira, Raquel Tayar; Sahi, Vincent; Huang, Jing; Tsuji, Moriya

2017-08-01

Humanized mouse models present an important tool for preclinical evaluation of new vaccines and therapeutics. Here we show the human variable repertoire of antibody sequences cloned from a previously described human immune system (HIS) mouse model that possesses functional human CD4+ T cells and B cells, namely HIS-CD4/B mice. We sequenced variable IgG genes from single memory B-cell and plasma-cell sorted from splenocytes or whole blood lymphocytes of HIS-CD4/B mice that were vaccinated with a human plasmodial antigen, a recombinant Plasmodium falciparum circumsporozoite protein (rPfCSP). We demonstrate that rPfCSP immunization triggers a diverse B-cell IgG repertoire composed of various human VH family genes and distinct V(D)J recombinations that constitute diverse CDR3 sequences similar to humans, although low hypermutated sequences were generated. These results demonstrate the substantial genetic diversity of responding human B cells of HIS-CD4/B mice and their capacity to mount human IgG class-switched antibody response upon vaccination. Copyright © 2017 European Federation of Immunological Societies. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A conceptual connectivity framework for understanding geomorphic change in human-impacted fluvial systems

Science.gov (United States)

Pöppl, Ronald; Keesstra, Saskia; Maroulis, Jerry

2017-04-01

Human-induced landscape change is difficult to predict due to the complexity inherent in both geomorphic and social systems as well as due to emerging coupling relationships between them. To better understand system complexity and system response to change, connectivity has become an important research paradigm within various disciplines including geomorphology, hydrology and ecology. With the proposed conceptual connectivity framework on geomorphic change in human-impacted fluvial systems a cautionary note is flagged regarding the need (i) to include and to systematically conceptualise the role of different types of human agency in altering connectivity relationships in geomorphic systems and (ii) to integrate notions of human-environment interactions to connectivity concepts in geomorphology to better explain causes and trajectories of landscape change. Underpinned by case study examples, the presented conceptual framework is able to explain how geomorphic response of fluvial systems to human disturbance is determined by system-specific boundary conditions (incl. system history, related legacy effects and lag times), vegetation dynamics and human-induced functional relationships (i.e. feedback mechanisms) between the different spatial dimensions of connectivity. It is further demonstrated how changes in social systems can trigger a process-response feedback loop between social and geomorphic systems that further governs the trajectory of landscape change in coupled human-geomorphic systems.

Model-Based approaches to Human-Automation Systems Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jamieson, Greg A.; Andersson, Jonas; Bisantz, Ann

2012-01-01

Human-automation interaction in complex systems is common, yet design for this interaction is often conducted without explicit consideration of the role of the human operator. Fortunately, there are a number of modeling frameworks proposed for supporting this design activity. However...... (and reportedly one or two critics) can engage one another on several agreed questions about such frameworks. The goal is to aid non-aligned practitioners in choosing between alternative frameworks for their human-automation interaction design challenges....

Human – Computer Systems Interaction Backgrounds and Applications 2 Part 1

CERN Document Server

Kulikowski, Juliusz; Mroczek, Teresa

2012-01-01

The main contemporary human-system interaction (H-SI) problems consist in design and/or improvement of the tools for effective exchange of information between individual humans or human groups and technical systems created for humans aiding in reaching their vital goals. This book is a second issue in a series devoted to the novel in H-SI results and contributions reached for the last years by many research groups in European and extra-European countries. The preliminary (usually shortened) versions of the chapters  were presented as conference papers at the 3rd International Conference on H-SI held in Rzeszow, Poland, in 2010. A  large number of valuable papers  selected for publication caused a necessity to publish the book in two volumes. The given, 1st Volume  consists of sections devoted to: I. Decision Supporting Systems, II. Distributed Knowledge Bases and WEB Systems and III. Impaired Persons  Aiding Systems. The decision supporting systems concern various application areas, like enterprises mana...

The Impacts of System and Human Factors on Online Learning Systems Use and Learner Satisfaction

Science.gov (United States)

Alshare, Khaled A.; Freeze, Ronald D.; Lane, Peggy L.; Wen, H. Joseph

2011-01-01

Success in an online learning environment is tied to both human and system factors. This study illuminates the unique contributions of human factors (comfort with online learning, self-management of learning, and perceived Web self-efficacy) to online learning system success, which is measured in terms of usage and satisfaction. The research model…

Patient safety - the role of human factors and systems engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Carayon, Pascale; Wood, Kenneth E

2010-01-01

Patient safety is a global challenge that requires knowledge and skills in multiple areas, including human factors and systems engineering. In this chapter, numerous conceptual approaches and methods for analyzing, preventing and mitigating medical errors are described. Given the complexity of healthcare work systems and processes, we emphasize the need for increasing partnerships between the health sciences and human factors and systems engineering to improve patient safety. Those partnerships will be able to develop and implement the system redesigns that are necessary to improve healthcare work systems and processes for patient safety.

Patient Safety: The Role of Human Factors and Systems Engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Carayon, Pascale; Wood, Kenneth E.

2011-01-01

Patient safety is a global challenge that requires knowledge and skills in multiple areas, including human factors and systems engineering. In this chapter, numerous conceptual approaches and methods for analyzing, preventing and mitigating medical errors are described. Given the complexity of healthcare work systems and processes, we emphasize the need for increasing partnerships between the health sciences and human factors and systems engineering to improve patient safety. Those partnerships will be able to develop and implement the system redesigns that are necessary to improve healthcare work systems and processes for patient safety. PMID:20543237

Active glass-type human augmented cognition system considering attention and intention

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Bumhwi; Ojha, Amitash; Lee, Minho

2015-10-01

Human cognition is the result of an interaction of several complex cognitive processes with limited capabilities. Therefore, the primary objective of human cognitive augmentation is to assist and expand these limited human cognitive capabilities independently or together. In this study, we propose a glass-type human augmented cognition system, which attempts to actively assist human memory functions by providing relevant, necessary and intended information by constantly assessing intention of the user. To achieve this, we exploit selective attention and intention processes. Although the system can be used in various real-life scenarios, we test the performance of the system in a person identity scenario. To detect the intended face, the system analyses the gaze points and change in pupil size to determine the intention of the user. An assessment of the gaze points and change in pupil size together indicates that the user intends to know the identity and information about the person in question. Then, the system retrieves several clues through speech recognition system and retrieves relevant information about the face, which is finally displayed through head-mounted display. We present the performance of several components of the system. Our results show that the active and relevant assistance based on users' intention significantly helps the enhancement of memory functions.

[Application prospect of human-artificial intelligence system in future manned space flight].

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Jin-he

2003-01-01

To make the manned space flight more efficient and safer, a concept of human-artificial (AI) system is proposed in the present paper. The task of future manned space flight and the technique requirement with respect to the human-AI system development were analyzed. The main points are as follows: 1)Astronaut and AI are complementary to each other functionally; 2) Both symbol AI and connectionist AI should be included in the human-AI system, but expert system and Soar-like system are used mainly inside the cabin, the COG-like robots are mainly assigned for EVA either in LEO flight or on the surface of Moon or Mars; 3) The human-AI system is hierarchical in nature with astronaut at the top level; 4) The complex interfaces between astronaut and AI are the key points for running the system reliably and efficiently. As the importance of human-AI system in future manned space flight and the complexity of related technology, it is suggested that the R/D should be planned as early as possible.

A systems engineering perspective on the human-centered design of health information systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Samaras, George M; Horst, Richard L

2005-02-01

The discipline of systems engineering, over the past five decades, has used a structured systematic approach to managing the "cradle to grave" development of products and processes. While elements of this approach are typically used to guide the development of information systems that instantiate a significant user interface, it appears to be rare for the entire process to be implemented. In fact, a number of authors have put forth development lifecycle models that are subsets of the classical systems engineering method, but fail to include steps such as incremental hazard analysis and post-deployment corrective and preventative actions. In that most health information systems have safety implications, we argue that the design and development of such systems would benefit by implementing this systems engineering approach in full. Particularly with regard to bringing a human-centered perspective to the formulation of system requirements and the configuration of effective user interfaces, this classical systems engineering method provides an excellent framework for incorporating human factors (ergonomics) knowledge and integrating ergonomists in the interdisciplinary development of health information systems.

It is time to talk about people: a human-centered healthcare system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Borgi Lea

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Examining vulnerabilities within our current healthcare system we propose borrowing two tools from the fields of engineering and design: a Reason's system approach 1 and b User-centered design 23. Both approaches are human-centered in that they consider common patterns of human behavior when analyzing systems to identify problems and generate solutions. This paper examines these two human-centered approaches in the context of healthcare. We argue that maintaining a human-centered orientation in clinical care, research, training, and governance is critical to the evolution of an effective and sustainable healthcare system.

The remuneration system and productivity of human resources in the company

OpenAIRE

CRHONKOVÁ, Marie

2016-01-01

The main goal of this graduation theses named "The remuneration system of human resources in the company" is to evaluate the current system of remuneration and productivity of human sources in a company, that I chose and design a process that would lead to improvement in human resources achievments. In the practical part is charecterized the chosen company, in detail described its system of remuneration and structure of employees. On the basis of the observed data there are designed some chan...

Human-geographical concept of the regional geodemographic system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kateryna Sehida

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The synergetic analysis of geodemographic researches indicates that they can be solved with use of modern technologies of management. according to the theory of a sotsioaktogenez, for this purpose it is necessary to define and formulate accurately the purpose of future phase transition, to construct consistent system of the purposes taking into account own and provided resources, to create executive system, effective from the point of view of optimum use of the available methods (technologies and means of activity, and to control and analyze obtaining result. The analysis of results of social management demands the quantitative description and comparison of real result with his expected model (purpose. The offered concept of geodemographic system of the region on the basis of dissipative structures which treats people, groups of people, society is aimed at the development and functioning of the studied system where the special role belongs to implementation of administrative decisions. In article it is covered the generalized structure of the concept, it is revealed her the purpose, an object subject area. It is defined public and spatial localization of a research, in particular within regional, region and local communities. It is identified geodemographic process as composite human and geographical process as sotsioaktogenez (with determination of stages of motivation, system of the purposes, executive system and result from a line item of society and a family as self-development and self-organization (with determination of the internal and external factors supporting and evolutionary resources, mechanisms as process (information exchange, external and internal adaptation. Methodological approaches (geographical, system, synergy, information, historical, research techniques (the analysis of system indices, simulation of a path of development, the component analysis and evaluation and prognostic simulation are opened. Technological procedures

How to bootstrap a human communication system.

Science.gov (United States)

Fay, Nicolas; Arbib, Michael; Garrod, Simon

2013-01-01

How might a human communication system be bootstrapped in the absence of conventional language? We argue that motivated signs play an important role (i.e., signs that are linked to meaning by structural resemblance or by natural association). An experimental study is then reported in which participants try to communicate a range of pre-specified items to a partner using repeated non-linguistic vocalization, repeated gesture, or repeated non-linguistic vocalization plus gesture (but without using their existing language system). Gesture proved more effective (measured by communication success) and more efficient (measured by the time taken to communicate) than non-linguistic vocalization across a range of item categories (emotion, object, and action). Combining gesture and vocalization did not improve performance beyond gesture alone. We experimentally demonstrate that gesture is a more effective means of bootstrapping a human communication system. We argue that gesture outperforms non-linguistic vocalization because it lends itself more naturally to the production of motivated signs. © 2013 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

A Human Factors Approach to Bridging Systems and Introducing New Technologies

Science.gov (United States)

Kanki, Barbara G.

2011-01-01

The application of human factors in aviation has grown to cover a wide range of disciplines and methods capable of assessing human-systems integration at many levels. For example, at the individual level, pilot workload may be studied while at the team level, coordinated workload distribution may be the focal point. At the organizational level, the way in which individuals and teams are supported by training and standards, policies and procedures may introduce additional, relevant topics. A consideration of human factors at each level contributes to our understanding of successes and failures in pilot performance, but this system focused on the flight deck alone -- is only one part of the airspace system. In the FAA's NextGen plan to overhaul the National Airspace System (NAS), new capabilities will enhance flightdeck systems (pilots), flight operations centers (dispatchers) and air traffic control systems (controllers and air traffic managers). At a minimum, the current roles and responsibilities of these three systems are likely to change. Since increased automation will be central to many of the enhancements, the role of automation is also likely to change. Using NextGen examples, a human factors approach for bridging complex airspace systems will be the main focus of this presentation. It is still crucial to consider the human factors within each system, but the successful implementation of new technologies in the NAS requires an understanding of the collaborations that occur when these systems intersect. This human factors approach to studying collaborative systems begins with detailed task descriptions within each system to establish a baseline of the current operations. The collaborative content and context are delineated through the review of regulatory and advisory materials, letters of agreement, policies, procedures and documented practices. Field observations and interviews also help to fill out the picture. Key collaborative functions across systems

Human-system Interfaces to Automatic Systems: Review Guidance and Technical Basis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

OHara, J.M.; Higgins, J.C.

2010-01-31

Automation has become ubiquitous in modern complex systems and commercial nuclear power plants are no exception. Beyond the control of plant functions and systems, automation is applied to a wide range of additional functions including monitoring and detection, situation assessment, response planning, response implementation, and interface management. Automation has become a 'team player' supporting plant personnel in nearly all aspects of plant operation. In light of the increasing use and importance of automation in new and future plants, guidance is needed to enable the NRC staff to conduct safety reviews of the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of modern automation. The objective of the research described in this report was to develop guidance for reviewing the operator's interface with automation. We first developed a characterization of the important HFE aspects of automation based on how it is implemented in current systems. The characterization included five dimensions: Level of automation, function of automation, modes of automation, flexibility of allocation, and reliability of automation. Next, we reviewed literature pertaining to the effects of these aspects of automation on human performance and the design of human-system interfaces (HSIs) for automation. Then, we used the technical basis established by the literature to develop design review guidance. The guidance is divided into the following seven topics: Automation displays, interaction and control, automation modes, automation levels, adaptive automation, error tolerance and failure management, and HSI integration. In addition, we identified insights into the automaton design process, operator training, and operations.

Building Prevention to Protect: The Inter-American Human Rights System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlos Portales

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The article explores the way that the Inter-American human rights system assumes the “responsibility to protect” in the context of serious violations of human rights that can be characterized as war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and ethnic cleansing. The essay describes  how the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights have responded to such situations by using the ample powers granted to them by the OAS member states. The authors consider that these organs have been some of the most effective tools with which this region has confronted such situations by seeking system has contributed to building democratic regimes in the majority of the countries of the hemisphere. This has been crucial to avoiding serious violations of human rights such as those mentioned above, which would have required urgent international intervention to overcome.

Teleconnections in complex human-Earth system models

Science.gov (United States)

Calvin, K. V.; Edmonds, J.

2017-12-01

Human systems and physical Earth systems are closely coupled and interact in complex ways that are sometimes surprising. This presentation discusses a few examples of system interactions. We consider the coupled energy-water-land-economy systems. We show how reductions in fossil fuel emissions are inversely coupled to land rents, food prices and deforestation. We discuss how water shortages in one part of the world is propagated to other distant parts of the world. We discuss the sensitivity of international trade patterns to energy and land systems technology and markets, and the potentially unanticipated results that can emerge.

Frequency response function-based explicit framework for dynamic identification in human-structure systems

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Xiaojun; Živanović, Stana

2018-05-01

The aim of this paper is to propose a novel theoretical framework for dynamic identification in a structure occupied by a single human. The framework enables the prediction of the dynamics of the human-structure system from the known properties of the individual system components, the identification of human body dynamics from the known dynamics of the empty structure and the human-structure system and the identification of the properties of the structure from the known dynamics of the human and the human-structure system. The novelty of the proposed framework is the provision of closed-form solutions in terms of frequency response functions obtained by curve fitting measured data. The advantages of the framework over existing methods are that there is neither need for nonlinear optimisation nor need for spatial/modal models of the empty structure and the human-structure system. In addition, the second-order perturbation method is employed to quantify the effect of uncertainties in human body dynamics on the dynamic identification of the empty structure and the human-structure system. The explicit formulation makes the method computationally efficient and straightforward to use. A series of numerical examples and experiments are provided to illustrate the working of the method.

78 FR 43258 - Privacy Act; System of Records: Human Resources Records, State-31

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-19

... DEPARTMENT OF STATE [Public Notice 8384] Privacy Act; System of Records: Human Resources Records... system of records, Human Resources Records, State- 31, pursuant to the provisions of the Privacy Act of... State proposes that the current system will retain the name ``Human Resources Records'' (previously...

The role of exogenous risk factors of antituberculosis treatment failure

OpenAIRE

LESNIC, EVELINA; USTIAN, AURELIA; POP, CARMEN MONICA

2016-01-01

Background and aim The Republic of Moldova reports the highest incidence of tuberculosis and the lowest treatment success rate among European region countries. In most of the patients the antituberculosis treatment failure is correlated with social risk factors (low socio-economical state, epidemiological danger characteristics) and biological factors (young age, male sex, physiological conditions, associated diseases). Clinical factors (advanced forms of tuberculosis, chronic evolution, immu...

Development of guidelines to review advanced human-system interfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.

1993-01-01

Advanced control rooms (ACRs) will utilize advanced human-system interface (HSI) technologies that may have significant implications for plant safety in that they will affect the operator's overall role in the system, the method of information presentation, and the ways in which operators interact with the system. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews the HSI aspects of control rooms to ensure that they are designed to good human factors engineering principles and that operator performance and reliability are appropriately supported to protect public health and safety. The principal guidance available to the NRC, however, was developed more than 10 yr ago, considerably prior to these technological changes. Accordingly, the human factors guidance needs to be updated to serve as the basis for NRC review of these advanced designs. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the development, evaluation, and current status of the Advanced HSI Design Review Guideline

Focusing on the human factor in future expert systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gordon, S.E.

1987-01-01

Technological advances in the area of artificial intelligence have produced expert systems that hold much promise for the design, operation, and maintenance of complex systems such as nuclear power plants. Such systems have been designed and implemented in a wide variety of task settings. In spite of the gains that have been made in the application of expert systems, there are still several difficult problems which have yet to be resolved. One of these problems is a frequently noted lack of user acceptance of newly fielded intelligent systems. This lack of acceptance can be attributed to a variety of factors, including unfamiliarity with computer technology, difficulty in adjusting to interface mechanisms, fear that the system was designed to replace the human operator, and a feeling that the human can perform the job better than the system. Some of the problems may be related to the fact that expert system design is essentially in it's infancy

An Acquisition Approach to Adopting Human Systems Integration in the Railroad Industry

Science.gov (United States)

2018-02-01

This report provides guidance on how the railroad industry can develop safer systems by acquiring new equipment based on human-centered design practices, or Human Systems Integration (HSI). If a railroads system design approach is focused on prope...

The mutualistic relationship between information systems and the humanities

OpenAIRE

Kroeze, Jan H

2010-01-01

The paper explores the nature of the relationship between the study fields of Information Systems and the humanities. Although literature on Humanities Computing states in principle that there is a bidirectional, beneficial symbiotic relationship, most studies and reflections investigate only the application of information technology in the humanities. This implies that the relation is commensalistic rather that multualistic. However, studies do exist that implement theoretical constructs bor...

Experimental model for the study of the human immune system: production and monitoring of "human immune system" Rag2-/-gamma c-/- mice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Legrand, Nicolas; Weijer, Kees; Spits, Hergen

2008-01-01

Since the late 1980s, the study of the function and development of the human immune system has made intensive use of humanized animal models, among which mouse models have been proven extremely efficient and handy. Recent advances have lead to the establishment of new models with improved

[Comparation on Haversian system between human and animal bones by imaging analysis].

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Hui-Ling; Zheng, Jing; Yao, Ya-Nan; Chen, Sen; Wang, Hui-Pin; Chen, Li-Xian; Guo, Jing-Yuan

2006-04-01

To explore the differences in Haversian system between human and animal bones through imaging analysis and morphology description. Thirty-five slices grinding from human being as well as dog, pig, cow and sheep bones were observed to compare their structure, then were analysed with the researchful microscope. Plexiform bone or oeston band was not found in human bones; There were significant differences in the shape, size, location, density of Haversian system, between human and animal bones. The amount of Haversian lamella and diameter of central canal in human were the biggest; Significant differences in the central canal diameter and total area percentage between human and animal bones were shown by imaging analysis. (1) Plexiform bone and osteon band could be the exclusive index in human bone; (2) There were significant differences in the structure of Haversian system between human and animal bones; (3) The percentage of central canals total area was valuable in species identification through imaging analysis.

NASA Technology Area 07: Human Exploration Destination Systems Roadmap

Science.gov (United States)

Kennedy, Kriss J.; Alexander, Leslie; Landis, Rob; Linne, Diane; Mclemore, Carole; Santiago-Maldonado, Edgardo; Brown, David L.

2011-01-01

This paper gives an overview of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Office of Chief Technologist (OCT) led Space Technology Roadmap definition efforts. This paper will given an executive summary of the technology area 07 (TA07) Human Exploration Destination Systems (HEDS). These are draft roadmaps being reviewed and updated by the National Research Council. Deep-space human exploration missions will require many game changing technologies to enable safe missions, become more independent, and enable intelligent autonomous operations and take advantage of the local resources to become self-sufficient thereby meeting the goal of sustained human presence in space. Taking advantage of in-situ resources enhances and enables revolutionary robotic and human missions beyond the traditional mission architectures and launch vehicle capabilities. Mobility systems will include in-space flying, surface roving, and Extra-vehicular Activity/Extravehicular Robotics (EVA/EVR) mobility. These push missions will take advantage of sustainability and supportability technologies that will allow mission independence to conduct human mission operations either on or near the Earth, in deep space, in the vicinity of Mars, or on the Martian surface while opening up commercialization opportunities in low Earth orbit (LEO) for research, industrial development, academia, and entertainment space industries. The Human Exploration Destination Systems (HEDS) Technology Area (TA) 7 Team has been chartered by the Office of the Chief Technologist (OCT) to strategically roadmap technology investments that will enable sustained human exploration and support NASA s missions and goals for at least the next 25 years. HEDS technologies will enable a sustained human presence for exploring destinations such as remote sites on Earth and beyond including, but not limited to, LaGrange points, low Earth orbit (LEO), high Earth orbit (HEO), geosynchronous orbit (GEO), the Moon, near

A conceptual framework to evaluate human-wildlife interactions within coupled human and natural systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anita T. Morzillo

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Landscape characteristics affect human-wildlife interactions. However, there is a need to better understand mechanisms that drive those interactions, particularly feedbacks that exist between wildlife-related impacts, human reaction to and behavior as a result of those impacts, and how land use and landscape characteristics may influence those components within coupled human and natural systems. Current conceptual models of human-wildlife interactions often focus on species population size as the independent variable driving those interactions. Such an approach potentially overlooks important feedbacks among and drivers of human-wildlife interactions that result from mere wildlife presence versus absence. We describe an emerging conceptual framework that focuses on wildlife as a driver of human behavior and allows us to better understand linkages between humans, wildlife, and the broader landscape. We also present results of a pilot analysis related to our own ongoing study of urban rodent control behavior to illustrate one application of this framework within a study of urban landscapes.

On Logical Characterisation of Human Concept Learning based on Terminological Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Badie, Farshad

2018-01-01

The central focus of this article is the epistemological assumption that knowledge could be generated based on human beings' experiences and over their conceptions of the world. Logical characterisation of human inductive learning over their produced conceptions within terminological systems and ...... and analysis of actual human inductive reasoning (and learning). This research connects with the topics 'logic & learning', 'cognitive modelling' and 'terminological knowledge representation'.......The central focus of this article is the epistemological assumption that knowledge could be generated based on human beings' experiences and over their conceptions of the world. Logical characterisation of human inductive learning over their produced conceptions within terminological systems...

An Integrated Gait and Balance Analysis System to Define Human Locomotor Control

Science.gov (United States)

2016-04-29

test hypotheses they developed about how people walk. An Integrated Gait and Balance Analysis System to define Human Locomotor Control W911NF-14-R-0009...An Integrated Gait and Balance Analysis System to Define Human Locomotor Control Walking is a complicated task that requires the motor coordination...Gait and Balance Analysis System to Define Human Locomotor Control Report Title Walking is a complicated task that requires the motor coordination across

Human Systems Integration Synthesis Model for Ship Design

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-01

33  b.   Diesel .......................................................................................35  c.  Gas Turbine ...acquire systems capable of maximizing the output of the Navy’s Human Capital. The term Human Capital is defined by Kaplan and Norton (2004, p. 13) as...Machine—engines: steam, diesel, gas turbine , or nuclear Prior to establishing a ship’s speed requirements, one must understand the forces that

Human immune system mouse models of Ebola virus infection.

Science.gov (United States)

Spengler, Jessica R; Prescott, Joseph; Feldmann, Heinz; Spiropoulou, Christina F

2017-08-01

Human immune system (HIS) mice, immunodeficient mice engrafted with human cells (with or without donor-matched tissue), offer a unique opportunity to study pathogens that cause disease predominantly or exclusively in humans. Several HIS mouse models have recently been used to study Ebola virus (EBOV) infection and disease. The results of these studies are encouraging and support further development and use of these models in Ebola research. HIS mice provide a small animal model to study EBOV isolates, investigate early viral interactions with human immune cells, screen vaccines and therapeutics that modulate the immune system, and investigate sequelae in survivors. Here we review existing models, discuss their use in pathogenesis studies and therapeutic screening, and highlight considerations for study design and analysis. Finally, we point out caveats to current models, and recommend future efforts for modeling EBOV infection in HIS mice. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Modeling Sustainability: Population, Inequality, Consumption, and Bidirectional Coupling of the Earth and Human Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Motesharrei, Safa; Rivas, Jorge; Kalnay, Eugenia; Asrar, Ghassem R.; Busalacchi, Antonio J.; Cahalan, Robert F.; Cane, Mark A.; Colwell, Rita R.; Feng, Kuishuang; Franklin, Rachel S.;

Modeling Sustainability: Population, Inequality, Consumption, and Bidirectional Coupling of the Earth and Human Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Motesharrei, Safa; Rivas, Jorge; Kalnay, Eugenia; Asrar, Ghassem R.; Busalacchi, Antonio J.; Cahalan, Robert F.; Cane, Mark A.; Colwell, Rita R.; Feng, Kuishuang; Franklin, Rachel S.; Hubacek, Klaus; Miralles-Wilhelm, Fernando; Miyoshi, Takemasa; Ruth, Matthias; Sagdeev, Roald; Shirmohammadi, Adel; Shukla, Jagadish; Srebric, Jelena; Yakovenko, Victor M.; Zeng, Ning

2016-12-11

Over the last two centuries, the impact of the Human System has grown dramatically, becoming strongly dominant within the Earth System in many different ways. Consumption, inequality, and population have increased extremely fast, especially since about 1950, threatening to overwhelm the many critical functions and ecosystems of the Earth System. Changes in the Earth System, in turn, have important feedback effects on the Human System, with costly and potentially serious consequences. However, current models do not incorporate these critical feedbacks. We argue that in order to understand the dynamics of either system, Earth System Models must be coupled with Human System Models through bidirectional couplings representing the positive, negative, and delayed feedbacks that exist in the real systems. In particular, key Human System variables, such as demographics, inequality, economic growth, and migration, are not coupled with the Earth System but are instead driven by exogenous estimates, such as United Nations population projections. This makes current models likely to miss important feedbacks in the real Earth–Human system, especially those that may result in unexpected or counterintuitive outcomes, and thus requiring different policy interventions from current models. The importance and imminence of sustainability challenges, the dominant role of the Human System in the Earth System, and the essential roles the Earth System plays for the Human System, all call for collaboration of natural scientists, social scientists, and engineers in multidisciplinary research and modeling to develop coupled Earth–Human system models for devising effective science-based policies and measures to benefit current and future generations.

Sensitivity evaluation of human factors for reliability of the containment spray system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsujimura, Yasuhiro; Suzuki, Eiji

1988-01-01

Evaluation of the human reliability is one of the most difficult problems that deal with the safety and reliability of large systems, especially of the Engineered Safety Features (ESF) of the nuclear power plant. Influences of human factors on the reliability of the Containment Spray System in the ESF were estimated by using the FTA method in this paper. As a result, the adequacy of the system structure and the effects of human factors on variations of the design of the system structure were explained. (author)

Modeling human gastrointestinal inflammatory diseases using microphysiological culture systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Hartman, Kira G; Bortner, James D; Falk, Gary W; Ginsberg, Gregory G; Jhala, Nirag; Yu, Jian; Martín, Martín G; Rustgi, Anil K; Lynch, John P

2014-09-01

Gastrointestinal illnesses are a significant health burden for the US population, with 40 million office visits each year for gastrointestinal complaints and nearly 250,000 deaths. Acute and chronic inflammations are a common element of many gastrointestinal diseases. Inflammatory processes may be initiated by a chemical injury (acid reflux in the esophagus), an infectious agent (Helicobacter pylori infection in the stomach), autoimmune processes (graft versus host disease after bone marrow transplantation), or idiopathic (as in the case of inflammatory bowel diseases). Inflammation in these settings can contribute to acute complaints (pain, bleeding, obstruction, and diarrhea) as well as chronic sequelae including strictures and cancer. Research into the pathophysiology of these conditions has been limited by the availability of primary human tissues or appropriate animal models that attempt to physiologically model the human disease. With the many recent advances in tissue engineering and primary human cell culture systems, it is conceivable that these approaches can be adapted to develop novel human ex vivo systems that incorporate many human cell types to recapitulate in vivo growth and differentiation in inflammatory microphysiological environments. Such an advance in technology would improve our understanding of human disease progression and enhance our ability to test for disease prevention strategies and novel therapeutics. We will review current models for the inflammatory and immunological aspects of Barrett's esophagus, acute graft versus host disease, and inflammatory bowel disease and explore recent advances in culture methodologies that make these novel microphysiological research systems possible. © 2014 by the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine.

User Interface Aspects of a Human-Hand Simulation System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beifang Yi

2005-10-01

Full Text Available This paper describes the user interface design for a human-hand simulation system, a virtual environment that produces ground truth data (life-like human hand gestures and animations and provides visualization support for experiments on computer vision-based hand pose estimation and tracking. The system allows users to save time in data generation and easily create any hand gestures. We have designed and implemented this user interface with the consideration of usability goals and software engineering issues.

Development of guidelines to review advanced human-system interfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.

1993-01-01

Advanced control rooms (ACRS) will utilize advanced human-system interface (HSI) technologies that may have significant implications for plant safety in that they will affect the operators overall role in the system, the method of information presentation, and the ways in which operators interact with the system. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews the HSI aspects of control rooms to ensure that they are designed to good human factors engineering principles and that operator performance and reliability are appropriately supported in order to protect public health and safety. The principal guidance available to the NRC, however, was developed more than ten years ago, well prior to these technological changes. Accordingly, the human factors guidance needs to be updated to serve as the basis for NRC review of these advanced designs. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the development, evaluation, and current status of the Advanced HSI Design Review Guideline, hereafter referred to as the ''Guideline.''

Human factors analysis and design methods for nuclear waste retrieval systems. Human factors design methodology and integration plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Casey, S.M.

1980-06-01

The purpose of this document is to provide an overview of the recommended activities and methods to be employed by a team of human factors engineers during the development of a nuclear waste retrieval system. This system, as it is presently conceptualized, is intended to be used for the removal of storage canisters (each canister containing a spent fuel rod assembly) located in an underground salt bed depository. This document, and the others in this series, have been developed for the purpose of implementing human factors engineering principles during the design and construction of the retrieval system facilities and equipment. The methodology presented has been structured around a basic systems development effort involving preliminary development, equipment development, personnel subsystem development, and operational test and evaluation. Within each of these phases, the recommended activities of the human engineering team have been stated, along with descriptions of the human factors engineering design techniques applicable to the specific design issues. Explicit examples of how the techniques might be used in the analysis of human tasks and equipment required in the removal of spent fuel canisters have been provided. Only those techniques having possible relevance to the design of the waste retrieval system have been reviewed. This document is intended to provide the framework for integrating human engineering with the rest of the system development effort. The activities and methodologies reviewed in this document have been discussed in the general order in which they will occur, although the time frame (the total duration of the development program in years and months) in which they should be performed has not been discussed.

Human factors analysis and design methods for nuclear waste retrieval systems. Human factors design methodology and integration plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Casey, S.M.

1980-06-01

The purpose of this document is to provide an overview of the recommended activities and methods to be employed by a team of human factors engineers during the development of a nuclear waste retrieval system. This system, as it is presently conceptualized, is intended to be used for the removal of storage canisters (each canister containing a spent fuel rod assembly) located in an underground salt bed depository. This document, and the others in this series, have been developed for the purpose of implementing human factors engineering principles during the design and construction of the retrieval system facilities and equipment. The methodology presented has been structured around a basic systems development effort involving preliminary development, equipment development, personnel subsystem development, and operational test and evaluation. Within each of these phases, the recommended activities of the human engineering team have been stated, along with descriptions of the human factors engineering design techniques applicable to the specific design issues. Explicit examples of how the techniques might be used in the analysis of human tasks and equipment required in the removal of spent fuel canisters have been provided. Only those techniques having possible relevance to the design of the waste retrieval system have been reviewed. This document is intended to provide the framework for integrating human engineering with the rest of the system development effort. The activities and methodologies reviewed in this document have been discussed in the general order in which they will occur, although the time frame (the total duration of the development program in years and months) in which they should be performed has not been discussed

In vitro Differentiation of Functional Human Skeletal Myotubes in a Defined System.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Xiufang; Greene, Keshel; Akanda, Nesar; Smith, Alec; Stancescu, Maria; Lambert, Stephen; Vandenburgh, Herman; Hickman, James

2014-01-01

In vitro human skeletal muscle systems are valuable tools for the study of human muscular development, disease and treatment. However, published in vitro human muscle systems have so far only demonstrated limited differentiation capacities. Advanced differentiation features such as cross-striations and contractility have only been observed in co-cultures with motoneurons. Furthermore, it is commonly regarded that cultured human myotubes do not spontaneously contract, and any contraction has been considered to originate from innervation. This study developed a serum-free culture system in which human skeletal myotubes demonstrated advanced differentiation. Characterization by immunocytochemistry, electrophysiology and analysis of contractile function revealed these major features: A) well defined sarcomeric development, as demonstrated by the presence of cross-striations. B) finely developed excitation-contraction coupling apparatus characterized by the close apposition of dihydropyridine receptors on T-tubules and Ryanodine receptors on sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes. C) spontaneous and electrically controlled contractility. This report not only demonstrates an improved level of differentiation of cultured human skeletal myotubes, but also provides the first published evidence that such myotubes are capable of spontaneous contraction. Use of this functional in vitro human skeletal muscle system would advance studies concerning human skeletal muscle development and physiology, as well as muscle-related disease and therapy.

Four-dimensional maps of the human somatosensory system.

Science.gov (United States)

Avanzini, Pietro; Abdollahi, Rouhollah O; Sartori, Ivana; Caruana, Fausto; Pelliccia, Veronica; Casaceli, Giuseppe; Mai, Roberto; Lo Russo, Giorgio; Rizzolatti, Giacomo; Orban, Guy A

2016-03-29

A fine-grained description of the spatiotemporal dynamics of human brain activity is a major goal of neuroscientific research. Limitations in spatial and temporal resolution of available noninvasive recording and imaging techniques have hindered so far the acquisition of precise, comprehensive four-dimensional maps of human neural activity. The present study combines anatomical and functional data from intracerebral recordings of nearly 100 patients, to generate highly resolved four-dimensional maps of human cortical processing of nonpainful somatosensory stimuli. These maps indicate that the human somatosensory system devoted to the hand encompasses a widespread network covering more than 10% of the cortical surface of both hemispheres. This network includes phasic components, centered on primary somatosensory cortex and neighboring motor, premotor, and inferior parietal regions, and tonic components, centered on opercular and insular areas, and involving human parietal rostroventral area and ventral medial-superior-temporal area. The technique described opens new avenues for investigating the neural basis of all levels of cortical processing in humans.

Human impacts on morphodynamic thresholds in estuarine systems

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Z. B.; Van Maren, D. S.; Ding, P. X.; Yang, S. L.; Van Prooijen, B. C.; De Vet, P. L. M.; Winterwerp, J. C.; De Vriend, H. J.; Stive, M. J. F.; He, Q.

2015-12-01

Many estuaries worldwide are modified, primarily driven by economic gain or safety. These works, combined with global climate changes heavily influence the morphologic development of estuaries. In this paper, we analyze the impact of human activities on the morphodynamic developments of the Scheldt Estuary and the Wadden Sea basins in the Netherlands and the Yangtze Estuary in China at various spatial scales, and identify mechanisms responsible for their change. Human activities in these systems include engineering works and dredging activities for improving and maintaining the navigation channels, engineering works for flood protection, and shoreline management activities such as land reclamations. The Yangtze Estuary is influenced by human activities in the upstream river basin as well, especially through the construction of many dams. The tidal basins in the Netherlands are also influenced by human activities along the adjacent coasts. Furthermore, all these systems are influenced by global changes through (accelerated) sea-level rise and changing weather patterns. We show that the cumulative impacts of these human activities and global changes may lead to exceeding thresholds beyond which the morphology of the tidal basins significantly changes, and loses its natural characteristics. A threshold is called tipping point when the changes are even irreversible. Knowledge on such thresholds or tipping points is important for the sustainable management of these systems. We have identified and quantified various examples of such thresholds and/or tipping points for the morphodynamic developments at various spatial and temporal scales. At the largest scale (mega-scale) we consider the sediment budget of a tidal basin as a whole. A smaller scale (macro-scale) is the development of channel structures in an estuary, especially the development of two competing channels. At the smallest scale (meso-scale) we analyze the developments of tidal flats and the connecting

Human Nature and its Implications for the Legal System | Obioha ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper examines the implications the various conceptions of human nature hold for the legal system. No doubt, there are various and conflicting theories of human nature such that the concept of human nature seems to have remained elusive and pervasive. Some conceive man as nothing but matter pure and simple; ...

Exploring the human body space: A geographical information system based anatomical atlas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonio Barbeito

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Anatomical atlases allow mapping the anatomical structures of the human body. Early versions of these systems consisted of analogical representations with informative text and labeled images of the human body. With computer systems, digital versions emerged and the third and fourth dimensions were introduced. Consequently, these systems increased their efficiency, allowing more realistic visualizations with improved interactivity and functionality. The 4D atlases allow modeling changes over time on the structures represented. The anatomical atlases based on geographic information system (GIS environments allow the creation of platforms with a high degree of interactivity and new tools to explore and analyze the human body. In this study we expand the functions of a human body representation system by creating new vector data, topology, functions, and an improved user interface. The new prototype emulates a 3D GIS with a topological model of the human body, replicates the information provided by anatomical atlases, and provides a higher level of functionality and interactivity. At this stage, the developed system is intended to be used as an educational tool and integrates into the same interface the typical representations of surface and sectional atlases.

Optimizing human-system interface automation design based on a skill-rule-knowledge framework

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Chiuhsiang Joe; Yenn, T.-C.; Yang, C.-W.

2010-01-01

This study considers the technological change that has occurred in complex systems within the past 30 years. The role of human operators in controlling and interacting with complex systems following the technological change was also investigated. Modernization of instrumentation and control systems and components leads to a new issue of human-automation interaction, in which human operational performance must be considered in automated systems. The human-automation interaction can differ in its types and levels. A system design issue is usually realized: given these technical capabilities, which system functions should be automated and to what extent? A good automation design can be achieved by making an appropriate human-automation function allocation. To our knowledge, only a few studies have been published on how to achieve appropriate automation design with a systematic procedure. Further, there is a surprising lack of information on examining and validating the influences of levels of automation (LOAs) on instrumentation and control systems in the advanced control room (ACR). The study we present in this paper proposed a systematic framework to help in making an appropriate decision towards types of automation (TOA) and LOAs based on a 'Skill-Rule-Knowledge' (SRK) model. From the evaluating results, it was shown that the use of either automatic mode or semiautomatic mode is insufficient to prevent human errors. For preventing the occurrences of human errors and ensuring the safety in ACR, the proposed framework can be valuable for making decisions in human-automation allocation.

The Human Resources Management System: Part 1.

Science.gov (United States)

Ceriello, Vincent R.

1982-01-01

Presents a systematic and disciplined approach to planning for the development and implementation of an information system which will collect, store, maintain, and report human resources data. Discusses guidelines, priorities, training requirements, security, auditing, interface with payroll, and personnel reporting. (CT)

Cognitive engineering models: A prerequisite to the design of human-computer interaction in complex dynamic systems

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Christine M.

1993-01-01

This chapter examines a class of human-computer interaction applications, specifically the design of human-computer interaction for the operators of complex systems. Such systems include space systems (e.g., manned systems such as the Shuttle or space station, and unmanned systems such as NASA scientific satellites), aviation systems (e.g., the flight deck of 'glass cockpit' airplanes or air traffic control) and industrial systems (e.g., power plants, telephone networks, and sophisticated, e.g., 'lights out,' manufacturing facilities). The main body of human-computer interaction (HCI) research complements but does not directly address the primary issues involved in human-computer interaction design for operators of complex systems. Interfaces to complex systems are somewhat special. The 'user' in such systems - i.e., the human operator responsible for safe and effective system operation - is highly skilled, someone who in human-machine systems engineering is sometimes characterized as 'well trained, well motivated'. The 'job' or task context is paramount and, thus, human-computer interaction is subordinate to human job interaction. The design of human interaction with complex systems, i.e., the design of human job interaction, is sometimes called cognitive engineering.

User's manual of a support system for human reliability analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yokobayashi, Masao; Tamura, Kazuo.

1995-10-01

Many kinds of human reliability analysis (HRA) methods have been developed. However, users are required to be skillful so as to use them, and also required complicated works such as drawing event tree (ET) and calculation of uncertainty bounds. Moreover, each method is not so complete that only one method of them is not enough to evaluate human reliability. Therefore, a personal computer (PC) based support system for HRA has been developed to execute HRA practically and efficiently. The system consists of two methods, namely, simple method and detailed one. The former uses ASEP that is a simplified THERP-technique, and combined method of OAT and HRA-ET/DeBDA is used for the latter. Users can select a suitable method for their purpose. Human error probability (HEP) data were collected and a database of them was built to use for the support system. This paper describes outline of the HRA methods, support functions and user's guide of the system. (author)

Human tissue in systems medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Caie, Peter D; Schuur, Klaas; Oniscu, Anca; Mullen, Peter; Reynolds, Paul A; Harrison, David J

2013-12-01

Histopathology, the examination of an architecturally artefactual, two-dimensional and static image remains a potent tool allowing diagnosis and empirical expectation of prognosis. Considerable optimism exists that the advent of molecular genetic testing and other biomarker strategies will improve or even replace this ancient technology. A number of biomarkers already add considerable value for prediction of whether a treatment will work. In this short review we argue that a systems medicine approach to pathology will not seek to replace traditional pathology, but rather augment it. Systems approaches need to incorporate quantitative morphological, protein, mRNA and DNA data. A significant challenge for clinical implementation of systems pathology is how to optimize information available from tissue, which is frequently sub-optimal in quality and amount, and yet generate useful predictive models that work. The transition of histopathology to systems pathophysiology and the use of multiscale data sets usher in a new era in diagnosis, prognosis and prediction based on the analysis of human tissue. © 2013 The Authors. FEBS Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of FEBS.

Human Immune System Mice for the Study of Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Type 1 Infection of the Central Nervous System

Science.gov (United States)

Evering, Teresa H.; Tsuji, Moriya

2018-01-01

Immunodeficient mice transplanted with human cell populations or tissues, also known as human immune system (HIS) mice, have emerged as an important and versatile tool for the in vivo study of human immunodeficiency virus-type 1 (HIV-1) pathogenesis, treatment, and persistence in various biological compartments. Recent work in HIS mice has demonstrated their ability to recapitulate critical aspects of human immune responses to HIV-1 infection, and such studies have informed our knowledge of HIV-1 persistence and latency in the context of combination antiretroviral therapy. The central nervous system (CNS) is a unique, immunologically privileged compartment susceptible to HIV-1 infection, replication, and immune-mediated damage. The unique, neural, and glia-rich cellular composition of this compartment, as well as the important role of infiltrating cells of the myeloid lineage in HIV-1 seeding and replication makes its study of paramount importance, particularly in the context of HIV-1 cure research. Current work on the replication and persistence of HIV-1 in the CNS, as well as cells of the myeloid lineage thought to be important in HIV-1 infection of this compartment, has been aided by the expanded use of these HIS mouse models. In this review, we describe the major HIS mouse models currently in use for the study of HIV-1 neuropathogenesis, recent insights from the field, limitations of the available models, and promising advances in HIS mouse model development. PMID:29670623

Crew systems: integrating human and technical subsystems for the exploration of space

Science.gov (United States)

Connors, M. M.; Harrison, A. A.; Summit, J.

1994-01-01

Space exploration missions will require combining human and technical subsystems into overall "crew systems" capable of performing under the rigorous conditions of outer space. This report describes substantive and conceptual relationships among humans, intelligent machines, and communication systems, and explores how these components may be combined to complement and strengthen one another. We identify key research issues in the combination of humans and technology and examine the role of individual differences, group processes, and environmental conditions. We conclude that a crew system is, in effect, a social cyborg, a living system consisting of multiple individuals whose capabilities are extended by advanced technology.

[Oral microbiota: a promising predictor of human oral and systemic diseases].

Science.gov (United States)

Xin, Xu; Junzhi, He; Xuedong, Zhou

2015-12-01

A human oral microbiota is the ecological community of commensal, symbiotic, and pathogenic microorganisms found in human oral cavity. Oral microbiota exists mostly in the form of a biofilm and maintains a dynamic ecological equilibrium with the host body. However, the disturbance of this ecological balance inevitably causes oral infectious diseases, such as dental caries, apical periodontitis, periodontal diseases, pericoronitis, and craniofacial bone osteomyelitis. Oral microbiota is also correlated with many systemic diseases, including cancer, diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular diseases, and preterm birth. Hence, oral microbiota has been considered as a potential biomarker of human diseases. The "Human Microbiome Project" and other metagenomic projects worldwide have advanced our knowledge of the human oral microbiota. The integration of these metadata has been the frontier of oral microbiology to improve clinical translation. By reviewing recent progress on studies involving oral microbiota-related oral and systemic diseases, we aimed to propose the essential role of oral microbiota in the prediction of the onset, progression, and prognosis of oral and systemic diseases. An oral microbiota-based prediction model helps develop a new paradigm of personalized medicine and benefits the human health in the post-metagenomics era.

The human factor in operation and maintenance of complex high-reliability systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryan, T.G.

1989-01-01

Human factors issues in probabilistic risk assessment (PRAs) of complex high-reliability systems are addressed. These PRAs influence system operation and technical support programs such as maintainability, test, and surveillance. Using the U.S. commercial nuclear power industry as the setting, the paper addresses the manner in which PRAs currently treat human performance, the state of quantification methods and source data for analyzing human performance, and the role of human factors specialist in the analysis. The paper concludes with a presentation of TALENT, an emerging concept for fully integrating broad-based human factors expertise into the PRA process, is presented. 47 refs

A Human Body Analysis System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Girondel Vincent

2006-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes a system for human body analysis (segmentation, tracking, face/hands localisation, posture recognition from a single view that is fast and completely automatic. The system first extracts low-level data and uses part of the data for high-level interpretation. It can detect and track several persons even if they merge or are completely occluded by another person from the camera's point of view. For the high-level interpretation step, static posture recognition is performed using a belief theory-based classifier. The belief theory is considered here as a new approach for performing posture recognition and classification using imprecise and/or conflicting data. Four different static postures are considered: standing, sitting, squatting, and lying. The aim of this paper is to give a global view and an evaluation of the performances of the entire system and to describe in detail each of its processing steps, whereas our previous publications focused on a single part of the system. The efficiency and the limits of the system have been highlighted on a database of more than fifty video sequences where a dozen different individuals appear. This system allows real-time processing and aims at monitoring elderly people in video surveillance applications or at the mixing of real and virtual worlds in ambient intelligence systems.

Lateralization of the human mirror neuron system.

Science.gov (United States)

Aziz-Zadeh, Lisa; Koski, Lisa; Zaidel, Eran; Mazziotta, John; Iacoboni, Marco

2006-03-15

A cortical network consisting of the inferior frontal, rostral inferior parietal, and posterior superior temporal cortices has been implicated in representing actions in the primate brain and is critical to imitation in humans. This neural circuitry may be an evolutionary precursor of neural systems associated with language. However, language is predominantly lateralized to the left hemisphere, whereas the degree of lateralization of the imitation circuitry in humans is unclear. We conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging study of imitation of finger movements with lateralized stimuli and responses. During imitation, activity in the inferior frontal and rostral inferior parietal cortex, although fairly bilateral, was stronger in the hemisphere ipsilateral to the visual stimulus and response hand. This ipsilateral pattern is at variance with the typical contralateral activity of primary visual and motor areas. Reliably increased signal in the right superior temporal sulcus (STS) was observed for both left-sided and right-sided imitation tasks, although subthreshold activity was also observed in the left STS. Overall, the data indicate that visual and motor components of the human mirror system are not left-lateralized. The left hemisphere superiority for language, then, must be have been favored by other types of language precursors, perhaps auditory or multimodal action representations.

Visualization of Penile Suspensory Ligamentous System Based on Visible Human Data Sets

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xianzhuo; Wu, Yi; Tao, Ling; Yan, Yan; Pang, Jun; Zhang, Shaoxiang; Li, Shirong

2017-01-01

Background The aim of this study was to use a three-dimensional (3D) visualization technology to illustrate and describe the anatomical features of the penile suspensory ligamentous system based on the Visible Human data sets and to explore the suspensory mechanism of the penis for the further improvement of the penis-lengthening surgery. Material/Methods Cross-sectional images retrieved from the first Chinese Visible Human (CVH-1), third Chinese Visible Human (CVH-3), and Visible Human Male (VHM) data sets were used to segment the suspensory ligamentous system and its adjacent structures. The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images of this system were studied and compared with those from the Visible Human data sets. The 3D models reconstructed from the Visible Human data sets were used to provide morphological features of the penile suspensory ligamentous system and its related structures. Results The fundiform ligament was a superficial, loose, fibro-fatty tissue which originated from Scarpa’s fascia superiorly and continued to the scrotal septum inferiorly. The suspensory ligament and arcuate pubic ligament were dense fibrous connective tissues which started from the pubic symphysis and terminated by attaching to the tunica albuginea of the corpora cavernosa. Furthermore, the arcuate pubic ligament attached to the inferior rami of the pubis laterally. Conclusions The 3D model based on Visible Human data sets can be used to clarify the anatomical features of the suspensory ligamentous system, thereby contributing to the improvement of penis-lengthening surgery. PMID:28530218

Human factors and systems engineering approach to patient safety for radiotherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Rivera, A Joy; Karsh, Ben-Tzion

2008-01-01

The traditional approach to solving patient safety problems in healthcare is to blame the last person to touch the patient. But since the publication of To Err is Human, the call has been instead to use human factors and systems engineering methods and principles to solve patient safety problems. However, an understanding of the human factors and systems engineering is lacking, and confusion remains about what it means to apply their principles. This paper provides a primer on them and their applications to patient safety.

Human Factors and Systems Engineering Approach to Patient Safety for Radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rivera, A. Joy; Karsh, Ben-Tzion

2008-01-01

The traditional approach to solving patient safety problems in healthcare is to blame the last person to touch the patient. But since the publication of To Err is Human, the call has been instead to use human factors and systems engineering methods and principles to solve patient safety problems. However, an understanding of the human factors and systems engineering is lacking, and confusion remains about what it means to apply their principles. This paper provides a primer on them and their applications to patient safety

Robot and Human Surface Operations on Solar System Bodies

Science.gov (United States)

Weisbin, C. R.; Easter, R.; Rodriguez, G.

2001-01-01

This paper presents a comparison of robot and human surface operations on solar system bodies. The topics include: 1) Long Range Vision of Surface Scenarios; 2) Human and Robots Complement Each Other; 3) Respective Human and Robot Strengths; 4) Need More In-Depth Quantitative Analysis; 5) Projected Study Objectives; 6) Analysis Process Summary; 7) Mission Scenarios Decompose into Primitive Tasks; 7) Features of the Projected Analysis Approach; and 8) The "Getting There Effect" is a Major Consideration. This paper is in viewgraph form.

The mirror system in human and nonhuman primates.

Science.gov (United States)

Orban, Guy A

2014-04-01

The description of the mirror neuron system provided by Cook et al. is incomplete for the macaque, and incorrect for humans. This is relevant to exaptation versus associative learning as the underlying mechanism generating mirror neurons, and to the sensorimotor learning as evidence for the authors' viewpoint. The proposed additional testing of the mirror system in rodents is unrealistic.

Mars Surface Systems Common Capabilities and Challenges for Human Missions

Science.gov (United States)

Toups, Larry; Hoffman, Stephen J.

2016-01-01

This paper describes the current status of common systems and operations as they are applied to actual locations on Mars that are representative of Exploration Zones (EZ) - NASA's term for candidate locations where humans could land, live and work on the Martian surface. Given NASA's current concepts for human missions to Mars, an EZ is a collection of Regions of Interest (ROIs) located within approximately 100 kilometers of a centralized landing site. ROIs are areas that are relevant for scientific investigation and/or development/maturation of capabilities and resources necessary for a sustainable human presence. An EZ also contains a habitation site that will be used by multiple human crews during missions to explore and utilize the ROIs within the EZ. The Evolvable Mars Campaign (EMC), a description of NASA's current approach to these human Mars missions, assumes that a single EZ will be identified within which NASA will establish a substantial and durable surface infrastructure that will be used by multiple human crews. The process of identifying and eventually selecting this single EZ will likely take many years to finalized. Because of this extended EZ selection process it becomes important to evaluate the current suite of surface systems and operations being evaluated for the EMC as they are likely to perform at a variety of proposed EZ locations and for the types of operations - both scientific and development - that are proposed for these candidate EZs. It is also important to evaluate proposed EZs for their suitability to be explored or developed given the range of capabilities and constraints for the types of surface systems and operations being considered within the EMC. Four locations identified in the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group (MEPAG)'s Human Exploration of Mars Science Analysis Group (HEM-SAG) report are used in this paper as representative of candidate EZs that will emerge from the selection process that NASA has initiated. A field

Human Robot Interaction for Hybrid Collision Avoidance System for Indoor Mobile Robots

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mazen Ghandour

2017-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper, a novel approach for collision avoidance for indoor mobile robots based on human-robot interaction is realized. The main contribution of this work is a new technique for collision avoidance by engaging the human and the robot in generating new collision-free paths. In mobile robotics, collision avoidance is critical for the success of the robots in implementing their tasks, especially when the robots navigate in crowded and dynamic environments, which include humans. Traditional collision avoidance methods deal with the human as a dynamic obstacle, without taking into consideration that the human will also try to avoid the robot, and this causes the people and the robot to get confused, especially in crowded social places such as restaurants, hospitals, and laboratories. To avoid such scenarios, a reactive-supervised collision avoidance system for mobile robots based on human-robot interaction is implemented. In this method, both the robot and the human will collaborate in generating the collision avoidance via interaction. The person will notify the robot about the avoidance direction via interaction, and the robot will search for the optimal collision-free path on the selected direction. In case that no people interacted with the robot, it will select the navigation path autonomously and select the path that is closest to the goal location. The humans will interact with the robot using gesture recognition and Kinect sensor. To build the gesture recognition system, two models were used to classify these gestures, the first model is Back-Propagation Neural Network (BPNN, and the second model is Support Vector Machine (SVM. Furthermore, a novel collision avoidance system for avoiding the obstacles is implemented and integrated with the HRI system. The system is tested on H20 robot from DrRobot Company (Canada and a set of experiments were implemented to report the performance of the system in interacting with the human and avoiding

Trends in control and decision-making for human-robot collaboration systems

CERN Document Server

Zhang, Fumin

2017-01-01

This book provides an overview of recent research developments in the automation and control of robotic systems that collaborate with humans. A measure of human collaboration being necessary for the optimal operation of any robotic system, the contributors exploit a broad selection of such systems to demonstrate the importance of the subject, particularly where the environment is prone to uncertainty or complexity. They show how such human strengths as high-level decision-making, flexibility, and dexterity can be combined with robotic precision, and ability to perform task repetitively or in a dangerous environment. The book focuses on quantitative methods and control design for guaranteed robot performance and balanced human experience. Its contributions develop and expand upon material presented at various international conferences. They are organized into three parts covering: one-human–one-robot collaboration; one-human–multiple-robot collaboration; and human–swarm collaboration. Individual topic ar...

Simplified detection system for neuroreceptor studies in the human brain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bice, A.N.; Wagner, H.N. Jr.; Frost, J.J.

1986-01-01

A simple, inexpensive dual-detector system has been developed for measurement of positronemitting receptor-binding drugs in the human brain. This high efficiency coincidence counting system requires that only a few hundred microcuries of labeled drug be administered to the subject, thereby allowing for multiple studies without an excessive radiation dose. Measurement of the binding of [11C]carfentanil, a high affinity synthetic opiate, to opiate receptors in the presence and in the absence of a competitive opiate antagonist indicates the potential utility of this system for estimating different degrees of receptor occupation in the human brain

Human as a component of a nuclear material safeguard system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morgan, D.E.; Schechter, R.S.

1978-01-01

Many human vigilance experiments are summarized and principles are extracted which should be useful in designing and evaluating a nuclear material safeguard system. A human is a poor observer and is not a dependable part of any man-machine system when required to function as an observer. There are a few techniques which improve his performance by providing feedback. A conceptual model is presented which is helpful in design and evaluation of systems. There is some slight experimental support for the model. Finally, some techniques of time study and statistical control charting will be useful as a means of detecting nuclear diversion attempts

Impact of DNA mismatch repair system alterations on human fertility and related treatments.

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Min-hao; Liu, Shu-yuan; Wang, Ning; Wu, Yan; Jin, Fan

2016-01-01

DNA mismatch repair (MMR) is one of the biological pathways, which plays a critical role in DNA homeostasis, primarily by repairing base-pair mismatches and insertion/deletion loops that occur during DNA replication. MMR also takes part in other metabolic pathways and regulates cell cycle arrest. Defects in MMR are associated with genomic instability, predisposition to certain types of cancers and resistance to certain therapeutic drugs. Moreover, genetic and epigenetic alterations in the MMR system demonstrate a significant relationship with human fertility and related treatments, which helps us to understand the etiology and susceptibility of human infertility. Alterations in the MMR system may also influence the health of offspring conceived by assisted reproductive technology in humans. However, further studies are needed to explore the specific mechanisms by which the MMR system may affect human infertility. This review addresses the physiological mechanisms of the MMR system and associations between alterations of the MMR system and human fertility and related treatments, and potential effects on the next generation.

Human factors/ergonomics as a systems discipline? "The human use of human beings" revisited.

Science.gov (United States)

Hollnagel, Erik

2014-01-01

Discussions of the possible future of Human factors/ergonomics (HFE) usually take the past for granted in the sense that the future of HFE is assumed to be more of the same. This paper argues that the nature of work in the early 2010s is so different from the nature of work when HFE was formulated 60-70 years ago that a critical reassessment of the basis for HFE is needed. If HFE should be a systems discipline, it should be a soft systems rather than a hard systems discipline. It is not enough for HFE to seek to improve performance and well-being through systems design, since any change to the work environment in principle alters the very basis for the change. Instead HFE should try to anticipate how the nature of work will change so that it can both foresee what work will be and propose what work should be. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

A Community Framework for Integrative, Coupled Modeling of Human-Earth Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Barton, C. M.; Nelson, G. C.; Tucker, G. E.; Lee, A.; Porter, C.; Ullah, I.; Hutton, E.; Hoogenboom, G.; Rogers, K. G.; Pritchard, C.

2017-12-01

We live today in a humanized world, where critical zone dynamics are driven by coupled human and biophysical processes. First generation modeling platforms have been invaluable in providing insight into dynamics of biophysical systems and social systems. But to understand today's humanized planet scientifically and to manage it sustainably, we need integrative modeling of this coupled human-Earth system. To address both scientific and policy questions, we also need modeling that can represent variable combinations of human-Earth system processes at multiple scales. Simply adding more code needed to do this to large, legacy first generation models is impractical, expensive, and will make them even more difficult to evaluate or understand. We need an approach to modeling that mirrors and benefits from the architecture of the complexly coupled systems we hope to model. Building on a series of international workshops over the past two years, we present a community framework to enable and support an ecosystem of diverse models as components that can be interconnected as needed to facilitate understanding of a range of complex human-earth systems interactions. Models are containerized in Docker to make them platform independent. A Basic Modeling Interface and Standard Names ontology (developed by the Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System) is applied to make them interoperable. They are then transformed into RESTful micro-services to allow them to be connected and run in a browser environment. This enables a flexible, multi-scale modeling environment to help address diverse issues with combinations of smaller, focused, component models that are easier to understand and evaluate. We plan to develop, deploy, and maintain this framework for integrated, coupled modeling in an open-source collaborative development environment that can democratize access to advanced technology and benefit from diverse global participation in model development. We also present an initial

Advanced human-system interface design review guidelines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.

1990-01-01

Advanced, computer-based, human-system interface designs are emerging in nuclear power plant (NPP) control rooms. These developments may have significant implications for plant safety in that they will greatly affect the ways in which operators interact with systems. At present, however, the only guidance available to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the review of control room-operator interfaces, NUREG-0700, was written prior to these technological changes and is thus not designed to address them. The objective of the project reported in this paper is to develop an Advanced Control Room Design Review Guideline for use in performing human factors reviews of advanced operator interfaces. This guideline will be implemented, in part, as a portable, computer-based, interactive document for field use. The paper describes the overall guideline development methodology, the present status of the document, and the plans for further guideline testing and development. 21 refs., 3 figs

Development of an integrated system for estimating human error probabilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Auflick, J.L.; Hahn, H.A.; Morzinski, J.A.

1998-12-01

This is the final report of a three-year, Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). This project had as its main objective the development of a Human Reliability Analysis (HRA), knowledge-based expert system that would provide probabilistic estimates for potential human errors within various risk assessments, safety analysis reports, and hazard assessments. HRA identifies where human errors are most likely, estimates the error rate for individual tasks, and highlights the most beneficial areas for system improvements. This project accomplished three major tasks. First, several prominent HRA techniques and associated databases were collected and translated into an electronic format. Next, the project started a knowledge engineering phase where the expertise, i.e., the procedural rules and data, were extracted from those techniques and compiled into various modules. Finally, these modules, rules, and data were combined into a nearly complete HRA expert system.

Ecological Design of Cooperative Human-Machine Interfaces for Safety of Intelligent Transport Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Orekhov Aleksandr

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper describes research results in the domain of cooperative intelligent transport systems. The requirements for human-machine interface considering safety issue of for intelligent transport systems (ITSare analyzed. Profiling of the requirements to cooperative human-machine interface (CHMI for such systems including requirements to usability and safety is based on a set of standards for ITSs. An approach and design technique of cooperative human-machine interface for ITSs are suggested. The architecture of cloud-based CHMI for intelligent transport systems has been developed. The prototype of software system CHMI4ITSis described.

Principle of human system interface (HSI) design for new reactor console of PUSPATI TRIGA Reactor (RTP)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zareen Khan Abdul Jalil Khan; Ridzuan Abdul Mutalib; Mohd Idris Taib; Mohd Khairulezwan Abdul Manan; Nurfarhana Ayuni Joha; Mohd Sabri Minhat; Izhar Abu Hussin

2013-01-01

Full-text: This paper will describe the principle of human system interface design for new reactor console in control room at TRIGA reactor facility. In order to support these human system interface challenges in digital reactor console. Software-based instrumentation and control (I and C) system for new reactor console could lead to new human machine integration. The proposed of Human System Interface (HSI) which included the large display panels which shows reactor status, compact and computer-based workstations for monitoring, control and protection function. The proposed Human System Interface (HIS) has been evaluated using various human factor engineering. It can be concluded that the Human System Interface (HIS) is designed as to address the safety related computer controlled system. (author)

Status of human factors engineering system design in Europe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ives, G.

1990-01-01

A review of the European status of human factors engineering has been carried out covering a wide scope of activities which includes psychology, cognitive science, ergonomics, design, training, procedure writing, operating, artificial intelligence and expert systems. There is an increasing awareness of the part that human factors play in major nuclear power plant accidents. The emphasis of attention in human factors is changing. In some areas there are encouraging signs of progress and development, but in other areas there is still scope for improvement

Design Concept of Human Interface System for Risk Monitoring for Proactive Trouble Prevention

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoshikawa, Hidekazu; Yang, Ming; Zhang, Zhijian; Hashim, Muhammad [Harbin Engineering University, Harbin (China); Lind, Morten [Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby (Djibouti); Tamayama, Kiyoshi; Okusa, Kyoichi [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Tsuruga (Japan)

2011-08-15

A new concept is first proposed of distributed human interface system to integrate both operation and maintenance of nuclear power plant. Then, a method of constructing human interface system is introduced by integrating the plant knowledge database system based on Multilevel Flow Model (MFM) with the risk monitor to watch Defense-in Depth plant safety functions. The proposed concept is applied for a liquid metal fast reactor Monju and necessary R and D subjects are reviewed to realize human interface system for the maintenance work in Monju plant. Because of using high temperature liquid sodium as reactor coolant in Monju plant, the maintenance for Monju should utilize more automated equipment of remote control and robotics than that of light water reactor. It is necessary to design optimum task allocation between human and automated machine as the requisites for good communication design of human interface systems to support the collaboration work between workers at local workplace and the main control room. In this paper, the general issues are reviewed on how to configure the whole human interface system for helping proactive trouble prevention and risk evaluation on the basis of the presented target plant model before the concrete proposition of the hardware and software systems development to be used by both the staffs of operation and maintenance of NPP.

Design Concept of Human Interface System for Risk Monitoring for Proactive Trouble Prevention

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshikawa, Hidekazu; Yang, Ming; Zhang, Zhijian; Hashim, Muhammad; Lind, Morten; Tamayama, Kiyoshi; Okusa, Kyoichi

2011-01-01

A new concept is first proposed of distributed human interface system to integrate both operation and maintenance of nuclear power plant. Then, a method of constructing human interface system is introduced by integrating the plant knowledge database system based on Multilevel Flow Model (MFM) with the risk monitor to watch Defense-in Depth plant safety functions. The proposed concept is applied for a liquid metal fast reactor Monju and necessary R and D subjects are reviewed to realize human interface system for the maintenance work in Monju plant. Because of using high temperature liquid sodium as reactor coolant in Monju plant, the maintenance for Monju should utilize more automated equipment of remote control and robotics than that of light water reactor. It is necessary to design optimum task allocation between human and automated machine as the requisites for good communication design of human interface systems to support the collaboration work between workers at local workplace and the main control room. In this paper, the general issues are reviewed on how to configure the whole human interface system for helping proactive trouble prevention and risk evaluation on the basis of the presented target plant model before the concrete proposition of the hardware and software systems development to be used by both the staffs of operation and maintenance of NPP

An intelligent human-machine system based on an ecological interface design concept

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naito, N.

1995-01-01

It seems both necessary and promising to develop an intelligent human-machine system, considering the objective of the human-machine system and the recent advance in cognitive engineering and artificial intelligence together with the ever-increasing importance of human factor issues in nuclear power plant operation and maintenance. It should support human operators in their knowledge-based behaviour and allow them to cope with unanticipated abnormal events, including recovery from erroneous human actions. A top-down design approach has been adopted based on cognitive work analysis, and (1) an ecological interface, (2) a cognitive model-based advisor and (3) a robust automatic sequence controller have been established. These functions have been integrated into an experimental control room. A validation test was carried out by the participation of experienced operators and engineers. The results showed the usefulness of this system in supporting the operator's supervisory plant control tasks. ((orig.))

The human mirror neuron system and embodied representations.

Science.gov (United States)

Aziz-Zadeh, Lisa; Ivry, Richard B

2009-01-01

Mirror neurons are defined as neurons in the monkey cortex which respond to goal oriented actions, whether the behavior is self-generated or produced by another. Here we briefly review this literature and consider evidence from behavioral, neuropsychological, and brain imaging studies for a similar mirror neuron system in humans. Furthermore, we review functions of this system related to action comprehension and motor imagery, as well as evidence for speculations on the system's ties with conceptual knowledge and language.

Human-inspired sound environment recognition system for assistive vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

González Vidal, Eduardo; Fredes Zarricueta, Ernesto; Auat Cheein, Fernando

2015-02-01

Objective. The human auditory system acquires environmental information under sound stimuli faster than visual or touch systems, which in turn, allows for faster human responses to such stimuli. It also complements senses such as sight, where direct line-of-view is necessary to identify objects, in the environment recognition process. This work focuses on implementing human reaction to sound stimuli and environment recognition on assistive robotic devices, such as robotic wheelchairs or robotized cars. These vehicles need environment information to ensure safe navigation. Approach. In the field of environment recognition, range sensors (such as LiDAR and ultrasonic systems) and artificial vision devices are widely used; however, these sensors depend on environment constraints (such as lighting variability or color of objects), and sound can provide important information for the characterization of an environment. In this work, we propose a sound-based approach to enhance the environment recognition process, mainly for cases that compromise human integrity, according to the International Classification of Functioning (ICF). Our proposal is based on a neural network implementation that is able to classify up to 15 different environments, each selected according to the ICF considerations on environment factors in the community-based physical activities of people with disabilities. Main results. The accuracy rates in environment classification ranges from 84% to 93%. This classification is later used to constrain assistive vehicle navigation in order to protect the user during daily activities. This work also includes real-time outdoor experimentation (performed on an assistive vehicle) by seven volunteers with different disabilities (but without cognitive impairment and experienced in the use of wheelchairs), statistical validation, comparison with previously published work, and a discussion section where the pros and cons of our system are evaluated. Significance

Human Robotic Systems (HRS): Robonaut 2 Technologies Element

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The goal of the Robonaut 2 (R2) Technology Project Element within Human Robotic Systems (HRS) is to developed advanced technologies for infusion into the Robonaut 2...

HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN A TOURISM ORGANIZATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nadezhda Dicheva

2016-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, based on personal observations and analyzed information, an attempt is made to be identified the main problems with personnel management in tourism organizations. It argues that this system needs a thorough reorganization is needed in which sustainable development of the system will be achieved improving its ability to motivate, evaluate and properly manage human resources.

Cooperative mobility systems: The human factor challenges.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Martens, Marieke; Kroon, Elisabeth

2014-01-01

This paper presents a vision on cooperative mobility systems from a human factors perspective. To create a common ground for future developments, it’s important to define the common research themes and knowledge gaps. This article presents what steps need to be taken in order to come to proper

Cognitive engineering in the design of human-computer interaction and expert systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salvendy, G.

1987-01-01

The 68 papers contributing to this book cover the following areas: Theories of Interface Design; Methodologies of Interface Design; Applications of Interface Design; Software Design; Human Factors in Speech Technology and Telecommunications; Design of Graphic Dialogues; Knowledge Acquisition for Knowledge-Based Systems; Design, Evaluation and Use of Expert Systems. This demonstrates the dual role of cognitive engineering. On the one hand cognitive engineering is utilized to design computing systems which are compatible with human cognition and can be effectively and be easily utilized by all individuals. On the other hand, cognitive engineering is utilized to transfer human cognition into the computer for the purpose of building expert systems. Two papers are of interest to INIS

The behavioural immune system and the psychology of human sociality.

Science.gov (United States)

Schaller, Mark

2011-12-12

Because immunological defence against pathogens is costly and merely reactive, human anti-pathogen defence is also characterized by proactive behavioural mechanisms that inhibit contact with pathogens in the first place. This behavioural immune system comprises psychological processes that infer infection risk from perceptual cues, and that respond to these perceptual cues through the activation of aversive emotions, cognitions and behavioural impulses. These processes are engaged flexibly, producing context-contingent variation in the nature and magnitude of aversive responses. These processes have important implications for human social cognition and social behaviour-including implications for social gregariousness, person perception, intergroup prejudice, mate preferences, sexual behaviour and conformity. Empirical evidence bearing on these many implications is reviewed and discussed. This review also identifies important directions for future research on the human behavioural immune system--including the need for enquiry into underlying mechanisms, additional behavioural consequences and implications for human health and well-being.

Social touch modulates endogenous μ-opioid system activity in humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Nummenmaa, Lauri; Tuominen, Lauri; Dunbar, Robin; Hirvonen, Jussi; Manninen, Sandra; Arponen, Eveliina; Machin, Anna; Hari, Riitta; Jääskeläinen, Iiro P; Sams, Mikko

2016-09-01

In non-human primates, opioid-receptor blockade increases social grooming, and the endogenous opioid system has therefore been hypothesized to support maintenance of long-term relationships in humans as well. Here we tested whether social touch modulates opioidergic activation in humans using in vivo positron emission tomography (PET). Eighteen male participants underwent two PET scans with [11C]carfentanil, a ligand specific to μ-opioid receptors (MOR). During the social touch scan, the participants lay in the scanner while their partners caressed their bodies in a non-sexual fashion. In the baseline scan, participants lay alone in the scanner. Social touch triggered pleasurable sensations and increased MOR availability in the thalamus, striatum, and frontal, cingulate, and insular cortices. Modulation of activity of the opioid system by social touching might provide a neurochemical mechanism reinforcing social bonds between humans. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Human Factors Perspective on Alarm System Research and Development 2000 to 2010

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Curt Braun; John Grimes; Eric Shaver; Ronald Boring (Principal Investigator)

2011-09-01

By definition, alarms serve to notify human operators of out-of-parameter conditions that could threaten equipment, the environment, product quality and, of course, human life. Given the complexities of industrial systems, human machine interfaces, and the human operator, the understanding of how alarms and humans can best work together to prevent disaster is continually developing. This review examines advances in alarm research and development from 2000 to 2010 and includes the writings of trade professionals, engineering and human factors researchers, and standards organizations with the goal of documenting advances in alarms system design, research, and implementation.

Considerations in the evaluation of the human element of a safeguards system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adams, K.G.; Trujillo, A.A.

1977-01-01

By understanding the human system and its function, then a structure for evaluating the human system can be developed. This understanding must be available at the research and development levels, and must occur at the working level so that individuals who impact the system will have a common goal in mind. Then by appropriate coordination and review, a system can be developed which will function as designed with a high degree of assurance

The accessory magnocellular neurosecretory system of the rostral human hypothalamus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Morten; Busch, Johannes R.; Jacobsen, Christina

2018-01-01

magnocellular neurons were often located along the blood vessels and projections of some of these neurons penetrated the vascular endothelium. The accessory magnocellular cell bodies expressed either neurophysin I or neurophysin II immunoreactivity. Summarizing, the accessory magnocellular system in the human......The morphology and neurophysin expression of the magnocellular accessory neuroendocrine system located in the rostral human hypothalamus is investigated in a series of brains obtained at autopsy. The hypothalami were fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin, or after cryoprotection, frozen...

The common mode failures analysis of the redundent system with dependent human error

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, M.K.; Chang, S.H.

1983-01-01

Common mode failures (CMFs) have been a serious concern in the nuclear power plant. Thereis a broad category of the failure mechanisms that can cause common mode failures. This paper is a theoretical investigation of the CMFs on the unavailability of the redundent system. It is assumed that the total CMFs consist of the potential CMFs and the dependent human error CMFs. As the human error dependency is higher, the total CMFs are more effected by the dependent human error. If the human error dependence is lower, the system unavailability strongly depends on the potential CMFs, rather than the mechanical failure or the dependent human error. And it is shown that the total CMFs are dominant factor to the unavailability of the redundent system. (Author)

SAR in human head model due to resonant wireless power transfer system.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chao; Liu, Guoqiang; Li, Yanhong; Song, Xianjin

2016-04-29

Efficient mid-range wireless power transfer between transmitter and the receiver has been achieved based on the magnetic resonant coupling method. The influence of electromagnetic field on the human body due to resonant wireless power transfer system (RWPT) should be taken into account during the design process of the system. To analyze the transfer performance of the RWPT system and the change rules of the specific absorption rate (SAR) in the human head model due to the RWPT system. The circuit-field coupling method for a RWPT system with consideration of the displacement current was presented. The relationship between the spiral coil parameters and transfer performance was studied. The SAR in the human head model was calculated under two different exposure conditions. A system with output power higher than 10 W at 0.2 m distance operating at a frequency of approximately 1 MHz was designed. The FEM simulation results show the peak SAR value is below the safety limit which appeared when the human head model is in front of the transmitter. The simulation results agreed well with the experimental results, which verified the validity of the analysis and design.

Aviation Safety: Modeling and Analyzing Complex Interactions between Humans and Automated Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Rungta, Neha; Brat, Guillaume; Clancey, William J.; Linde, Charlotte; Raimondi, Franco; Seah, Chin; Shafto, Michael

2013-01-01

The on-going transformation from the current US Air Traffic System (ATS) to the Next Generation Air Traffic System (NextGen) will force the introduction of new automated systems and most likely will cause automation to migrate from ground to air. This will yield new function allocations between humans and automation and therefore change the roles and responsibilities in the ATS. Yet, safety in NextGen is required to be at least as good as in the current system. We therefore need techniques to evaluate the safety of the interactions between humans and automation. We think that current human factor studies and simulation-based techniques will fall short in front of the ATS complexity, and that we need to add more automated techniques to simulations, such as model checking, which offers exhaustive coverage of the non-deterministic behaviors in nominal and off-nominal scenarios. In this work, we present a verification approach based both on simulations and on model checking for evaluating the roles and responsibilities of humans and automation. Models are created using Brahms (a multi-agent framework) and we show that the traditional Brahms simulations can be integrated with automated exploration techniques based on model checking, thus offering a complete exploration of the behavioral space of the scenario. Our formal analysis supports the notion of beliefs and probabilities to reason about human behavior. We demonstrate the technique with the Ueberligen accident since it exemplifies authority problems when receiving conflicting advices from human and automated systems.

Visuals and Visualisation of Human Body Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Mathai, Sindhu; Ramadas, Jayashree

2009-01-01

This paper explores the role of diagrams and text in middle school students' understanding and visualisation of human body systems. We develop a common framework based on structure and function to assess students' responses across diagram and verbal modes. Visualisation is defined in terms of understanding transformations on structure and relating…

Advanced human-system interface design review guideline. Evaluation procedures and guidelines for human factors engineering reviews

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O`Hara, J.M.; Brown, W.S. [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States); Baker, C.C.; Welch, D.L.; Granda, T.M.; Vingelis, P.J. [Carlow International Inc., Falls Church, VA (United States)

1994-07-01

Advanced control rooms will use advanced human-system interface (HSI) technologies that may have significant implications for plant safety in that they will affect the operator`s overall role in the system, the method of information presentation, and the ways in which operators interact with the system. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews the HSI aspects of control rooms to ensure that they are designed to good human factors engineering principles and that operator performance and reliability are appropriately supported to protect public health and safety. The principal guidance available to the NRC, however, was developed more than ten years ago, well before these technological changes. Accordingly, the human factors guidance needs to be updated to serve as the basis for NRC review of these advanced designs. The purpose of this project was to develop a general approach to advanced HSI review and the human factors guidelines to support. NRC safety reviews of advanced systems. This two-volume report provides the results of the project. Volume I describes the development of the Advanced HSI Design Review Guideline (DRG) including (1) its theoretical and technical foundation, (2) a general model for the review of advanced HSIs, (3) guideline development in both hard-copy and computer-based versions, and (4) the tests and evaluations performed to develop and validate the DRG. Volume I also includes a discussion of the gaps in available guidance and a methodology for addressing them. Volume 2 provides the guidelines to be used for advanced HSI review and the procedures for their use.

Advanced human-system interface design review guideline. Evaluation procedures and guidelines for human factors engineering reviews

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.; Brown, W.S.; Baker, C.C.; Welch, D.L.; Granda, T.M.; Vingelis, P.J.

1994-07-01

Advanced control rooms will use advanced human-system interface (HSI) technologies that may have significant implications for plant safety in that they will affect the operator's overall role in the system, the method of information presentation, and the ways in which operators interact with the system. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews the HSI aspects of control rooms to ensure that they are designed to good human factors engineering principles and that operator performance and reliability are appropriately supported to protect public health and safety. The principal guidance available to the NRC, however, was developed more than ten years ago, well before these technological changes. Accordingly, the human factors guidance needs to be updated to serve as the basis for NRC review of these advanced designs. The purpose of this project was to develop a general approach to advanced HSI review and the human factors guidelines to support. NRC safety reviews of advanced systems. This two-volume report provides the results of the project. Volume I describes the development of the Advanced HSI Design Review Guideline (DRG) including (1) its theoretical and technical foundation, (2) a general model for the review of advanced HSIs, (3) guideline development in both hard-copy and computer-based versions, and (4) the tests and evaluations performed to develop and validate the DRG. Volume I also includes a discussion of the gaps in available guidance and a methodology for addressing them. Volume 2 provides the guidelines to be used for advanced HSI review and the procedures for their use

Integrating social science into empirical models of coupled human and natural systems

Science.gov (United States)

Jeffrey D. Kline; Eric M. White; A Paige Fischer; Michelle M. Steen-Adams; Susan Charnley; Christine S. Olsen; Thomas A. Spies; John D. Bailey

2017-01-01

Coupled human and natural systems (CHANS) research highlights reciprocal interactions (or feedbacks) between biophysical and socioeconomic variables to explain system dynamics and resilience. Empirical models often are used to test hypotheses and apply theory that represent human behavior. Parameterizing reciprocal interactions presents two challenges for social...

Sybar, a human motion analysis system for rehabilition medicine

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hautus, E.H.

1997-01-01

The Sybar project is a designer's Ph.D project that deals with the development of a motion-analysis system for rehabilitation medicine, at the VU Hospital in Amsterdam. Human motion can be analyzed by biomechanical measurement systems. There are a number of different methods to generate several

Information Flow Analysis for Human-System Interaction in the SG Level Control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jong Hyun; Shin, Yeong Cheol

2008-01-01

Interaction between automatic control and operators is one of main issues in the application of automation technology. Inappropriate information from automatic control systems causes unexpected problems in human-automation collaboration. Poor information becomes critical, especially when the operator takes over the control from an automation system. Operators cannot properly handle the situation transferred from the automatic mode because of inadequate situation awareness, if the operator is out-of-the loop and the automatic control system fails. Some cases of unplanned reactor trips during the transition between the manual mode and the automatic mode are reported in nuclear power plants (NPPs). Among unplanned reactor trips since 2002, two cases were partially caused by automation-related failures of steam generator (SG) level control. This paper conducts information flow analysis to identify information and control requirement for human-system interaction of SG level control. At first, this paper identifies the level of automation in SG level control systems and then function allocation between system control and human operators. Then information flow analysis for monitoring and transition of automation is performed by adapting job process chart. Information and control requirements will be useful as an input for the human-system interface (HSI) design of SG level control

Personalized medicine for cystic fibrosis: establishing human model systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Mou, Hongmei; Brazauskas, Karissa; Rajagopal, Jayaraj

2015-10-01

With over 1,500 identifiable mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene that result in distinct functional and phenotypical abnormalities, it is virtually impossible to perform randomized clinical trials to identify the best therapeutics for all patients. Therefore, a personalized medicine approach is essential. The only way to realistically accomplish this is through the development of improved in vitro human model systems. The lack of a readily available and infinite supply of human CFTR-expressing airway epithelial cells is a key bottleneck. We propose that a concerted two-pronged approach is necessary for patient-specific cystic fibrosis research to continue to prosper and realize its potential: (1) more effective culture and differentiation conditions for growing primary human airway and nasal epithelial cells and (2) the development of collective protocols for efficiently differentiating disease- and patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) into pure populations of adult epithelial cells. Ultimately, we need a personalized human model system for cystic fibrosis with the capacity for uncomplicated bankability, widespread availability, and universal applicability for patient-specific disease modeling, novel pharmacotherapy investigation and screening, and readily executable genetic modification. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Dynamics of immature mAb glycoform secretion during CHO cell culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jimenez del Val, Ioscani; Fan, Yuzhou; Weilguny, Dietmar

2016-01-01

Ensuring consistent glycosylation-associated quality of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) has become a priority in pharmaceutical bioprocessing given that the distribution and composition of the carbohydrates (glycans) bound to these molecules determines their therapeutic efficacy and immu......Ensuring consistent glycosylation-associated quality of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) has become a priority in pharmaceutical bioprocessing given that the distribution and composition of the carbohydrates (glycans) bound to these molecules determines their therapeutic efficacy...

Immunomodulatory effects of OX40Ig gene-modified adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells on rat kidney transplantation

OpenAIRE

Liu, Tao; Zhang, Yue; Shen, Zhongyang; Zou, Xunfeng; Chen, Xiaobo; Chen, Li; Wang, Yuliang

2016-01-01

Recent studies have suggested that adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cell (ADSC) therapy and OX40 costimulation blockade are two immunomodulatory strategies used to suppress the immune response to alloantigens. However, relatively little has been reported regarding the immunomodulatory potential of the abilityof these two strategies to synergize. Thus, in the present study, we aimed to investigate OX40-Ig fusion protein (OX40Ig) expression in ADSCs and to validate their more potent immu...

Are Human and Natural Systems Decoupling?

Science.gov (United States)

Ehrlich, P. R.; Ehrlich, A. H.

2012-12-01

Typically, studies of coupled human and natural systems focus on reciprocating interactions and feedbacks between social systems and their biophysical environments. A major challenge today for CHANS scholars is to determine whether significant coupling remains or whether society is simply plunging ahead without reacting effectively to the deterioration of the environment. Thresholds for serious climate disruption are passing, toxification of Earth is proceeding apace and producing worrying symptoms, losses of vital biodiversity are at a 65 million-year high with serious consequences for ecosystem services, the epidemiological environment is deteriorating and a race is building to control water flows and extract the last high-quality resources, increasing the chances of ending civilization in an environment-wrecking nuclear war. The social system has attempted to respond to this perfect storm of problems. In the 1960s, building on much earlier work, scientists began assessing the consequences of an ever-growing human population and expanding consumption, overuse of pesticides, radioactive fallout, air and water pollution, and other environmental issues - and to recommend ameliorative steps. In the mid-1980s, biologists formed the discipline of conservation biology with the explicit purpose of stemming the hemorrhage of biodiversity. In the late 1980s, perhaps the single most important reaction to the worsening environmental situation was the development of the Montreal Protocol to preserve the vital stratospheric ozone layer. Around the same time, it dawned on the scientific community that climate disruption was going to be more immediate and dangerous than previously thought, but attempts by the world community to take mitigating steps have been pathetic. Action to deal with other dimensions of the environmental dilemma has been utterly inadequate. To see the growing disconnect, one only has to consider the attention paid in public discourse to the relatively

Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields from Parallel Wireless Power Transfer Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Wen, Feng; Huang, Xueliang

2017-02-08

The scenario of multiple wireless power transfer (WPT) systems working closely, synchronously or asynchronously with phase difference often occurs in power supply for household appliances and electric vehicles in parking lots. Magnetic field leakage from the WPT systems is also varied due to unpredictable asynchronous working conditions. In this study, the magnetic field leakage from parallel WPT systems working with phase difference is predicted, and the induced electric field and specific absorption rate (SAR) in a human body standing in the vicinity are also evaluated. Computational results are compared with the restrictions prescribed in the regulations established to limit human exposure to time-varying electromagnetic fields (EMFs). The results show that the middle region between the two WPT coils is safer for the two WPT systems working in-phase, and the peripheral regions are safer around the WPT systems working anti-phase. Thin metallic plates larger than the WPT coils can shield the magnetic field leakage well, while smaller ones may worsen the situation. The orientation of the human body will influence the maximum magnitude of induced electric field and its distribution within the human body. The induced electric field centralizes in the trunk, groin, and genitals with only one exception: when the human body is standing right at the middle of the two WPT coils working in-phase, the induced electric field focuses on lower limbs. The SAR value in the lungs always seems to be greater than in other organs, while the value in the liver is minimal. Human exposure to EMFs meets the guidelines of the International Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), specifically reference levels with respect to magnetic field and basic restrictions on induced electric fields and SAR, as the charging power is lower than 3.1 kW and 55.5 kW, respectively. These results are positive with respect to the safe applications of parallel WPT systems working

Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields from Parallel Wireless Power Transfer Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Wen, Feng; Huang, Xueliang

2017-01-01

The scenario of multiple wireless power transfer (WPT) systems working closely, synchronously or asynchronously with phase difference often occurs in power supply for household appliances and electric vehicles in parking lots. Magnetic field leakage from the WPT systems is also varied due to unpredictable asynchronous working conditions. In this study, the magnetic field leakage from parallel WPT systems working with phase difference is predicted, and the induced electric field and specific absorption rate (SAR) in a human body standing in the vicinity are also evaluated. Computational results are compared with the restrictions prescribed in the regulations established to limit human exposure to time-varying electromagnetic fields (EMFs). The results show that the middle region between the two WPT coils is safer for the two WPT systems working in-phase, and the peripheral regions are safer around the WPT systems working anti-phase. Thin metallic plates larger than the WPT coils can shield the magnetic field leakage well, while smaller ones may worsen the situation. The orientation of the human body will influence the maximum magnitude of induced electric field and its distribution within the human body. The induced electric field centralizes in the trunk, groin, and genitals with only one exception: when the human body is standing right at the middle of the two WPT coils working in-phase, the induced electric field focuses on lower limbs. The SAR value in the lungs always seems to be greater than in other organs, while the value in the liver is minimal. Human exposure to EMFs meets the guidelines of the International Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), specifically reference levels with respect to magnetic field and basic restrictions on induced electric fields and SAR, as the charging power is lower than 3.1 kW and 55.5 kW, respectively. These results are positive with respect to the safe applications of parallel WPT systems working

Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields from Parallel Wireless Power Transfer Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Feng Wen

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The scenario of multiple wireless power transfer (WPT systems working closely, synchronously or asynchronously with phase difference often occurs in power supply for household appliances and electric vehicles in parking lots. Magnetic field leakage from the WPT systems is also varied due to unpredictable asynchronous working conditions. In this study, the magnetic field leakage from parallel WPT systems working with phase difference is predicted, and the induced electric field and specific absorption rate (SAR in a human body standing in the vicinity are also evaluated. Computational results are compared with the restrictions prescribed in the regulations established to limit human exposure to time-varying electromagnetic fields (EMFs. The results show that the middle region between the two WPT coils is safer for the two WPT systems working in-phase, and the peripheral regions are safer around the WPT systems working anti-phase. Thin metallic plates larger than the WPT coils can shield the magnetic field leakage well, while smaller ones may worsen the situation. The orientation of the human body will influence the maximum magnitude of induced electric field and its distribution within the human body. The induced electric field centralizes in the trunk, groin, and genitals with only one exception: when the human body is standing right at the middle of the two WPT coils working in-phase, the induced electric field focuses on lower limbs. The SAR value in the lungs always seems to be greater than in other organs, while the value in the liver is minimal. Human exposure to EMFs meets the guidelines of the International Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP, specifically reference levels with respect to magnetic field and basic restrictions on induced electric fields and SAR, as the charging power is lower than 3.1 kW and 55.5 kW, respectively. These results are positive with respect to the safe applications of parallel WPT systems

Human-directed local autonomy for motion guidance and coordination in an intelligent manufacturing system

Science.gov (United States)

Alford, W. A.; Kawamura, Kazuhiko; Wilkes, Don M.

1997-12-01

This paper discusses the problem of integrating human intelligence and skills into an intelligent manufacturing system. Our center has jointed the Holonic Manufacturing Systems (HMS) Project, an international consortium dedicated to developing holonic systems technologies. One of our contributions to this effort is in Work Package 6: flexible human integration. This paper focuses on one activity, namely, human integration into motion guidance and coordination. Much research on intelligent systems focuses on creating totally autonomous agents. At the Center for Intelligent Systems (CIS), we design robots that interact directly with a human user. We focus on using the natural intelligence of the user to simplify the design of a robotic system. The problem is finding ways for the user to interact with the robot that are efficient and comfortable for the user. Manufacturing applications impose the additional constraint that the manufacturing process should not be disturbed; that is, frequent interacting with the user could degrade real-time performance. Our research in human-robot interaction is based on a concept called human directed local autonomy (HuDL). Under this paradigm, the intelligent agent selects and executes a behavior or skill, based upon directions from a human user. The user interacts with the robot via speech, gestures, or other media. Our control software is based on the intelligent machine architecture (IMA), an object-oriented architecture which facilitates cooperation and communication among intelligent agents. In this paper we describe our research testbed, a dual-arm humanoid robot and human user, and the use of this testbed for a human directed sorting task. We also discuss some proposed experiments for evaluating the integration of the human into the robot system. At the time of this writing, the experiments have not been completed.

A Low Power, Parallel Wearable Multi-Sensor System for Human Activity Evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yuecheng; Jia, Wenyan; Yu, Tianjian; Luan, Bo; Mao, Zhi-Hong; Zhang, Hong; Sun, Mingui

2015-04-01

In this paper, the design of a low power heterogeneous wearable multi-sensor system, built with Zynq System-on-Chip (SoC), for human activity evaluation is presented. The powerful data processing capability and flexibility of this SoC represent significant improvements over our previous ARM based system designs. The new system captures and compresses multiple color images and sensor data simultaneously. Several strategies are adopted to minimize power consumption. Our wearable system provides a new tool for the evaluation of human activity, including diet, physical activity and lifestyle.

A HUMAN FACTORS ENGINEERING PROCESS TO SUPPORT HUMAN-SYSTEM INTERFACE DESIGN IN CONTROL ROOM MODERNIZATION

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kovesdi, C.; Joe, J.; Boring, R.

2017-05-01

The primary objective of the United States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DOE) Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) program is to sustain operation of the existing commercial nuclear power plants (NPPs) through a multi-pathway approach in conducting research and development (R&D). The Advanced Instrumentation, Information, and Control (II&C) System Technologies pathway conducts targeted R&D to address aging and reliability concerns with legacy instrumentation and control (I&C) and other information systems in existing U.S. NPPs. Control room modernization is an important part following this pathway, and human factors experts at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) have been involved in conducting R&D to support migration of new digital main control room (MCR) technologies from legacy analog and legacy digital I&C. This paper describes a human factors engineering (HFE) process that supports human-system interface (HSI) design in MCR modernization activities, particularly with migration of old digital to new digital I&C. The process described in this work is an expansion from the LWRS Report INL/EXT-16-38576, and is a requirements-driven approach that aligns with NUREG-0711 requirements. The work described builds upon the existing literature by adding more detail around key tasks and decisions to make when transitioning from HSI Design into Verification and Validation (V&V). The overall objective of this process is to inform HSI design and elicit specific, measurable, and achievable human factors criteria for new digital technologies. Upon following this process, utilities should have greater confidence with transitioning from HSI design into V&V.

Integrated application of human factors to a power plant control room information system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fish, H.C. Jr.; Gutierrez, R.

1988-01-01

The human factors plan was developed as a methodology to apply human factors from the conceptual design of the EPIC system to the functional verification conducted at the plant. An integral part of the Human Factors Plan was the Functional Verification Plan. Developed in parallel, this second plan and its resultant programs verified functional appropriateness of the SPDS display, NSSS displays, EOP displays, man-machine interfaces (MMI), and workstation designs. The functional verification process was performed at the hardware/software developer's factory and at the JAFNPP, following installation of the EPIC system. Because the EPIC system replaces existing control room equipment, it is important that human factors be applied in a systematic manner consistent with other control room displays and controls. To ensure that this goal was met, a human factors plan was developed

Experiences in the application of human factors engineering to human-system interface modernization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trueba Alonso, Pedro; Illobre, Luis Fernandez; Ortega Pascual, Fernando

2014-01-01

Almost all the existing Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) include plans to modernize their existing Instrumentation and Control (I and C) systems and associated Human System Interfaces (HSIs), due to obsolescence problems. Tecnatom, S.A. has been participating in modernization programs in NPPs to help them to plan, specify, design and implement the modernization of control rooms and associated I and C and HSIs. The application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in modernization programs is nowadays unavoidable. This is because is becoming a regulatory requirement, and also because it is needed to ensure that any plant modification, involving the modernization of I and C and HSI, is well designed to improve overall plant operations, reliability, and safety. This paper shows some experiences obtained during the application of HFE to the modernization of these HSIs. The experience applying HFE in modernizations and design modifications show a positive effect, improving the associated HSIs, with the acceptability of the final user. (authors)

Experiences in the application of human factors engineering to human-system interface modernization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trueba Alonso, Pedro; Fernandez Illobre, Luis; Ortega Pascual, Fernando

2015-01-01

Almost all the existing Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) include plans to modernize their existing Instrumentation and Control (I and C) systems and associated Human System Interfaces (HSIs), due to obsolescence problems. Tecnatom, S.A. has been participating in modernization programs in NPPs to help them to plan, specify, design and implement the modernization of control rooms and associated I and C and HSIs. The application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in modernization programs is nowadays unavoidable. This is because is becoming a regulatory requirement, and also because it is needed to ensure that any plant modification, involving the modernization of I and C and HSI, is well designed to improve overall plant operations, reliability, and safety. This paper shows some experiences obtained during the application of HFE to the modernization of these HSIs. The experience applying HFE in modernizations and design modifications show a positive effect, improving the associated HSIs, with the acceptability of the final user.

Experiences in the application of human factors engineering to human-system interface modernization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Trueba Alonso, Pedro; Fernandez Illobre, Luis; Ortega Pascual, Fernando [Tecnatom S.A., San Sebastian de los Reyes (Spain). Simulation and Control Rooms Div.

2015-07-15

Almost all the existing Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) include plans to modernize their existing Instrumentation and Control (I and C) systems and associated Human System Interfaces (HSIs), due to obsolescence problems. Tecnatom, S.A. has been participating in modernization programs in NPPs to help them to plan, specify, design and implement the modernization of control rooms and associated I and C and HSIs. The application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in modernization programs is nowadays unavoidable. This is because is becoming a regulatory requirement, and also because it is needed to ensure that any plant modification, involving the modernization of I and C and HSI, is well designed to improve overall plant operations, reliability, and safety. This paper shows some experiences obtained during the application of HFE to the modernization of these HSIs. The experience applying HFE in modernizations and design modifications show a positive effect, improving the associated HSIs, with the acceptability of the final user.

User`s manual of a support system for human reliability analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yokobayashi, Masao [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment; Tamura, Kazuo

1995-10-01

Many kinds of human reliability analysis (HRA) methods have been developed. However, users are required to be skillful so as to use them, and also required complicated works such as drawing event tree (ET) and calculation of uncertainty bounds. Moreover, each method is not so complete that only one method of them is not enough to evaluate human reliability. Therefore, a personal computer (PC) based support system for HRA has been developed to execute HRA practically and efficiently. The system consists of two methods, namely, simple method and detailed one. The former uses ASEP that is a simplified THERP-technique, and combined method of OAT and HRA-ET/DeBDA is used for the latter. Users can select a suitable method for their purpose. Human error probability (HEP) data were collected and a database of them was built to use for the support system. This paper describes outline of the HRA methods, support functions and user`s guide of the system. (author).

Eye Tracking Based Control System for Natural Human-Computer Interaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xuebai Zhang

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Eye movement can be regarded as a pivotal real-time input medium for human-computer communication, which is especially important for people with physical disability. In order to improve the reliability, mobility, and usability of eye tracking technique in user-computer dialogue, a novel eye control system with integrating both mouse and keyboard functions is proposed in this paper. The proposed system focuses on providing a simple and convenient interactive mode by only using user’s eye. The usage flow of the proposed system is designed to perfectly follow human natural habits. Additionally, a magnifier module is proposed to allow the accurate operation. In the experiment, two interactive tasks with different difficulty (searching article and browsing multimedia web were done to compare the proposed eye control tool with an existing system. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM measures are used to evaluate the perceived effectiveness of our system. It is demonstrated that the proposed system is very effective with regard to usability and interface design.

Eye Tracking Based Control System for Natural Human-Computer Interaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xuebai; Liu, Xiaolong; Yuan, Shyan-Ming; Lin, Shu-Fan

2017-01-01

Eye movement can be regarded as a pivotal real-time input medium for human-computer communication, which is especially important for people with physical disability. In order to improve the reliability, mobility, and usability of eye tracking technique in user-computer dialogue, a novel eye control system with integrating both mouse and keyboard functions is proposed in this paper. The proposed system focuses on providing a simple and convenient interactive mode by only using user's eye. The usage flow of the proposed system is designed to perfectly follow human natural habits. Additionally, a magnifier module is proposed to allow the accurate operation. In the experiment, two interactive tasks with different difficulty (searching article and browsing multimedia web) were done to compare the proposed eye control tool with an existing system. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) measures are used to evaluate the perceived effectiveness of our system. It is demonstrated that the proposed system is very effective with regard to usability and interface design.

ANALYZING AND MODELING THE ROLE OF HUMAN RESOURCE INFORMATION SYSTEM ON HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING AT HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION IN INDONESIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susilo H.

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The challenge of Human Resource Management in Higher Education Institutions is how to plan, organize, and assess the performance of human resources so as to contribute as much as possible to the achievement of high quality education objectives. To answer these challenges, the role of Human Resources Information System (HRIS is needed to facilitate leadership both at the university and faculty level in preparing the needs planning and utilizing the advantages of human resources. This study aims to analyze the role of HRIS in human resource planning, especially in the stages of needs planning activities, recruitment and selection, human resources development, promotion and promotion, and assessment of work and remuneration. The output of research resulted in the form of HRIS-based human resource planning concepts for Higher Education Institutions. The research method was designed using qualitative descriptive approach. Data collection is done through observation technique and interview with research location in University of Brawijaya. The results show that the existing HRIS has not played an optimal role because the function of the system is still limited as a data gathering medium and the submission of employment reports that have not been able to contribute as a decision support system for leaders in HR planning.

How to Bootstrap a Human Communication System

Science.gov (United States)

Fay, Nicolas; Arbib, Michael; Garrod, Simon

2013-01-01

How might a human communication system be bootstrapped in the absence of conventional language? We argue that motivated signs play an important role (i.e., signs that are linked to meaning by structural resemblance or by natural association). An experimental study is then reported in which participants try to communicate a range of pre-specified…

Human likeness: cognitive and affective factors affecting adoption of robot-assisted learning systems

Science.gov (United States)

Yoo, Hosun; Kwon, Ohbyung; Lee, Namyeon

2016-07-01

With advances in robot technology, interest in robotic e-learning systems has increased. In some laboratories, experiments are being conducted with humanoid robots as artificial tutors because of their likeness to humans, the rich possibilities of using this type of media, and the multimodal interaction capabilities of these robots. The robot-assisted learning system, a special type of e-learning system, aims to increase the learner's concentration, pleasure, and learning performance dramatically. However, very few empirical studies have examined the effect on learning performance of incorporating humanoid robot technology into e-learning systems or people's willingness to accept or adopt robot-assisted learning systems. In particular, human likeness, the essential characteristic of humanoid robots as compared with conventional e-learning systems, has not been discussed in a theoretical context. Hence, the purpose of this study is to propose a theoretical model to explain the process of adoption of robot-assisted learning systems. In the proposed model, human likeness is conceptualized as a combination of media richness, multimodal interaction capabilities, and para-social relationships; these factors are considered as possible determinants of the degree to which human cognition and affection are related to the adoption of robot-assisted learning systems.

Correlation Of An E-Nose System For Odor Assessment Of Shoe/Sock Systems With A Human Sensory Panel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horras, Stephan; Reimann, Peter; Schuetze, Andreas; Gaiotto, Alessandra; Mayer, Maria

2009-01-01

Evaluation of strength and quality of smell is today still primarily done with human sensory panels. For a range of applications, technical systems for an objective smell assessment would provide a great benefit in R and D and also day-to-day application. The project presented here specifically addresses the problem of assessing the strength and unpleasantness of smell caused by sweat in shoes and socks by an E-nose system. The ultimate goal is to provide a tool for developing improved shoe/sock systems with optimized materials.The main approach to achieve this goal is to find a correlation between the assessment of a human sensory panel and the complex sensor response patterns of an E-Nose system to appraise the smell of sweat in shoes and socks. Therefore a range of test persons wear shoes and socks under defined ambient conditions in a controlled test environment as well as during everyday use. Afterwards the smell of the shoes and socks is both measured with the E-Nose system and assessed by a human sensory panel. We report here the results of the first larger test series and the identified correlation between the E-Nose system and the human assessment of the smell of sweat.

Human systems integration in remotely piloted aircraft operations.

Science.gov (United States)

Tvaryanas, Anthony P

2006-12-01

The role of humans in remotely piloted aircraft (RPAs) is qualitatively different from manned aviation, lessening the applicability of aerospace medicine human factors knowledge derived from traditional cockpits. Aerospace medicine practitioners should expect to be challenged in addressing RPA crewmember performance. Human systems integration (HSI) provides a model for explaining human performance as a function of the domains of: human factors engineering; personnel; training; manpower; environment, safety, and occupational health (ESOH); habitability; and survivability. RPA crewmember performance is being particularly impacted by issues involving the domains of human factors engineering, personnel, training, manpower, ESOH, and habitability. Specific HSI challenges include: 1) changes in large RPA operator selection and training; 2) human factors engineering deficiencies in current RPA ground control station design and their impact on human error including considerations pertaining to multi-aircraft control; and 3) the combined impact of manpower shortfalls, shiftwork-related fatigue, and degraded crewmember effectiveness. Limited experience and available research makes it difficult to qualitatively or quantitatively predict the collective impact of these issues on RPA crewmember performance. Attending to HSI will be critical for the success of current and future RPA crewmembers. Aerospace medicine practitioners working with RPA crewmembers should gain first-hand knowledge of their task environment while the larger aerospace medicine community needs to address the limited information available on RPA-related aerospace medicine human factors. In the meantime, aeromedical decisions will need to be made based on what is known about other aerospace occupations, realizing this knowledge may have only partial applicability.

PERANCANGAN COMPUTER AIDED SYSTEM DALAM MENGANALISA HUMAN ERROR DI PERKERETAAPIAN INDONESIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wiwik Budiawan

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Kecelakaan kereta api (KA yang terjadi secara beruntun di Indonesia sudah berada pada tingkat kritis. Berdasarkan data dari Direktorat Jendral Perkeretaapian, dalam kurun 5 tahun terakhir (2005-2009 total terdapat 611 kecelakaan KA.  Banyak faktor yang berkontribusi menyebabkan terjadinya kecelakaan, antara lain: sarana, prasarana, SDM operator (human error, eksternal, dan alam.  Kegagalan manusia (Human error merupakan salah satu faktor yang berpotensi menyebabkan terjadinya suatu kecelakaan KA dan dinyatakan sebagai faktor utama penyebab terjadinya suatu kecelakaan kereta api di Indonesia. Namun, tidak jelas bagaimana teknik analisis ini dilakukan. Kajian human error yang dilakukan Komite Nasional Keselamatan Transportasi (KNKT masih relatif terbatas, tidak dilengkapi dengan metode yang sistematis. Terdapat beberapa metode yang telah dikembangkan saat ini, tetapi untuk moda transportasi kereta api masih belum banyak dikembangkan. Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS merupakan metode analisis human error yang dikembangkan dan disesuaikan dengan sistem perkeretaapian Indonesia. Guna meningkatkan keandalan dalam analisis human error, HFACS kemudian dikembangkan dalam bentuk aplikasi berbasis web yang dapat diakses di komputer maupun smartphone. Hasil penelitian ini dapat dimanfaatkan oleh KNKT sebagai metode analisis kecelakaan kereta api khususnya terkait dengan human error. Kata kunci : human error, HFACS, CAS, kereta api   Abstract Train wreck (KA which occurred in quick succession in Indonesia already at a critical level. Based on data from the Directorate General of Railways, during the last 5 years (2005-2009 there were a total of 611 railway accidents. Many factors contribute to cause accidents, such as: facilities, infrastructure, human operator (human error, external, and natural. Human failure (Human error is one of the factors that could potentially cause a train accident and expressed as the main factors causing

Human errors during the simulations of an SGTR scenario: Application of the HERA system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, Won Dea; Whaley, April M.; Hallbert, Bruce P.

2009-01-01

Due to the need of data for a Human Reliability Analysis (HRA), a number of data collection efforts have been undertaken in several different organizations. As a part of this effort, a human error analysis that focused on a set of simulator records on a Steam Generator Tube Rupture (SGTR) scenario was performed by using the Human Event Repository and Analysis (HERA) system. This paper summarizes the process and results of the HERA analysis, including discussions about the usability of the HERA system for a human error analysis of simulator data. Five simulated records of an SGTR scenario were analyzed with the HERA analysis process in order to scrutinize the causes and mechanisms of the human related events. From this study, the authors confirmed that the HERA was a serviceable system that can analyze human performance qualitatively from simulator data. It was possible to identify the human related events in the simulator data that affected the system safety not only negatively but also positively. It was also possible to scrutinize the Performance Shaping Factors (PSFs) and the relevant contributory factors with regard to each identified human event

Modeling Synergies in Large Human-Machine Networked Systems

Science.gov (United States)

2013-09-25

Agents and Multi- Agent Systems (AAMAS), Valencia, Spain, June 4-8, 2012. Steven Okamoto_, Praveen Paruchuri, Yonghong Wang, Katia Sycara, Janusz...Society, Santa Monica, CA: Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. 86. Steven Okamoto_, Praveen Paruchuri, Yonghong Wang, Katia Sycara, Janusz

Advanced human-system interface design review guidelines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.

1990-01-01

Advanced, computer-based, human-system interface designs are emerging in nuclear power plant control rooms as a result of several factors. These include: (1) incorporation of new systems such as safety parameter display systems, (2) backfitting of current control rooms with new technologies when existing hardware is no longer supported by equipment vendors, and (3) development of advanced control room concepts. Control rooms of the future will be developed almost exclusively with advanced instrumentation and controls based upon digital technology. In addition, the control room operator will be interfacing with more intelligent systems which will be capable of providing information processing support to the operator. These developments may have significant implications for plant safety in that they will greatly affect the operator's role in the system as well as the ways in which he interacts with it. At present, however, the only guidance available to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the review of control room-operator interfaces is NUREG-0700. It is a document which was written prior to these technological changes and is, therefore, tailored to the technologies used in traditional control rooms. Thus, the present guidance needs to be updated since it is inadequate to serve as the basis for NRC staff review of such advanced or hybrid control room designs. The objective of the project reported in this paper is to develop an Advanced Control Room Design Review Guideline suitable for use in performing human factors reviews of advanced operator interfaces. This guideline will take the form of a portable, interactive, computer-based document that may be conveniently used by an inspector in the field, as well as a text-based document

TA-55 facility control system upgrade project - human-system interface functional requirements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Atkins, W.H.; Pope, N.G.; Turner, W.J.; Brown, R.E.

1995-11-01

The functional requirements for that part of the Technical Area (TA)-55 Operations Center Upgrade Project that involves the human-system interface (HSI) are described in this document. The upgrade project seeks to replace completely the center's existing computerized data acquisition and display system, which consists of the field multiplexer units, Data General computer systems, and associated peripherals and software. The upgrade project has two parts-the Facility Data Acquisition Interface System (FDAIS) and the HSI. The HSI comprises software and hardware to provide a high-level graphical operator interface to the data acquisition system, as well as data archiving, alarm annunciation, and logging. The new system will be built with modern, commercially available components; it will improve reliability and maintainability, and it can be expanded for future needs

Development of a bolus injection system for regional deposition studies of nanoparticles in the human respiratory system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koujalagi, V; Semple, S; Ayres, J G; Ramesh, S L; Gunarathne, G P P

2009-01-01

This study presents the work carried out in developing a precision bolus injection system in order to understand the regional deposition of nanoparticles (NP) in human lung. A real-time control system has been developed that is capable of storing graphite NP, assessing human breathing pattern and delivering a bolus of the stored NP at a pre-determined instance of the inhalation phase of breathing. This will form the basis for further development of a system to deliver radioactive nanoparticles to enable 3-dimensional lung imaging using techniques such as positron emission tomography (PET). The system may then be used to better understand the actual regional deposition in human lung, which could validate or challenge the current computational lung models such as that published by the International Commission for Radiation Protection (ICRP-1994). A dose related response to inhaled PM can possibly be shown, which can be used to review the current workplace exposure limits (WELs).

Development of a bolus injection system for regional deposition studies of nanoparticles in the human respiratory system

Science.gov (United States)

Koujalagi, V.; Ramesh, S. L.; Gunarathne, G. P. P.; Semple, S.; Ayres, J. G.

2009-02-01

This study presents the work carried out in developing a precision bolus injection system in order to understand the regional deposition of nanoparticles (NP) in human lung. A real-time control system has been developed that is capable of storing graphite NP, assessing human breathing pattern and delivering a bolus of the stored NP at a pre-determined instance of the inhalation phase of breathing. This will form the basis for further development of a system to deliver radioactive nanoparticles to enable 3-dimensional lung imaging using techniques such as positron emission tomography (PET). The system may then be used to better understand the actual regional deposition in human lung, which could validate or challenge the current computational lung models such as that published by the International Commission for Radiation Protection (ICRP-1994). A dose related response to inhaled PM can possibly be shown, which can be used to review the current workplace exposure limits (WELs).

[Genetic system for maintaining the mitochondrial human genome in yeast Yarrowia lipolytica].

Science.gov (United States)

Isakova, E P; Deryabina, Yu I; Velyakova, A V; Biryukova, J K; Teplova, V V; Shevelev, A B

2016-01-01

For the first time, the possibility of maintaining an intact human mitochondrial genome in a heterologous system in the mitochondria of yeast Yarrowia lipolytica is shown. A method for introducing directional changes into the structure of the mitochondrial human genome replicating in Y. lipolytica by an artificially induced ability of yeast mitochondria for homologous recombination is proposed. A method of introducing and using phenotypic selection markers for the presence or absence of defects in genes tRNA-Lys and tRNA-Leu of the mitochondrial genome is developed. The proposed system can be used to correct harmful mutations of the human mitochondrial genome associated with mitochondrial diseases and for preparative amplification of intact mitochondrial DNA with an adjusted sequence in yeast cells. The applicability of the new system for the correction of mutations in the genes of Lys- and Leu-specific tRNAs of the human mitochondrial genome associated with serious and widespread human mitochondrial diseases such as myoclonic epilepsy with lactic acidosis (MELAS) and myoclonic epilepsy with ragged-red fibers (MERRF) is shown.

The Evolution of Human Rights Protection within the EU Legal System

OpenAIRE

Tăbușcă Silvia

2012-01-01

Having in mind the EU’s policy to rebuild the democratic systems within the former Europeancommunist countries and its involvement in international actions regarding human rights enforcement, thereis no doubt about the importance of individuals rights protection in the European Union’s legal system. In thisrespect, the present paper analyzes the evolution of the principle of EU’s human rights protection. Theresearch done on the EU legislation and courts’ jurisprudence shows that there are thr...

Demonstration Integrated Knowledge-Based System for Estimating Human Error Probabilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Auflick, Jack L.

1999-04-21

Human Reliability Analysis (HRA) is currently comprised of at least 40 different methods that are used to analyze, predict, and evaluate human performance in probabilistic terms. Systematic HRAs allow analysts to examine human-machine relationships, identify error-likely situations, and provide estimates of relative frequencies for human errors on critical tasks, highlighting the most beneficial areas for system improvements. Unfortunately, each of HRA's methods has a different philosophical approach, thereby producing estimates of human error probabilities (HEPs) that area better or worse match to the error likely situation of interest. Poor selection of methodology, or the improper application of techniques can produce invalid HEP estimates, where that erroneous estimation of potential human failure could have potentially severe consequences in terms of the estimated occurrence of injury, death, and/or property damage.

Role of human factors in system safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brooks, D. M.; Robert, C.; Graham, T.

2008-01-01

What happens when technology goes wrong? Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, space shuttles Challenger and Columbia, numerous airplane crashes, and other notable and newsworthy as well as many more incidents that are not reported on the news, have all been attributed to human error. Millions of dollars in fines are levied against industry under the General Duty clause for ergonomic violations, all avoidable. These incidents and situations indicate a lack of consideration for the humans in the system during the design phase. As a consequence, all of these organizations had to retrofit, had to redesign and had to pay countless dollars for medical costs, Worker's Compensation, OSHA fines and in some instances had irrecoverable damage to their public image. Human Factors, otherwise known as Engineering Psychology or Ergonomics, found its origins in loss, loss of life, loss of confidence, loss of technology, loss of property. Without loss, there would be no need for human factors. No one really 'attends' to discomfort...nor are errors attended to that have little consequence. Often it is ultimately the compilation and cumulative effects of these smaller and often ignored occurrences that lead to the bigger and more tragic incidents that make the evening news. When an incident or accident occurs, they are frequently attributed to accomplished, credible, experienced people. In reality however, the crisis was inevitable when a series of events happen such that a human is caught in the whirlwind of accident sequence. The world as known is becoming smaller and more complex. Highly technical societies have been hard at work for several centuries rebuilding the world out of cold steel that is very far removed from ancient instincts and traditions and is becoming more remote to human users. The growth of technology is more than exponential, and is virtually beyond comprehension for many people. Humans, feeling comfortable with the familiar, fulfill their propensity to implement new

Mars Surface System Common Capabilities and Challenges for Human Missions

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffman, Stephen J.; Toups, Larry

2016-01-01

NASA has begun a process to identify and evaluate candidate locations where humans could land, live and work on the martian surface. These locations are referred to as Exploration Zones (EZs). Given current mission concepts, an EZ is a collection of Regions of Interest (ROIs) that are located within approximately 100 kilometers of a centralized landing site. ROIs are areas that are relevant for scientific investigation and/or development/maturation of capabilities and resources necessary for a sustainable human presence. The EZ also contains a landing site and a habitation site that will be used by multiple human crews during missions to explore and utilize the ROIs within the EZ. In parallel with this process, NASA continues to make progress on the Evolvable Mars Campaign examining alternatives that can pioneer an extended human presence on Mars that is Earth independent. This involves ongoing assessments of surface systems and operations to enable a permanent, sustainable human presence. Because of the difficulty in getting equipment and supplies to the surface of Mars, part of these assessments involve identifying those systems and processes that can perform in multiple, sometimes completely unrelated, situations. These assessments have been performed in a very generic surface mission carried out at a very generic surface location. As specific candidate EZs are identified it becomes important to evaluate the current suite of surface systems and operations as they are likely to perform for the specific locations and for the types of operations - both scientific and development - that are proposed for these EZs. It is also important to evaluate the proposed EZs for their suitability to be explored or developed given the range of capabilities and constraints for the types of surface systems and operations being considered within the EMC. This means looking at setting up and operating a field station at a central location within the EZ as well as traversing to and

Human failure event analysis and precautionary methods and their application to reactor system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Li; Huang Shudong; Wang Yiqun; Gao Wenyu; Zhang Jin

2003-01-01

Making use of human factor engineering, control science and safety science and adopting the method of systemically collection and doing research work factually, the authors analyze the problem and tendency of human factor science, the classification system, the formation, the quantitative appraisal, data collection and data bank, the effect and influence of organization management, the root cause analysis technology, and human error failure mode and effect and criticality analysis, the method and strategy of defense-in-depth for preventing human-initiated accident. The human factor accidents theory and mechanism are constructed. All of the above was successfully applied to Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station and Lingao Nuclear Power Station. (authors)

The Pluralistic Water Research Concept: A New Human-Water System Research Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mariele Evers

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The use and management of water systems is influenced by a number of factors, such as economic growth, global change (e.g., urbanization, hydrological-climatic changes, politics, history and culture. Despite noteworthy efforts to develop integrative approaches to analyze water-related problems, human-water research remains a major challenge for scholars and decision makers due to the increasing complexity of human and water systems interactions. Although existing concepts try to integrate the social and water dimensions, they usually have a disciplinary starting point and perspective, which can represent an obstacle to true integration in human-water research. Hence, a pluralistic approach is required to better understand the interactions between human and water systems. This paper discusses prominent human-water concepts (Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM, socio-hydrology, and political ecology/hydrosocial approach and presents a newly developed concept termed pluralistic water research (PWR. This is not only a pluralistic but also an integrative and interdisciplinary approach which aims to coherently and comprehensively integrate human-water dimensions. The different concepts are illustrated in a synopsis, and diverse framing of research questions are exemplified. The PWR concept integrates physical and social sciences, which enables a comprehensive analysis of human-water interactions and relations. This can lead to a better understanding of water-related issues and potentially sustainable trajectories.

Developing seventh grade students' systems thinking skills in the context of the human circulatory system.

Science.gov (United States)

Raved, Lena; Yarden, Anat

2014-01-01

Developing systems thinking skills in school can provide useful tools to deal with a vast amount of medical and health information that may help learners in decision making in their future lives as citizen. Thus, there is a need to develop effective tools that will allow learners to analyze biological systems and organize their knowledge. Here, we examine junior high school students' systems thinking skills in the context of the human circulatory system. A model was formulated for developing teaching and learning materials and for characterizing students' systems thinking skills. Specifically, we asked whether seventh grade students, who studied about the human circulatory system, acquired systems thinking skills, and what are the characteristics of those skills? Concept maps were used to characterize students' systems thinking components and examine possible changes in the students' knowledge structure. These maps were composed by the students before and following the learning process. The study findings indicate a significant improvement in the students' ability to recognize the system components and the processes that occur within the system, as well as the relationships between different levels of organization of the system, following the learning process. Thus, following learning students were able to organize the systems' components and its processes within a framework of relationships, namely the students' systems thinking skills were improved in the course of learning using the teaching and learning materials.

Regional decadal predictions of coupled climate-human systems

Science.gov (United States)

Curchitser, E. N.; Lawrence, P.; Felder, F.; Large, W.; Bacmeister, J. T.; Andrews, C.; Kopp, R. E.

2016-12-01

We present results from a project to develop a framework for investigating the interactions between human activity and the climate system using state-of-the-art multi-scale, climate and economic models. The model is applied to the highly industrialized and urbanized coastal region of the northeast US with an emphasis on New Jersey. The framework is developed around the NCAR Community Earth System Model (CESM). The CESM model capabilities are augmented with enhanced resolution of the atmosphere (25 km), land surface (I km) and ocean models (7 km) in our region of interest. To the climate model, we couple human activity models for the utility sector and a 300-equation econometric model with sectorial details of an input-output model for the New Jersey economy. We will present results to date showing the potential impact of climate change on electricity markets on its consequences on economic activity in the region.

An Efficient Human Identification through MultiModal Biometric System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. Meena

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Human identification is essential for proper functioning of society. Human identification through multimodal biometrics is becoming an emerging trend, and one of the reasons is to improve recognition accuracy. Unimodal biometric systems are affected by various problemssuch as noisy sensor data,non-universality, lack of individuality, lack of invariant representation and susceptibility to circumvention.A unimodal system has limited accuracy. Hence, Multimodal biometric systems by combining more than one biometric feature in different levels are proposed in order to enhance the performance of the system. A supervisor module combines the different opinions or decisions delivered by each subsystem and then make a final decision. In this paper, a multimodal biometrics authentication is proposed by combining face, iris and finger features. Biometric features are extracted by Local Derivative Ternary Pattern (LDTP in Contourlet domain and an extensive evaluation of LDTP is done using Support Vector Machine and Nearest Neighborhood Classifier. The experimental evaluations are performed on a public dataset demonstrating the accuracy of the proposed system compared with the existing systems. It is observed that, the combination of face, fingerprint and iris gives better performance in terms of accuracy, False Acceptance Rate, False Rejection Rate with minimum computation time.

Exploring Techniques for Vision Based Human Activity Recognition: Methods, Systems, and Evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hong Zhang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available With the wide applications of vision based intelligent systems, image and video analysis technologies have attracted the attention of researchers in the computer vision field. In image and video analysis, human activity recognition is an important research direction. By interpreting and understanding human activity, we can recognize and predict the occurrence of crimes and help the police or other agencies react immediately. In the past, a large number of papers have been published on human activity recognition in video and image sequences. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive survey of the recent development of the techniques, including methods, systems, and quantitative evaluation towards the performance of human activity recognition.

Extraction of human factors issues caused by application of the advanced HSI technology and development of human factor issue management system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Suh, Sang Moon; Lee, Jung Woon; Park, Jae Chang; Oh, In Seok [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea)

1999-01-01

A comprehensive literature survey was performed in this study to collect human performance issues related to the advanced HSI design features. The literature from not only nuclear industry but also other industries was collected and reviewed. The issues were categorized into the following advanced HSI design features: devices characteristics, levels of automation, information design and management, display management, computerized controls, alarm systems, computerized procedures, staffing and crew coordination, and operator support systems. The classified issues were described with the description framework. Then, the relationship of issues to HSI design process such as human factors analyses, human factors design, and human factors verification and validation was investigated. Finally, the issue management system of server-client environment was developed using Microsoft's Active Server Page technology and Access 97. (author). 18 refs., 6 figs.

A study of a steering system algorithm for pleasure boats based on stability analysis of a human-machine system model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikeda, Fujio; Toyama, Shigehiro; Ishiduki, Souta; Seta, Hiroaki

2016-01-01

Maritime accidents of small ships continue to increase in number. One of the major factors is poor manoeuvrability of the Manual Hydraulic Steering Mechanism (MHSM) in common use. The manoeuvrability can be improved by using the Electronic Control Steering Mechanism (ECSM). This paper conducts stability analyses of a pleasure boat controlled by human models in view of path following on a target course, in order to establish design guidelines for the ECSM. First, to analyse the stability region, the research derives the linear approximated model in a planar global coordinate system. Then, several human models are assumed to develop closed-loop human-machine controlled systems. These human models include basic proportional, derivative, integral and time-delay actions. The stability analysis simulations for those human-machine systems are carried out. The results show that the stability region tends to spread as a ship's velocity increases in the case of the basic proportional human model. The derivative action and time-delay action of human models are effective in spreading the stability region in their respective ranges of frontal gazing points. (paper)

A study of a steering system algorithm for pleasure boats based on stability analysis of a human-machine system model

Science.gov (United States)

Ikeda, Fujio; Toyama, Shigehiro; Ishiduki, Souta; Seta, Hiroaki

2016-09-01

Maritime accidents of small ships continue to increase in number. One of the major factors is poor manoeuvrability of the Manual Hydraulic Steering Mechanism (MHSM) in common use. The manoeuvrability can be improved by using the Electronic Control Steering Mechanism (ECSM). This paper conducts stability analyses of a pleasure boat controlled by human models in view of path following on a target course, in order to establish design guidelines for the ECSM. First, to analyse the stability region, the research derives the linear approximated model in a planar global coordinate system. Then, several human models are assumed to develop closed-loop human-machine controlled systems. These human models include basic proportional, derivative, integral and time-delay actions. The stability analysis simulations for those human-machine systems are carried out. The results show that the stability region tends to spread as a ship's velocity increases in the case of the basic proportional human model. The derivative action and time-delay action of human models are effective in spreading the stability region in their respective ranges of frontal gazing points.

Developing Seventh Grade Students’ Systems Thinking Skills in the Context of the Human Circulatory System

Science.gov (United States)

Raved, Lena; Yarden, Anat

2014-01-01

Developing systems thinking skills in school can provide useful tools to deal with a vast amount of medical and health information that may help learners in decision making in their future lives as citizen. Thus, there is a need to develop effective tools that will allow learners to analyze biological systems and organize their knowledge. Here, we examine junior high school students’ systems thinking skills in the context of the human circulatory system. A model was formulated for developing teaching and learning materials and for characterizing students’ systems thinking skills. Specifically, we asked whether seventh grade students, who studied about the human circulatory system, acquired systems thinking skills, and what are the characteristics of those skills? Concept maps were used to characterize students’ systems thinking components and examine possible changes in the students’ knowledge structure. These maps were composed by the students before and following the learning process. The study findings indicate a significant improvement in the students’ ability to recognize the system components and the processes that occur within the system, as well as the relationships between different levels of organization of the system, following the learning process. Thus, following learning students were able to organize the systems’ components and its processes within a framework of relationships, namely the students’ systems thinking skills were improved in the course of learning using the teaching and learning materials. PMID:25520948

A novel model to study neonatal Escherichia coli sepsis and the effect of treatment on the human immune system using humanized mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Schlieckau, Florian; Schulz, Daniela; Fill Malfertheiner, Sara; Entleutner, Kathrin; Seelbach-Goebel, Birgit; Ernst, Wolfgang

2018-04-19

Neonatal sepsis is a serious threat especially for preterm infants. As existing in vitro and in vivo models have limitations, we generated a novel neonatal sepsis model using humanized mice and tested the effect of Betamethasone and Indomethacin which are used in the clinic in case of premature birth. Humanized mice were infected with Escherichia coli (E. coli). Subsequently, the effect of the infection itself, and treatment with Betamethasone and Indomethacin on survival, recovery, bacterial burden, leukocyte populations, and cytokine production, was analyzed. The human immune system in the animals responded with leukocyte trafficking to the site of infection and granulopoiesis in the bone marrow. Treatment with Indomethacin had no pronounced effect on the immune system or bacterial burden. Betamethasone induced a decline of splenocytes. The human immune system in humanized mice responds to the infection, making them a suitable model to study neonatal E. coli sepsis and the immune response of the neonatal immune system. Treatment with Betamethasone could have potential negative long-term effects for the immune system of the child. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Assessment of human-natural system characteristics influencing global freshwater supply vulnerability

Science.gov (United States)

Padowski, Julie C.; Gorelick, Steven M.; Thompson, Barton H.; Rozelle, Scott; Fendorf, Scott

2015-10-01

Global freshwater vulnerability is a product of environmental and human dimensions, however, it is rarely assessed as such. Our approach identifies freshwater vulnerability using four broad categories: endowment, demand, infrastructure, and institutions, to capture impacts on natural and managed water systems within the coupled human-hydrologic environment. These categories are represented by 19 different endogenous and exogenous characteristics affecting water supply vulnerability. By evaluating 119 lower per capita income countries (Yemen and Djibouti nearly as vulnerable. Surprising similarities in vulnerability were also found among geographically disparate nations such as Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Guatemala. Determining shared patterns of freshwater vulnerability provides insights into why water supply vulnerabilities are manifested in human-water systems at the national scale.

Human leukocyte antigen-G within the male reproductive system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hviid, Thomas Vauvert F

2015-01-01

by “priming” the woman’s immune system before conception and at conception. Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of the immunoregulatory and tolerance-inducible human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-G in the male reproductive organs. The expression of HLA-G in the blastocyst and by extravillous trophoblast......In sexual reproduction in humans, a man has a clear interest in ensuring that the immune system of his female partner accepts the semi-allogenic fetus. Increasing attention has been given to soluble immunomodulatory molecules in the seminal fluid as one mechanism of ensuring this, possibly...... plasma may even be associated with the chance of pregnancy in couples, where the male partner has reduced semen quality. More studies are needed to verify these preliminary findings....

A Comparison between Human Selected, Derived and System ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

admpather

Using a prototype implementation of our scheme, we compare the results of human-selected, derived passwords and system generated to reveal the practical viability of our approach in terms of results achieved, ease of implementation and use. Keywords: Security, Biometric, Behavioral, Keystroke dynamics, Password.

A Comparison between Human Selected, Derived and System ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Using a prototype implementation of our scheme, we compare the results of human-selected, derived passwords and system generated to reveal the practical viability of our approach in terms of results achieved, ease of implementation and use. Keywords: Security, Biometric, Behavioral, Keystroke dynamics, Password ...

3-D Model of the Human Respiratory System

Science.gov (United States)

The U.S. EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD) has developed a 3-D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of the human respiratory system that allows for the simulation of particulate based contaminant deposition and clearance, while being adaptable for age, ethnicity,...

The interactive evolution of human communication systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Fay, Nicolas; Garrod, Simon; Roberts, Leo; Swoboda, Nik

2010-04-01

This paper compares two explanations of the process by which human communication systems evolve: iterated learning and social collaboration. It then reports an experiment testing the social collaboration account. Participants engaged in a graphical communication task either as a member of a community, where they interacted with seven different partners drawn from the same pool, or as a member of an isolated pair, where they interacted with the same partner across the same number of games. Participants' horizontal, pair-wise interactions led "bottom up" to the creation of an effective and efficient shared sign system in the community condition. Furthermore, the community-evolved sign systems were as effective and efficient as the local sign systems developed by isolated pairs. Finally, and as predicted by a social collaboration account, and not by an iterated learning account, interaction was critical to the creation of shared sign systems, with different isolated pairs establishing different local sign systems and different communities establishing different global sign systems. Copyright © 2010 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

The human component in the safety of complex systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wahlstroem, B.

1986-02-01

The safety of nuclear power and other complex processes requires that human actions are carried though on time and without error. Investigations indicate that human errors are the main or an important contributing cause in more than half of the incidents which occur. This makes it important to try understand the mechanisms behind the human errors and to investigate possibilities for decreasing their likelihood. The present report presents an overview of the Nordic cooperation in the field of human factors in nuclear safety, under the LIT-programme carried out 1981-1985. The work was divided into six different projects in the following fields: human reliability in test and maintenance work; safety oriented organizations and company structures; design of information and control systems; new approaches for information presentation; experimental validation of man-machine interfaces; planning and evaluation of operator training. The research topics were selected from the findings of an earlier phase of the Nordic cooperation. The results are described in more detail in separate reports

Kilowatt-Class Fission Power Systems for Science and Human Precursor Missions

Science.gov (United States)

Mason, Lee S.; Gibson, Marc Andrew; Poston, Dave

2013-01-01

Nuclear power provides an enabling capability for NASA missions that might otherwise be constrained by power availability, mission duration, or operational robustness. NASA and the Department of Energy (DOE) are developing fission power technology to serve a wide range of future space uses. Advantages include lower mass, longer life, and greater mission flexibility than competing power system options. Kilowatt-class fission systems, designated "Kilopower," were conceived to address the need for systems to fill the gap above the current 100-W-class radioisotope power systems being developed for science missions and below the typical 100-k We-class reactor power systems being developed for human exploration missions. This paper reviews the current fission technology project and examines some Kilopower concepts that could be used to support future science missions or human precursors.

Gender differences in the mu rhythm of the human mirror-neuron system.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Yawei; Lee, Po-Lei; Yang, Chia-Yen; Lin, Ching-Po; Hung, Daisy; Decety, Jean

2008-05-07

Psychologically, females are usually thought to be superior in interpersonal sensitivity than males. The human mirror-neuron system is considered to provide the basic mechanism for social cognition. However, whether the human mirror-neuron system exhibits gender differences is not yet clear. We measured the electroencephalographic mu rhythm, as a reliable indicator of the human mirror-neuron system activity, when female (N = 20) and male (N = 20) participants watched either hand actions or a moving dot. The display of the hand actions included androgynous, male, and female characteristics. The results demonstrate that females displayed significantly stronger mu suppression than males when watching hand actions. Instead, mu suppression was similar across genders when participants observed the moving dot and between the perceived sex differences (same-sex vs. opposite-sex). In addition, the mu suppressions during the observation of hand actions positively correlated with the personal distress subscale of the interpersonal reactivity index and negatively correlated with the systemizing quotient. The present findings indirectly lend support to the extreme male brain theory put forward by Baron-Cohen (2005), and may cast some light on the mirror-neuron dysfunction in autism spectrum disorders. The mu rhythm in the human mirror-neuron system can be a potential biomarker of empathic mimicry.

CD137 pathway: immunology and diseases

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Chen, Lieping

2006-01-01

... may work in either interconnected or linear fashion. Therefore, the combined understanding of each pathway, their interactions with other pathways, and the functional consequence, is a cornerstone for our interpretation of pathological basis of diseases and future treatments. It is important to stay abreast on the pace of progress, which I refer to as periodic summary of incremental and breakthrough discoveries in each pathway by the experts and the leader in the field. The CD137 Pathway: Immu...

Coupled Human-Atmosphere-System Thinking

Science.gov (United States)

Schmale, Julia; Chabay, Ilan

2014-05-01

minimize atmospheric release, but rather only complies with either climate or air quality requirements. Nor do current narratives promote behavioral change for the overall reduction of emissions (e.g., you can drive your diesel SUV as long as it has a low fuel consumption). This divide and thinking has not only been manifested in policy and regulations and hence media coverage, but has also shaped the public's general perception of this issue. There is no public conceptual understanding regarding humanity's modification of the atmosphere through the continuously and simultaneously released substances by almost any kind of activity and resulting impacts. Here, we propose a conceptual framework that provides a new perspective on the coupled human-atmosphere-system. It makes tangible the inherent linkages between the socio-economic system, the atmospheric physico-chemical changes and impacts, and legal frameworks for sustainable transformations at all levels. To implement HAS-thinking in decision and policy making, both salient disciplinary and interdisciplinary research and comprehensive science-society interactions in the form of transdisciplinary research are necessary. Societal transformations for the sake of a healthy human-atmosphere relationship are highly context dependent and require discussions of normative and value-related issues, which can only be solved through co-designed solutions. We demonstrate the importance of HAS-thinking by examples of sustainable development in the Arctic and Himalayan countries.

Attributing Agency to Automated Systems: Reflections on Human-Robot Collaborations and Responsibility-Loci.

Science.gov (United States)

Nyholm, Sven

2017-07-18

Many ethicists writing about automated systems (e.g. self-driving cars and autonomous weapons systems) attribute agency to these systems. Not only that; they seemingly attribute an autonomous or independent form of agency to these machines. This leads some ethicists to worry about responsibility-gaps and retribution-gaps in cases where automated systems harm or kill human beings. In this paper, I consider what sorts of agency it makes sense to attribute to most current forms of automated systems, in particular automated cars and military robots. I argue that whereas it indeed makes sense to attribute different forms of fairly sophisticated agency to these machines, we ought not to regard them as acting on their own, independently of any human beings. Rather, the right way to understand the agency exercised by these machines is in terms of human-robot collaborations, where the humans involved initiate, supervise, and manage the agency of their robotic collaborators. This means, I argue, that there is much less room for justified worries about responsibility-gaps and retribution-gaps than many ethicists think.

Toward human-centered man-machine system in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanabe, Fumiya

1993-01-01

The Japanese LWR power plants are classified into 4 categories, from the viewpoints of the control panel in central control room and the extent of automation. Their characteristics are outlined. The potential weaknesses indwelt in the conventional approaches are discussed; that are the loss of applicability to the unanticipated facts and the loss of morale of the operators. The need for the construction of human-centered man-machine system is emphasized in order to overcome these potential weaknesses. The most important features required for the system are, in short term, to support operators in dificulties, and at the same time, in long term, to assure the acquisition and conservation of the personnels' morale and potential to cope with the problems. The concepts of the 'ecological interface' and 'adaptive aiding' system are introduced as the design concepts for the human-centered man-machine system. (J.P.N.)

Analytical basis for evaluating the effect of unplanned interventions on the effectiveness of a human-robot system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shah, Julie A.; Saleh, Joseph H.; Hoffman, Jeffrey A.

2008-01-01

Increasing prevalence of human-robot systems in a variety of applications raises the question of how to design these systems to best leverage the capabilities of humans and robots. In this paper, we address the relationships between reliability, productivity, and risk to humans from human-robot systems operating in a hostile environment. Objectives for maximizing the effectiveness of a human-robot system are presented, which capture these coupled relationships, and reliability parameters are proposed to characterize unplanned interventions between a human and robot. The reliability metrics defined here take on an expanded meaning in which the underlying concept of failure in traditional reliability analysis is replaced by the notion of intervention. In the context of human-robotic systems, an intervention is not only driven by component failures, but includes many other factors that can make a robotic agent to request or a human agent to provide intervention, as we argue in this paper. The effect of unplanned interventions on the effectiveness of human-robot systems is then investigated analytically using traditional reliability analysis. Finally, we discuss the implications of these analytical trends on the design and evaluation of human-robot systems

Medical and technology requirements for human solar system exploration missions

Science.gov (United States)

Nicogossian, Arnauld; Harris, Leonard; Couch, Lana; Sulzman, Frank; Gaiser, Karen

1989-01-01

Measures that need to be taken to cope with the health problems posed by zero gravity and radiation in manned solar system exploration missions are discussed. The particular systems that will be used aboard Space Station Freedom are addressed, and relevant human factors problems are examined. The development of a controlled ecological life support system is addressed.

Fuzzy Decision-Making Fuser (FDMF for Integrating Human-Machine Autonomous (HMA Systems with Adaptive Evidence Sources

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu-Ting Liu

2017-06-01

Full Text Available A brain-computer interface (BCI creates a direct communication pathway between the human brain and an external device or system. In contrast to patient-oriented BCIs, which are intended to restore inoperative or malfunctioning aspects of the nervous system, a growing number of BCI studies focus on designing auxiliary systems that are intended for everyday use. The goal of building these BCIs is to provide capabilities that augment existing intact physical and mental capabilities. However, a key challenge to BCI research is human variability; factors such as fatigue, inattention, and stress vary both across different individuals and for the same individual over time. If these issues are addressed, autonomous systems may provide additional benefits that enhance system performance and prevent problems introduced by individual human variability. This study proposes a human-machine autonomous (HMA system that simultaneously aggregates human and machine knowledge to recognize targets in a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP task. The HMA focuses on integrating an RSVP BCI with computer vision techniques in an image-labeling domain. A fuzzy decision-making fuser (FDMF is then applied in the HMA system to provide a natural adaptive framework for evidence-based inference by incorporating an integrated summary of the available evidence (i.e., human and machine decisions and associated uncertainty. Consequently, the HMA system dynamically aggregates decisions involving uncertainties from both human and autonomous agents. The collaborative decisions made by an HMA system can achieve and maintain superior performance more efficiently than either the human or autonomous agents can achieve independently. The experimental results shown in this study suggest that the proposed HMA system with the FDMF can effectively fuse decisions from human brain activities and the computer vision techniques to improve overall performance on the RSVP recognition task. This

Fuzzy Decision-Making Fuser (FDMF) for Integrating Human-Machine Autonomous (HMA) Systems with Adaptive Evidence Sources.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yu-Ting; Pal, Nikhil R; Marathe, Amar R; Wang, Yu-Kai; Lin, Chin-Teng

2017-01-01

A brain-computer interface (BCI) creates a direct communication pathway between the human brain and an external device or system. In contrast to patient-oriented BCIs, which are intended to restore inoperative or malfunctioning aspects of the nervous system, a growing number of BCI studies focus on designing auxiliary systems that are intended for everyday use. The goal of building these BCIs is to provide capabilities that augment existing intact physical and mental capabilities. However, a key challenge to BCI research is human variability; factors such as fatigue, inattention, and stress vary both across different individuals and for the same individual over time. If these issues are addressed, autonomous systems may provide additional benefits that enhance system performance and prevent problems introduced by individual human variability. This study proposes a human-machine autonomous (HMA) system that simultaneously aggregates human and machine knowledge to recognize targets in a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) task. The HMA focuses on integrating an RSVP BCI with computer vision techniques in an image-labeling domain. A fuzzy decision-making fuser (FDMF) is then applied in the HMA system to provide a natural adaptive framework for evidence-based inference by incorporating an integrated summary of the available evidence (i.e., human and machine decisions) and associated uncertainty. Consequently, the HMA system dynamically aggregates decisions involving uncertainties from both human and autonomous agents. The collaborative decisions made by an HMA system can achieve and maintain superior performance more efficiently than either the human or autonomous agents can achieve independently. The experimental results shown in this study suggest that the proposed HMA system with the FDMF can effectively fuse decisions from human brain activities and the computer vision techniques to improve overall performance on the RSVP recognition task. This conclusion

Enhancing Interdisciplinary Human System Risk Research Through Modeling and Network Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

Mindock, Jennifer; Lumpkins, Sarah; Shelhamer, Mark

2015-01-01

NASA's Human Research Program (HRP) supports research to reduce human health and performance risks inherent in future human space exploration missions. Understanding risk outcomes and contributing factors in an integrated manner allows HRP research to support development of efficient and effective mitigations from cross-disciplinary perspectives, and to enable resilient human and engineered systems for spaceflight. The purpose of this work is to support scientific collaborations and research portfolio management by utilizing modeling for analysis and visualization of current and potential future interdisciplinary efforts.

How healthy is the human-ocean system?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rickels, Wilfried; Quaas, Martin F; Visbeck, Martin

2014-01-01

Halpern et al (2012 An index to assess the health and benefits of the global ocean Nature 488 11397) propose a detailed measure of the state of the human-ocean system against ten societal goals. They devote less attention to the normative foundation of the index, which is crucial for assessing the overall health of the human-ocean system, notably when it comes to aggregation of potentially conflicting goals. Social choice theory provides several possible functional forms for assessing the compound change in various goals. The one chosen by Halpern et al, the arithmetical mean, is not only a specific but also an extreme case. It implicitly allows for unlimited substitution. A one-unit reduction in one goal can be fully offset by a one-unit increase in another with the same weighting factor. For that reason, the current index satisfies an extremely weak sustainability concept. We show that the results in Halpern et al are not robust when one adopts a strong sustainability concept. The overall health score of the ocean decreases, the ranking of the various coastal states changes substantially, and the assessment of sustainable development needs to be partially reversed. (letter)

Diffeomorphometry and geodesic positioning systems for human anatomy.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Michael I; Younes, Laurent; Trouvé, Alain

2014-03-01

The Computational Anatomy project has largely been a study of large deformations within a Riemannian framework as an efficient point of view for generating metrics between anatomical configurations. This approach turns D'Arcy Thompson's comparative morphology of human biological shape and form into a metrizable space. Since the metric is constructed based on the geodesic length of the flows of diffeomorphisms connecting the forms, we call it diffeomorphometry . Just as importantly, since the flows describe algebraic group action on anatomical submanifolds and associated functional measurements, they become the basis for positioning information, which we term geodesic positioning . As well the geodesic connections provide Riemannian coordinates for locating forms in the anatomical orbit, which we call geodesic coordinates . These three components taken together - the metric, geodesic positioning of information, and geodesic coordinates - we term the geodesic positioning system . We illustrate via several examples in human and biological coordinate systems and machine learning of the statistical representation of shape and form.

Improving human reliability through better nuclear power plant system design. Progress report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Golay, M.W.

1995-01-01

The project on open-quotes Development of a Theory of the Dependence of Human Reliability upon System Designs as a Means of Improving Nuclear Power Plant Performanceclose quotes has been undertaken in order to address the important problem of human error in advanced nuclear power plant designs. Most of the creativity in formulating such concepts has focused upon improving the mechanical reliability of safety related plant systems. However, the lack of a mature theory has retarded similar progress in reducing the likely frequencies of human errors. The main design mechanism used to address this class of concerns has been to reduce or eliminate the human role in plant operations and accident response. The plan of work being pursued in this project is to perform a set of experiments involving human subject who are required to operate, diagnose and respond to changes in computer-simulated systems, relevant to those encountered in nuclear power plants. In the tests the systems are made to differ in complexity in a systematic manner. The computer program used to present the problems to be solved also records the response of the operator as it unfolds. Ultimately this computer is also to be used in compiling the results of the project. The work of this project is focused upon nuclear power plant applications. However, the persuasiveness of human errors in using all sorts of electromechanical machines gives it a much greater potential importance. Because of this we are attempting to pursue our work in a fashion permitting broad generalizations

First human systemic infection caused by Spiroplasma.

Science.gov (United States)

Aquilino, Ana; Masiá, Mar; López, Pilar; Galiana, Antonio J; Tovar, Juan; Andrés, María; Gutiérrez, Félix

2015-02-01

Spiroplasma species are organisms that normally colonize plants and insects. We describe the first case of human systemic infection caused by Spiroplasma bacteria in a patient with hypogammaglobulinemia undergoing treatment with biological disease-modifying antirheumatic agents. Spiroplasma turonicum was identified through molecular methods in several blood cultures. The infection was successfully treated with doxycycline plus levofloxacin. Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Histologic examination of the rat central nervous system after intrathecal administration of human beta-endorphin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hée, P.; Klinken, Leif; Ballegaard, Martin

1992-01-01

Neuropathology, analgesics - intrathecal, central nervous system, histology, human beta-endorphin, toxicity......Neuropathology, analgesics - intrathecal, central nervous system, histology, human beta-endorphin, toxicity...

Design for interaction between humans and intelligent systems during real-time fault management

Science.gov (United States)

Malin, Jane T.; Schreckenghost, Debra L.; Thronesbery, Carroll G.

1992-01-01

Initial results are reported to provide guidance and assistance for designers of intelligent systems and their human interfaces. The objective is to achieve more effective human-computer interaction (HCI) for real time fault management support systems. Studies of the development of intelligent fault management systems within NASA have resulted in a new perspective of the user. If the user is viewed as one of the subsystems in a heterogeneous, distributed system, system design becomes the design of a flexible architecture for accomplishing system tasks with both human and computer agents. HCI requirements and design should be distinguished from user interface (displays and controls) requirements and design. Effective HCI design for multi-agent systems requires explicit identification of activities and information that support coordination and communication between agents. The effects are characterized of HCI design on overall system design and approaches are identified to addressing HCI requirements in system design. The results include definition of (1) guidance based on information level requirements analysis of HCI, (2) high level requirements for a design methodology that integrates the HCI perspective into system design, and (3) requirements for embedding HCI design tools into intelligent system development environments.

Human applications of the INEL patient treatment planning system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wheeler, F.; Wessol, D.; Atkinson, C.; Nigg, D.

1995-01-01

During the past few years, murine and large animal research, as well as human studies have provided data to the point where human clinical trials have been initiated at the BMRR using BPA-F for gliomas and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Reactor (MITR) using BPA for melanomas of the extremeties. It is expected that glioma trials using BSH will proceed soon at the Petten High Flux Reactor (HFR) in the Netherlands. The first human glioma epithermal boron neutron capture therapy application was performed at the BMRR in the fall of 1994. This was a collaborative effort by BNL, Beth Israel Manhattan hospital, and INEL. The INEL planning system was chosen to perform dose predictions for this application

Human friendly man-machine system with advanced media technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ogino, Takamichi; Sasaki, Kazunori

1993-01-01

This paper deals with the methodology to implement the man-machine system (MMS) with enhanced human friendliness for nuclear power plants. The relevant technologies are investigated from the two view points: One is integrated multi-media usage for user-computer interface and the other cognitive engineering for user-task interaction. Promising MMS design methodologies, concepts, and their limitations are discussed. To overcome uncertain factors found in human behaviors or individual differences in performance and preference of operators, a design appproach to natural and flexible man-computer interactive environment is proposed by intergrated use of not only cognitive and psychological knowledge but also advanced media technology. Multi-media operator support system under development is shown as an example to evaluate the effectiveness of the new approach and future advancement is prospected. (orig.)

Electric field prediction for a human body-electric machine system.

Science.gov (United States)

Ioannides, Maria G; Papadopoulos, Peter J; Dimitropoulou, Eugenia

2004-01-01

A system consisting of an electric machine and a human body is studied and the resulting electric field is predicted. A 3-phase induction machine operating at full load is modeled considering its geometry, windings, and materials. A human model is also constructed approximating its geometry and the electric properties of tissues. Using the finite element technique the electric field distribution in the human body is determined for a distance of 1 and 5 m from the machine and its effects are studied. Particularly, electric field potential variations are determined at specific points inside the human body and for these points the electric field intensity is computed and compared to the limit values for exposure according to international standards.

Functional modelling for integration of human-software-hardware in complex physical systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Modarres, M.

1996-01-01

A framework describing the properties of complex physical systems composed of human-software-hardware interactions in terms of their functions is described. It is argued that such a framework is domain-general, so that functional primitives present a language that is more general than most other modeling methods such as mathematical simulation. The characteristics and types of functional models are described. Examples of uses of the framework in modeling physical systems composed of human-software-hardware (hereby we refer to them as only physical systems) are presented. It is concluded that a function-centered model of a physical system provides a capability for generating a high-level simulation of the system for intelligent diagnostic, control or other similar applications

Finding water scarcity amid abundance using human-natural system models.

Science.gov (United States)

Jaeger, William K; Amos, Adell; Bigelow, Daniel P; Chang, Heejun; Conklin, David R; Haggerty, Roy; Langpap, Christian; Moore, Kathleen; Mote, Philip W; Nolin, Anne W; Plantinga, Andrew J; Schwartz, Cynthia L; Tullos, Desiree; Turner, David P

2017-11-07

Water scarcity afflicts societies worldwide. Anticipating water shortages is vital because of water's indispensable role in social-ecological systems. But the challenge is daunting due to heterogeneity, feedbacks, and water's spatial-temporal sequencing throughout such systems. Regional system models with sufficient detail can help address this challenge. In our study, a detailed coupled human-natural system model of one such region identifies how climate change and socioeconomic growth will alter the availability and use of water in coming decades. Results demonstrate how water scarcity varies greatly across small distances and brief time periods, even in basins where water may be relatively abundant overall. Some of these results were unexpected and may appear counterintuitive to some observers. Key determinants of water scarcity are found to be the cost of transporting and storing water, society's institutions that circumscribe human choices, and the opportunity cost of water when alternative uses compete. Published under the PNAS license.

Distinct olfactory cross-modal effects on the human motor system.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simone Rossi

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Converging evidence indicates that action observation and action-related sounds activate cross-modally the human motor system. Since olfaction, the most ancestral sense, may have behavioural consequences on human activities, we causally investigated by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS whether food odour could additionally facilitate the human motor system during the observation of grasping objects with alimentary valence, and the degree of specificity of these effects. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In a repeated-measure block design, carried out on 24 healthy individuals participating to three different experiments, we show that sniffing alimentary odorants immediately increases the motor potentials evoked in hand muscles by TMS of the motor cortex. This effect was odorant-specific and was absent when subjects were presented with odorants including a potentially noxious trigeminal component. The smell-induced corticospinal facilitation of hand muscles during observation of grasping was an additive effect which superimposed to that induced by the mere observation of grasping actions for food or non-food objects. The odour-induced motor facilitation took place only in case of congruence between the sniffed odour and the observed grasped food, and specifically involved the muscle acting as prime mover for hand/fingers shaping in the observed action. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Complex olfactory cross-modal effects on the human corticospinal system are physiologically demonstrable. They are odorant-specific and, depending on the experimental context, muscle- and action-specific as well. This finding implies potential new diagnostic and rehabilitative applications.

Increasing Hematopoietic Stem Cell Yield to Develop Mice with Human Immune Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan-Carlos Biancotti

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs are unique in their capacity to give rise to all mature cells of the immune system. For years, HSC transplantation has been used for treatment of genetic and neoplastic diseases of the hematopoietic and immune systems. The sourcing of HSCs from human umbilical cord blood has salient advantages over isolation from mobilized peripheral blood. However, poor sample yield has prompted development of methodologies to expand HSCs ex vivo. Cytokines, trophic factors, and small molecules have been variously used to promote survival and proliferation of HSCs in culture, whilst strategies to lower the concentration of inhibitors in the culture media have recently been applied to promote HSC expansion. In this paper, we outline strategies to expand HSCs in vitro, and to improve engraftment and reconstitution of human immune systems in immunocompromised mice. To the extent that these “humanized” mice are representative of the endogenous human immune system, they will be invaluable tools for both basic science and translational medicine.

Human-Machine Systems concepts applied to Control Engineering Education

OpenAIRE

Marangé , Pascale; Gellot , François; Riera , Bernard

2008-01-01

International audience; In this paper, we interest us to Human-Machine Systems (HMS) concepts applied to Education. It is shown how the HMS framework enables to propose original solution in matter of education in the field of control engineering. We focus on practical courses on control of manufacturing systems. The proposed solution is based on an original use of real and large-scale systems instead of simulation. The main idea is to enable the student, whatever his/her level to control the ...

Flawed Assumptions, Models and Decision Making: Misconceptions Concerning Human Elements in Complex System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

FORSYTHE, JAMES C.; WENNER, CAREN A.

1999-01-01

The history of high consequence accidents is rich with events wherein the actions, or inaction, of humans was critical to the sequence of events preceding the accident. Moreover, it has been reported that human error may contribute to 80% of accidents, if not more (dougherty and Fragola, 1988). Within the safety community, this reality is widely recognized and there is a substantially greater awareness of the human contribution to system safety today than has ever existed in the past. Despite these facts, and some measurable reduction in accident rates, when accidents do occur, there is a common lament. No matter how hard we try, we continue to have accidents. Accompanying this lament, there is often bewilderment expressed in statements such as, ''There's no explanation for why he/she did what they did''. It is believed that these statements are a symptom of inadequacies in how they think about humans and their role within technological systems. In particular, while there has never been a greater awareness of human factors, conceptual models of human involvement in engineered systems are often incomplete and in some cases, inaccurate

Plasticity of the intrinsic period of the human circadian timing system.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frank A J L Scheer

2007-08-01

Full Text Available Human expeditions to Mars will require adaptation to the 24.65-h Martian solar day-night cycle (sol, which is outside the range of entrainment of the human circadian pacemaker under lighting intensities to which astronauts are typically exposed. Failure to entrain the circadian time-keeping system to the desired rest-activity cycle disturbs sleep and impairs cognitive function. Furthermore, differences between the intrinsic circadian period and Earth's 24-h light-dark cycle underlie human circadian rhythm sleep disorders, such as advanced sleep phase disorder and non-24-hour sleep-wake disorders. Therefore, first, we tested whether exposure to a model-based lighting regimen would entrain the human circadian pacemaker at a normal phase angle to the 24.65-h Martian sol and to the 23.5-h day length often required of astronauts during short duration space exploration. Second, we tested here whether such prior entrainment to non-24-h light-dark cycles would lead to subsequent modification of the intrinsic period of the human circadian timing system. Here we show that exposure to moderately bright light ( approximately 450 lux; approximately 1.2 W/m(2 for the second or first half of the scheduled wake episode is effective for entraining individuals to the 24.65-h Martian sol and a 23.5-h day length, respectively. Estimations of the circadian periods of plasma melatonin, plasma cortisol, and core body temperature rhythms collected under forced desynchrony protocols revealed that the intrinsic circadian period of the human circadian pacemaker was significantly longer following entrainment to the Martian sol as compared to following entrainment to the 23.5-h day. The latter finding of after-effects of entrainment reveals for the first time plasticity of the period of the human circadian timing system. Both findings have important implications for the treatment of circadian rhythm sleep disorders and human space exploration.

Social Intelligence in a Human-Machine Collaboration System

Science.gov (United States)

Nakajima, Hiroshi; Morishima, Yasunori; Yamada, Ryota; Brave, Scott; Maldonado, Heidy; Nass, Clifford; Kawaji, Shigeyasu

In this information society of today, it is often argued that it is necessary to create a new way of human-machine interaction. In this paper, an agent with social response capabilities has been developed to achieve this goal. There are two kinds of information that is exchanged by two entities: objective and functional information (e.g., facts, requests, states of matters, etc.) and subjective information (e.g., feelings, sense of relationship, etc.). Traditional interactive systems have been designed to handle the former kind of information. In contrast, in this study social agents handling the latter type of information are presented. The current study focuses on sociality of the agent from the view point of Media Equation theory. This article discusses the definition, importance, and benefits of social intelligence as agent technology and argues that social intelligence has a potential to enhance the user's perception of the system, which in turn can lead to improvements of the system's performance. In order to implement social intelligence in the agent, a mind model has been developed to render affective expressions and personality of the agent. The mind model has been implemented in a human-machine collaborative learning system. One differentiating feature of the collaborative learning system is that it has an agent that performs as a co-learner with which the user interacts during the learning session. The mind model controls the social behaviors of the agent, thus making it possible for the user to have more social interactions with the agent. The experiment with the system suggested that a greater degree of learning was achieved when the students worked with the co-learner agent and that the co-learner agent with the mind model that expressed emotions resulted in a more positive attitude toward the system.

A system engineer's Perspective on Human Errors For a more Effective Management of Human Factors in Nuclear Power Plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Yong-Hee; Jang, Tong-Il; Lee, Soo-Kil

2007-01-01

The management of human factors in nuclear power plants (NPPs) has become one of the burden factors during their operating period after the design and construction period. Almost every study on the major accidents emphasizes the prominent importance of the human errors. Regardless of the regulatory requirements such as Periodic Safety Review, the management of human factors would be a main issue to reduce the human errors and to enhance the performance of plants. However, it is not easy to find out a more effective perspective on human errors to establish the engineering implementation plan for preventing them. This paper describes a system engineer's perspectives on human errors and discusses its application to the recent study on the human error events in Korean NPPs

Development of an Experimental Measurement System for Human Error Characteristics and a Pilot Test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jang, Tong-Il; Lee, Hyun-Chul; Moon, Kwangsu

2017-01-01

Some items out of individual and team characteristics were partially selected, and a pilot test was performed to measure and evaluate them using the experimental measurement system of human error characteristics. It is one of the processes to produce input data to the Eco-DBMS. And also, through the pilot test, it was tried to take methods to measure and acquire the physiological data, and to develop data format and quantification methods for the database. In this study, a pilot test to measure the stress and the tension level, and team cognitive characteristics out of human error characteristics was performed using the human error characteristics measurement and experimental evaluation system. In an experiment measuring the stress level, physiological characteristics using EEG was measured in a simulated unexpected situation. As shown in results, although this experiment was pilot, it was validated that relevant results for evaluating human error coping effects of workers’ FFD management guidelines and unexpected situation against guidelines can be obtained. In following researches, additional experiments including other human error characteristics will be conducted. Furthermore, the human error characteristics measurement and experimental evaluation system will be utilized to validate various human error coping solutions such as human factors criteria, design, and guidelines as well as supplement the human error characteristics database.

The cultural evolution of human communication systems in different sized populations: usability trumps learnability.

Science.gov (United States)

Fay, Nicolas; Ellison, T Mark

2013-01-01

This study examines the intergenerational transfer of human communication systems. It tests if human communication systems evolve to be easy to learn or easy to use (or both), and how population size affects learnability and usability. Using an experimental-semiotic task, we find that human communication systems evolve to be easier to use (production efficiency and reproduction fidelity), but harder to learn (identification accuracy) for a second generation of naïve participants. Thus, usability trumps learnability. In addition, the communication systems that evolve in larger populations exhibit distinct advantages over those that evolve in smaller populations: the learnability loss (from the Initial signs) is more muted and the usability benefits are more pronounced. The usability benefits for human communication systems that evolve in a small and large population is explained through guided variation reducing sign complexity. The enhanced performance of the communication systems that evolve in larger populations is explained by the operation of a content bias acting on the larger pool of competing signs. The content bias selects for information-efficient iconic signs that aid learnability and enhance usability.

Investigation of human body potential measured by a non-contact measuring system.

Science.gov (United States)

Ichikawa, Norimitsu

2016-12-07

A human body is occasionally electrified in a room. This charged object will be a source of electrostatic accidents, including the malfunction of electronic equipment. Hence, prevention of these accidents is required. Accidents occasionally occur, even though antistatic clothes and shoes are used. One of the causes for these accidents is that there is a lack of the preventive measures. This situation occurs when using, for example, unconductive wax. In this study, human body potential (voltage) is measured using a non-contact measuring system. An investigation of the human body's voltage when using this system is conducted. The result demonstrates that the voltage of a human body wearing antistatic clothes and shoes or light clothes and slippers exceeds a malfunctioning voltage of a microelectronics device when the body walks on floors. Thus, accidents may occur even if a human body wearing the antistatic clothes walks on flooring. These results will be useful in estimating determination whether electrostatic accidents occur or not.

A framework for human-hydrologic system model development integrating hydrology and water management: application to the Cutzamala water system in Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Wi, S.; Freeman, S.; Brown, C.

2017-12-01

This study presents a general approach to developing computational models of human-hydrologic systems where human modification of hydrologic surface processes are significant or dominant. A river basin system is represented by a network of human-hydrologic response units (HHRUs) identified based on locations where river regulations happen (e.g., reservoir operation and diversions). Natural and human processes in HHRUs are simulated in a holistic framework that integrates component models representing rainfall-runoff, river routing, reservoir operation, flow diversion and water use processes. We illustrate the approach in a case study of the Cutzamala water system (CWS) in Mexico, a complex inter-basin water transfer system supplying the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA). The human-hydrologic system model for CWS (CUTZSIM) is evaluated in terms of streamflow and reservoir storages measured across the CWS and to water supplied for MCMA. The CUTZSIM improves the representation of hydrology and river-operation interaction and, in so doing, advances evaluation of system-wide water management consequences under altered climatic and demand regimes. The integrated modeling framework enables evaluation and simulation of model errors throughout the river basin, including errors in representation of the human component processes. Heretofore, model error evaluation, predictive error intervals and the resultant improved understanding have been limited to hydrologic processes. The general framework represents an initial step towards fuller understanding and prediction of the many and varied processes that determine the hydrologic fluxes and state variables in real river basins.

Issues for resolving adverse effects on the safety culture of human work underload and workload transitions in complex human-machine systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryan, T.G.

1996-01-01

A workshop was conducted whose specific purpose was to build on earlier work of the US National Research Council, US federal government agencies, and the larger human factors community to: (1) clarify human factors issues pertaining to degraded safety performance in advanced human-machine systems(e.g., nuclear production, transportation, aerospace) due to human work underload and workload transition, and (2) develop strategies for resolving these issues. The workshop affirmed that: (1) work underload and workload transition are issues that will have to be addressed by designers of advanced human-machine systems, especially those relying on automation, if cost, performance, safety, and operator acceptability are to be optimized, (2) human machine allocation models, standards and guidelines which go beyond simple capability approaches will be needed to preclude or seriously diminish the work underload and workload transition problems, and (3) the 16 workload definition, measurement, situational awareness, and trust issues identified during the workshop, need resolution if these models, standards, and guidelines are to be achieved

Understanding human factors in cyber security as a dynamic system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Young, H.J.; Vliet, A.J. van; Ven, J.G.S. van de; Jol, S.C.; Broekman, C.C.M.T.

2018-01-01

The perspective of human factors is largely missing from the wider cyber security dialogue and its scope is often limited. We propose a framework in which we consider cyber security as a state of a system. System change is brought on by an entity’s behavior. Interventions are ways of changing

Casual Games and Casual Learning About Human Biological Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Price, C. Aaron; Gean, Katherine; Christensen, Claire G.; Beheshti, Elham; Pernot, Bryn; Segovia, Gloria; Person, Halcyon; Beasley, Steven; Ward, Patricia

2016-02-01

Casual games are everywhere. People play them throughout life to pass the time, to engage in social interactions, and to learn. However, their simplicity and use in distraction-heavy environments can attenuate their potential for learning. This experimental study explored the effects playing an online, casual game has on awareness of human biological systems. Two hundred and forty-two children were given pretests at a Museum and posttests at home after playing either a treatment or control game. Also, 41 children were interviewed to explore deeper meanings behind the test results. Results show modest improvement in scientific attitudes, ability to identify human biological systems and in the children's ability to describe how those systems work together in real-world scenarios. Interviews reveal that children drew upon their prior school learning as they played the game. Also, on the surface they perceived the game as mainly entertainment but were easily able to discern learning outcomes when prompted. Implications for the design of casual games and how they can be used to enhance transfer of knowledge from the classroom to everyday life are discussed.

Design Concept of Human Interface System for Risk Monitoring for Proactive Trouble Prevention

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hidekazu, Yoshikawa; Ming, Yang; Zhijian, Zhang

2011-01-01

interface systems to support the collaboration work between workers at local workplace and the main control room. In this paper, the general issues are reviewed on how to configure the whole human interface system for helping proactive trouble prevention and risk evaluation on the basis of the presented......) with the risk monitor to watch Defense-in Depth plant safety functions. The proposed concept is applied for a liquid metal fast reactor Monju and necessary R&D subjects are reviewed to realize human interface system for the maintenance work in Monju plant. Because of using high temperature liquid sodium...... as reactor coolant in Monju plant, the maintenance for Monju should utilize more automated equipments of remote control and robotics than that of light water reactor. It is necessary to design optimum task allocation between human and automated machine as the requisites for good communication design of human...

The Effect of Degraded Digital Instrumentation and Control systems on Human-system Interfaces and Operator Performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.; Gunther, B.; Martinez-Guridi, G.; Xing, J.; Barnes, V.

2010-01-01

Integrated digital instrumentation and control (I and C) systems in new and advanced nuclear power plants (NPPs) will support operators in monitoring and controlling the plants. Even though digital systems typically are expected to be reliable, their potential for degradation or failure significantly could affect the operators performance and, consequently, jeopardize plant safety. This U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) research investigated the effects of degraded I and C systems on human performance and on plant operations. The objective was to develop technical basis and guidance for human factors engineering (HFE) reviews addressing the operator's ability to detect and manage degraded digital I and C conditions. We reviewed pertinent standards and guidelines, empirical studies, and plant operating experience. In addition, we evaluated the potential effects of selected failure modes of the digital feedwater control system of a currently operating pressurized water reactor (PWR) on human-system interfaces (HSIs) and the operators performance. Our findings indicated that I and C degradations are prevalent in plants employing digital systems, and the overall effects on the plant's behavior can be significant, such as causing a reactor trip or equipment to operate unexpectedly. I and C degradations may affect the HSIs used by operators to monitor and control the plant. For example, deterioration of the sensors can complicate the operators interpretation of displays, and sometimes may mislead them by making it appear that a process disturbance has occurred. We used the findings as the technical basis upon which to develop HFE review guidance.

Socio-Hydrology: Conceptual and Methodological Challenges in the Bidirectional Coupling of Human and Water Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, C. A.

2014-12-01

This presentation reviews conceptual advances in the emerging field of socio-hydrology that focuses on coupled human and water systems. An important current challenge is how to better couple the bidirectional influences between human and water systems, which lead to emergent dynamics. The interactions among (1) the structure and dynamics of systems with (2) human values and norms lead to (3) outcomes, which in turn influence subsequent interactions. Human influences on hydrological systems are relatively well understood, chiefly resulting from developments in the field of water resources. The ecosystem-service concept of cultural value has expanded understanding of decision-making beyond economic rationality criteria. Hydrological impacts on social processes are less well developed conceptually, but this is changing with growing attention to vulnerability, adaptation, and resilience, particularly in the face of climate change. Methodological limitations, especially in characterizing the range of human responses to hydrological events and drivers, still pose challenges to modeling bidirectional human-water influences. Evidence from multiple case studies, synthesized in more broadly generic syndromes, helps surmount these methodological limitations and offers the potential to improve characterization and quantification of socio-hydrological systems.

For a Socialist Theoretical System for Human Rights with Chinese Characteristics

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

GU CHUNDE

2011-01-01

@@ Ⅰ.The Necessity and Feasibility for Developing a Socialist Theoretical System for Human Rights with Chinese Characteristics Development of such a system is needed to ensure success of the social transformation and transition ongoing up in China.

The development and evaluation of guidelines for the review of advanced human-system interfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.; Wachtel, J.

1992-01-01

Advanced control rooms for future nuclear power plants are being designed utilizing computer-based technologies. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission reviews the human engineering aspects of such control rooms to ensure that they are designed to good human factors engineering principles and that operator performance and reliability are appropriately supported in order to protect public health and safety. This paper describes a general approach to advanced human-system interface review, development of human factors guidelines to support NRC safety reviews of advanced systems, and the results of a guideline test and evaluation program

Advances in radiation biology: Relative radiation sensitivities of human organ systems. Volume 12

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lett, J.T.; Altman, K.I.; Ehmann, U.K.; Cox, A.B.

1987-01-01

This volume is a thematically focused issue of Advances in Radiation Biology. The topic surveyed is relative radiosensitivity of human organ systems. Topics considered include relative radiosensitivities of the thymus, spleen, and lymphohemopoietic systems; relative radiosensitivities of the small and large intestine; relative rediosensitivities of the oral cavity, larynx, pharynx, and esophagus; relative radiation sensitivity of the integumentary system; dose response of the epidermal; microvascular, and dermal populations; relative radiosensitivity of the human lung; relative radiosensitivity of fetal tissues; and tolerance of the central and peripheral nervous system to therapeutic irradiation

Advances in radiation biology: Relative radiation sensitivities of human organ systems. Volume 12

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lett, J.T.; Altman, K.I.; Ehmann, U.K.; Cox, A.B.

1987-01-01

This volume is a thematically focused issue of Advances in Radiation Biology. The topic surveyed is relative radiosensitivity of human organ systems. Topics considered include relative radiosensitivities of the thymus, spleen, and lymphohemopoietic systems; relative radiosensitivities of the small and large intestine; relative rediosensitivities of the oral cavity, larynx, pharynx, and esophagus; relative radiation sensitivity of the integumentary system; dose response of the epidermal; microvascular, and dermal populations; relative radiosensitivity of the human lung; relative radiosensitivity of fetal tissues; and tolerance of the central and peripheral nervous system to therapeutic irradiation.

Looking beyond - socialization tactics : The role of human resource systems in the socialization process

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Batistic, S.

2018-01-01

Previous research questions whether the association between socialization tactics and human resource systems has been properly explored. Based on theory, we present a framework that links socialization tactics and human resource systems for various groups of newcomers. In doing so, we contribute to

Cloning, characterization and chromosomal location of a satellite DNA from the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Clabby, C.; Goswami, U.; Flavin, F.; Wilkins, N.P.; Houghton, J.A.; Powell, R.

F2.18 (includ- ing pBGS8 vector) was labelled with fluor-12-dUTP and hybridized to the chromosome slides. The fluorescence signals were directly observed without additional immu- nological enhancement. No fluorescence signals were obtained when...-it-Fluor, Stratagene, La Jolla, CA, USA). Chromosomes were denatured at 72°C in 70% formamide/2 × SSC and the denatured labelled Cgl70 probe was added and hybridization performed at 37°C overnight. Post-hybridization washes were according to manufacturer...

Development of a Human Performance Evaluation Support System for Human Factors Validation of MCR MMI Design in APR-1400

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ha, Jun Su; Seong, Poong Hyun

2005-01-01

As CRT-based display and advanced information technology were applied to advanced reactors such as APR-1400 (Advanced Power Reactor-1400), human operators' tasks became more cognitive works. As a results, Human Factors Engineering (HFE) became more important in designing the MCR (Main Control Room) MMI (Man-Machine Interface) of an advanced reactor. According to the Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model, human factors validation of MCR MMI design should be performed through performance-based tests to determine whether it acceptably supports safe operation of the plant. In order to support the evaluation of the performance, a HUman Performance Evaluation Support System (HUPESS) is in development

immu ologic ad cli ical outcomes of childre o haart: a retrospective ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

user

METHOD: A three -year's retrospective cohort analysis was conducted in July 2008 among children ... Health Organization Anthro v2.0.2 software. ... rate and anthropometric changes of HIV infected children on highly active antiretroviral therapy were similar but ..... it was different form the South African pediatric cohorts.

The Human Thioredoxin System: Modifications and Clinical Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seyed Isaac Hashemy

2011-03-01

Full Text Available The thioredoxin system, comprising thioredoxin (Trx, thioredoxin reductase (TrxR and NADPH, is one of the major cellular antioxidant systems, implicated in a large and growing number of biological functions. Trx acts as an oxidoreductase via a highly conserved dithiol/disulfide motif located in the active site (-Trp-Cys-Gly-Pro-Cys-Lys-. Different factors are involved in the regulation of Trx activity, including its expression level, localization, protein-protein interactions, post-translational modifications and some chemical inhibitors. Mammalian TrxRs are selenoproteins which have a –Cys-Val-Asn-Val-Gly-Cys- N-terminal active site, as well as a C-terminal selenium-containing active site. Besides two Cys-residues in the redox-regulatory domain of cytosolic Trx (Trx1, human Trx1 has three additional Cys-residues. Post-translational modifications of human Trx1 which are involved in the regulation of its activity can happen via modification of Cys-residues including thiol oxidation, glutathionylation and S-nitrosylation or via modification of other amino acid residues such as nitration of Tyr-49. Because of the numerous functions of the thioredoxin system, its inhibition (mainly happens via the targeting TrxR can result in major cellular consequences, which are potentially pro-oxidant in nature, leading to cell death via necrosis or apoptosis if overexpression of Trx and other antioxidative enzymes can not recuperate cell response. Considering this feature, several anticancer drugs have been used which can inhibit TrxR. Elevated levels of Trx and/or TrxR have been reported in many different human malignancies, positively correlated with aggressive tumor growth and poor prognosis. Moreover, anti-oxidative and anti-apoptotic effects of Trx are reasons to study its clinical application as a drug.

Human Exploration and Development in the Solar System

Science.gov (United States)

Mendell, Wendell

2017-05-01

Emergence of ballistic missile technology after the Second World War enabled human flight into Earth's orbit, fueling the imagination of those fascinated with science, technology, exploration, and adventure. The performance of astronauts in the early flights assuaged concerns about the functioning of "the human system" in the absence of normal gravity. However, researchers in space medicine have observed degradation of crews after longer exposure to the space environment and have developed countermeasures for most of them, although significant challenges remain. With the dawn of the 21st century, well-financed and technically competent commercial entities began to provide more affordable alternatives to historically expensive and risk-averse government-funded programs. Space's growing accessibility has encouraged entrepreneurs to pursue plans for potentially autarkic communities beyond Earth, exploiting natural resources on other worlds. Should such dreams prove to be technically and economically feasible, a new era will open for humanity with concomitant societal issues of a revolutionary nature.

Protein buffering in model systems and in whole human saliva.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreas Lamanda

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to quantify the buffer attributes (value, power, range and optimum of two model systems for whole human resting saliva, the purified proteins from whole human resting saliva and single proteins. Two model systems, the first containing amyloglucosidase and lysozyme, and the second containing amyloglucosidase and alpha-amylase, were shown to provide, in combination with hydrogencarbonate and di-hydrogenphosphate, almost identical buffer attributes as whole human resting saliva. It was further demonstrated that changes in the protein concentration as small as 0.1% may change the buffer value of a buffer solution up to 15 times. Additionally, it was shown that there was a protein concentration change in the same range (0.16% between saliva samples collected at the time periods of 13:00 and others collected at 9:00 am and 17:00. The mode of the protein expression changed between these samples corresponded to the change in basic buffer power and the change of the buffer value at pH 6.7. Finally, SDS Page and Ruthenium II tris (bathophenantroline disulfonate staining unveiled a constant protein expression in all samples except for one 50 kDa protein band. As the change in the expression pattern of that 50 kDa protein band corresponded to the change in basic buffer power and the buffer value at pH 6.7, it was reasonable to conclude that this 50 kDa protein band may contain the protein(s belonging to the protein buffer system of human saliva.

Surface Support Systems for Co-Operative and Integrated Human/Robotic Lunar Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

Mueller, Robert P.

2006-01-01

Human and robotic partnerships to realize space goals can enhance space missions and provide increases in human productivity while decreasing the hazards that the humans are exposed to. For lunar exploration, the harsh environment of the moon and the repetitive nature of the tasks involved with lunar outpost construction, maintenance and operation as well as production tasks associated with in-situ resource utilization, make it highly desirable to use robotic systems in co-operation with human activity. A human lunar outpost is functionally examined and concepts for selected human/robotic tasks are discussed in the context of a lunar outpost which will enable the presence of humans on the moon for extended periods of time.

Neuropeptidomics Mass Spectrometry Reveals Signaling Networks Generated by Distinct Protease Pathways in Human Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Hook, Vivian; Bandeira, Nuno

2015-12-01

Neuropeptides regulate intercellular signaling as neurotransmitters of the central and peripheral nervous systems, and as peptide hormones in the endocrine system. Diverse neuropeptides of distinct primary sequences of various lengths, often with post-translational modifications, coordinate and integrate regulation of physiological functions. Mass spectrometry-based analysis of the diverse neuropeptide structures in neuropeptidomics research is necessary to define the full complement of neuropeptide signaling molecules. Human neuropeptidomics has notable importance in defining normal and dysfunctional neuropeptide signaling in human health and disease. Neuropeptidomics has great potential for expansion in translational research opportunities for defining neuropeptide mechanisms of human diseases, providing novel neuropeptide drug targets for drug discovery, and monitoring neuropeptides as biomarkers of drug responses. In consideration of the high impact of human neuropeptidomics for health, an observed gap in this discipline is the few published articles in human neuropeptidomics compared with, for example, human proteomics and related mass spectrometry disciplines. Focus on human neuropeptidomics will advance new knowledge of the complex neuropeptide signaling networks participating in the fine control of neuroendocrine systems. This commentary review article discusses several human neuropeptidomics accomplishments that illustrate the rapidly expanding diversity of neuropeptides generated by protease processing of pro-neuropeptide precursors occurring within the secretory vesicle proteome. Of particular interest is the finding that human-specific cathepsin V participates in producing enkephalin and likely other neuropeptides, indicating unique proteolytic mechanisms for generating human neuropeptides. The field of human neuropeptidomics has great promise to solve new mechanisms in disease conditions, leading to new drug targets and therapeutic agents for human

Direct 3D cell-printing of human skin with functional transwell system.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Byoung Soo; Lee, Jung-Seob; Gao, Ge; Cho, Dong-Woo

2017-06-06

Three-dimensional (3D) cell-printing has been emerging as a promising technology with which to build up human skin models by enabling rapid and versatile design. Despite the technological advances, challenges remain in the development of fully functional models that recapitulate complexities in the native tissue. Moreover, although several approaches have been explored for the development of biomimetic human skin models, the present skin models based on multistep fabrication methods using polydimethylsiloxane chips and commercial transwell inserts could be tackled by leveraging 3D cell-printing technology. In this paper, we present a new 3D cell-printing strategy for engineering a 3D human skin model with a functional transwell system in a single-step process. A hybrid 3D cell-printing system was developed, allowing for the use of extrusion and inkjet modules at the same time. We began by revealing the significance of each module in engineering human skin models; by using the extrusion-dispensing module, we engineered a collagen-based construct with polycaprolactone (PCL) mesh that prevented the contraction of collagen during tissue maturation; the inkjet-based dispensing module was used to uniformly distribute keratinocytes. Taking these features together, we engineered a human skin model with a functional transwell system; the transwell system and fibroblast-populated dermis were consecutively fabricated by using the extrusion modules. Following this process, keratinocytes were uniformly distributed onto the engineered dermis by the inkjet module. Our transwell system indicates a supportive 3D construct composed of PCL, enabling the maturation of a skin model without the aid of commercial transwell inserts. This skin model revealed favorable biological characteristics that included a stabilized fibroblast-stretched dermis and stratified epidermis layers after 14 days. It was also observed that a 50 times reduction in cost was achieved and 10 times less medium was

Computational 3-D Model of the Human Respiratory System

Science.gov (United States)

We are developing a comprehensive, morphologically-realistic computational model of the human respiratory system that can be used to study the inhalation, deposition, and clearance of contaminants, while being adaptable for age, race, gender, and health/disease status. The model ...

NASA UAS Integration into the NAS Project: Human Systems Integration

Science.gov (United States)

Shively, Jay

2016-01-01

This presentation provides an overview of the work the Human Systems Integration (HSI) sub-project has done on detect and avoid (DAA) displays while working on the UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) Integration into the NAS project. The most recent simulation on DAA interoperability with Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) is discussed in the most detail. The relationship of the work to the larger UAS community and next steps are also detailed.

Human-system interface for CAREM nuclear reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abaurre, Norberto F.; Flury, Celso A.; Pierini, Juan P.; Etchepareborda, Andres; Breitembuecher, Alfredo J.; Lema, Fabian M.

2009-01-01

Associated with activities to be developed by our working group on the construction of the reactor training simulator for the CAREM, we have planned the design of human-system interface (HSI) of the main control room. The goal of this study is to describe the planning and methodology used for the HSI interface design. The products of this process are the layout specifications of the Control Room and the screens specifications for control software. (author)

Redesigning Human Body Systems: Effective Pedagogical Strategy for Promoting Active Learning and STEM Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abour H. Cherif

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The human body is a remarkable biological machine maintained by interdependent body systems and organized biochemical reactions. Evolution has worked on humans for hundreds of thousands of years, yet the current pace of technological and social change have radically affected our life style and have exposed possible human frailties. This raises the question of whether or not nature’s work could be improved upon. We provide two-sided perspectives as a rationale for the need for the redesign of the human body. Then, we describe pedagogical strategy through which students study morphological and anatomical structures and the physiological functions of the human body systems and their respective organs and parts. The students select their own favorite system or organ to redesign in order to optimize the efficiency of the anatomical structural, physiological function, and/or the aesthetic and functional morphology; a redesign that might lead to, for example, lowering risk of diabetes, heart attack, and/or stroke. Through group work and interaction (student groups compete for a prestigious “in-house” patent award, students actively engage in the learning process in order to understand the role of design in the efficiency and functionality and vulnerability to disease of the human body system.

Human practice in the life cycle of complex systems. Challenges and methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nuutinen, M.; Luoma, J.

2005-12-01

This book describes the current and near future challenges in work and traffic environments in light of the rapid technology development. It focuses on the following domains: road and vessel traffic, nuclear power production, automatic mining, steel factory and the pulp and paper industry. Each example concerns complex technical systems where human practice and behaviour has an important role for the safety, efficiency and productivity of the system. The articles illustrate the enormous field of human-related research when considering the design, validation, implementation, operation and maintenance of complex sociotechnical systems. Nevertheless, these 14 chapters are only examples of the range of questions related to the issue. The authors of the book are VTT experts in work or traffic psychology and research, system usability, risk and safety analysis, virtual environments and they have experience in studying different domains. This book is an attempt to open up the complex world of human-technology interaction for readers facing practical problems with complex systems. It is aimed to help a technical or organisational designer, a policy-maker, an expert or 'a user', the one who works or lives within the technology. (orig.)

Co-evolutionary dynamics of the human-environment system in the Heihe River basin in the past 2000years.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Zhixiang; Wei, Yongping; Feng, Qi; Xie, Jiali; Xiao, Honglang; Cheng, Guodong

2018-09-01

There is limited quantitative understanding of interactions between human and environmental systems over the millennial scale. We aim to reveal the co-evolutionary dynamics of the human-environment system in a river basin by simulating the water use and net primary production (NPP) allocation for human and environmental systems over the last 2000years in Heihe River basin (HRB) in northwest China. We partition the catchment total evapotranspiration (ET) into ET for human and environmental systems with a social-hydrological framework and estimate the NPP for human and environmental systems using the Box-Lieth model, then classify the co-evolutionary processes of the human-environment system into distinct phases using the rate of changes of NPP over time, and discover the trade-offs or synergies relationships between them based on the elasticity of change of the NPP for humans to the change of NPP for environment. The co-evolutionary dynamics of human-environment system in the HRB can be divided into four periods, including: Phase I (Han Dynasty-Yuan Dynasty): predevelopment characterized by nearly no trade-offs between human and environment; Phase II (Yuan Dynasty-RC): slow agricultural development: characterized by a small human win due to small trade-offs between human and environment; Phase III (RC-2000): rapid agricultural development: characterized by a large human win due to large trade-offs between human and environment, and Phase IV (2000-2010): a rebalance characterized by large human wins with a small-environment win due to synergies, although these occurred very occasionally. This study provides a quantitative approach to describe the co-evolution of the human-environment system from the perspective of trade-offs and synergies in the millennial scale for the first time. The relationships between humans and environment changed from trade-off to synergy with the implementation of the water reallocation scheme in 2000. These findings improve the

Human factors certification in the development of future air traffic control systems

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, Alyson E.

1994-01-01

If human factors certification of aviation technologies aims to encompass the wide range of issues which need to be addressed for any new system, then human factors involvement must be present throughout the whole design process in a manner which relates to final certification. A certification process cannot simply be applied to the final product of design. Standards and guidelines will be required by designers at the outset of design for reference in preparing for certification. The most effective use of human factors principles, methods, and measures is made as part of an iterative design process, leading to a system which reflects these as far as possible. This particularly applies where the technology is complex and may be represented by a number of components or sub-systems. Some aspects of the system are best certified during early prototyping, when there is still scope to make changes to software or hardware. At this stage in design, financial and/or time pressures will not rule out the possibility of necessary changes, as may be the case later. Other aspects of the system will be best certified during the final phases of design when the system is in a more complete form and in a realistic environment.

Shape understanding system machine understanding and human understanding

CERN Document Server

Les, Zbigniew

2015-01-01

This is the third book presenting selected results of research on the further development of the shape understanding system (SUS) carried out by authors in the newly founded Queen Jadwiga Research Institute of Understanding. In this book the new term Machine Understanding is introduced referring to a new area of research aiming to investigate the possibility of building machines with the ability to understand. It is presented that SUS needs to some extent mimic human understanding and for this reason machines are evaluated according to the rules applied for the evaluation of human understanding. The book shows how to formulate problems and how it can be tested if the machine is able to solve these problems.    

Functional Mobility Testing: A Novel Method to Establish Human System Interface Design Requirements

Science.gov (United States)

England, Scott A.; Benson, Elizabeth A.; Rajulu, Sudhakar

2008-01-01

Across all fields of human-system interface design it is vital to posses a sound methodology dictating the constraints on the system based on the capabilities of the human user. These limitations may be based on strength, mobility, dexterity, cognitive ability, etc. and combinations thereof. Data collected in an isolated environment to determine, for example, maximal strength or maximal range of motion would indeed be adequate for establishing not-to-exceed type design limitations, however these restraints on the system may be excessive over what is basally needed. Resources may potentially be saved by having a technique to determine the minimum measurements a system must accommodate. This paper specifically deals with the creation of a novel methodology for establishing mobility requirements for a new generation of space suit design concepts. Historically, the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station vehicle and space hardware design requirements documents such as the Man-Systems Integration Standards and International Space Station Flight Crew Integration Standard explicitly stated that the designers should strive to provide the maximum joint range of motion capabilities exhibited by a minimally clothed human subject. In the course of developing the Human-Systems Integration Requirements (HSIR) for the new space exploration initiative (Constellation), an effort was made to redefine the mobility requirements in the interest of safety and cost. Systems designed for manned space exploration can receive compounded gains from simplified designs that are both initially less expensive to produce and lighter, thereby, cheaper to launch.

Anti-proteinase 3 anti-neutrophil cytoplasm autoantibodies recapitulate systemic vasculitis in mice with a humanized immune system.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark A Little

Full Text Available Evidence is lacking for direct pathogenicity of human anti-proteinase-3 (PR3 antibodies in development of systemic vasculitis and granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA, Wegener's granulomatosis. Progress in study of these antibodies in rodents has been hampered by lack of PR3 expression on murine neutrophils, and by different Fc-receptor affinities for IgG across species. Therefore, we tested whether human anti-PR3 antibodies can induce acute vasculitis in mice with a human immune system. Chimeric mice were generated by injecting human haematopoietic stem cells into irradiated NOD-scid-IL2Rγ⁻/⁻ mice. Matched chimera mice were treated with human IgG from patients with: anti-PR3 positive renal and lung vasculitis; patients with non-vasculitic renal disease; or healthy controls. Six-days later, 39% of anti-PR3 treated mice had haematuria, compared with none of controls. There was punctate bleeding on the surface of lungs of anti-PR3 treated animals, with histological evidence of vasculitis and haemorrhage. Anti-PR3 treated mice had mild pauci-immune proliferative glomerulonephritis, with infiltration of human and mouse leukocytes. In 3 mice (17% more severe glomerular injury was present. There were no glomerular changes in controls. Human IgG from patients with anti-PR3 autoantibodies is therefore pathogenic. This model of anti-PR3 antibody-mediated vasculitis may be useful in dissecting mechanisms of microvascular injury.

Anti-proteinase 3 anti-neutrophil cytoplasm autoantibodies recapitulate systemic vasculitis in mice with a humanized immune system.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Little, Mark A

2012-01-01

Evidence is lacking for direct pathogenicity of human anti-proteinase-3 (PR3) antibodies in development of systemic vasculitis and granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA, Wegener\\'s granulomatosis). Progress in study of these antibodies in rodents has been hampered by lack of PR3 expression on murine neutrophils, and by different Fc-receptor affinities for IgG across species. Therefore, we tested whether human anti-PR3 antibodies can induce acute vasculitis in mice with a human immune system. Chimeric mice were generated by injecting human haematopoietic stem cells into irradiated NOD-scid-IL2Rγ⁻\\/⁻ mice. Matched chimera mice were treated with human IgG from patients with: anti-PR3 positive renal and lung vasculitis; patients with non-vasculitic renal disease; or healthy controls. Six-days later, 39% of anti-PR3 treated mice had haematuria, compared with none of controls. There was punctate bleeding on the surface of lungs of anti-PR3 treated animals, with histological evidence of vasculitis and haemorrhage. Anti-PR3 treated mice had mild pauci-immune proliferative glomerulonephritis, with infiltration of human and mouse leukocytes. In 3 mice (17%) more severe glomerular injury was present. There were no glomerular changes in controls. Human IgG from patients with anti-PR3 autoantibodies is therefore pathogenic. This model of anti-PR3 antibody-mediated vasculitis may be useful in dissecting mechanisms of microvascular injury.

The Relative Effectiveness of Human Tutoring, Intelligent Tutoring Systems, and Other Tutoring Systems

Science.gov (United States)

VanLehn, Kurt

2011-01-01

This article is a review of experiments comparing the effectiveness of human tutoring, computer tutoring, and no tutoring. "No tutoring" refers to instruction that teaches the same content without tutoring. The computer tutoring systems were divided by their granularity of the user interface interaction into answer-based, step-based, and…

The cultural evolution of human communication systems in different sized populations: usability trumps learnability.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nicolas Fay

Full Text Available This study examines the intergenerational transfer of human communication systems. It tests if human communication systems evolve to be easy to learn or easy to use (or both, and how population size affects learnability and usability. Using an experimental-semiotic task, we find that human communication systems evolve to be easier to use (production efficiency and reproduction fidelity, but harder to learn (identification accuracy for a second generation of naïve participants. Thus, usability trumps learnability. In addition, the communication systems that evolve in larger populations exhibit distinct advantages over those that evolve in smaller populations: the learnability loss (from the Initial signs is more muted and the usability benefits are more pronounced. The usability benefits for human communication systems that evolve in a small and large population is explained through guided variation reducing sign complexity. The enhanced performance of the communication systems that evolve in larger populations is explained by the operation of a content bias acting on the larger pool of competing signs. The content bias selects for information-efficient iconic signs that aid learnability and enhance usability.

Perspective of next generation training system from the viewpoints of human interfaces. Human interface kara mita kyoiku kunren system no genjo to kongo no tenbo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nishida, S [Mitsubishi Electric Corp., Tokyo (Japan)

1992-12-10

This paper describes an education and training system placing its emphasis on human interfaces. The paper indicates that the currently used education and training systems lack training functions to cultivate knowledge-based judgment abilities that can find adequate solutions to events that have not been experienced previously; such judgments require deep understanding on the objects; and this training requires a system to aid the comprehension based on knowledges in the realm of recognition science for the 'human understanding'. Next, a pedagogical interface is proposed for aiding the comprehension. The paper enumerates functions indispensable for the comprehension including setting the 'loop for representation and examination', aiding the representation to examination loop, aiding roles by others, and realizing interactions through a hypothetical world. Also enumerated as fundamental techniques to structure such interface are information structuring techniques, groupware techniques, and virtual reality techniques. 19 refs., 10 figs.

A High-Resolution In Vivo Atlas of the Human Brain's Serotonin System.

Science.gov (United States)

Beliveau, Vincent; Ganz, Melanie; Feng, Ling; Ozenne, Brice; Højgaard, Liselotte; Fisher, Patrick M; Svarer, Claus; Greve, Douglas N; Knudsen, Gitte M

2017-01-04

The serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) system modulates many important brain functions and is critically involved in many neuropsychiatric disorders. Here, we present a high-resolution, multidimensional, in vivo atlas of four of the human brain's 5-HT receptors (5-HT 1A , 5-HT 1B , 5-HT 2A , and 5-HT 4 ) and the 5-HT transporter (5-HTT). The atlas is created from molecular and structural high-resolution neuroimaging data consisting of positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans acquired in a total of 210 healthy individuals. Comparison of the regional PET binding measures with postmortem human brain autoradiography outcomes showed a high correlation for the five 5-HT targets and this enabled us to transform the atlas to represent protein densities (in picomoles per milliliter). We also assessed the regional association between protein concentration and mRNA expression in the human brain by comparing the 5-HT density across the atlas with data from the Allen Human Brain atlas and identified receptor- and transporter-specific associations that show the regional relation between the two measures. Together, these data provide unparalleled insight into the serotonin system of the human brain. We present a high-resolution positron emission tomography (PET)- and magnetic resonance imaging-based human brain atlas of important serotonin receptors and the transporter. The regional PET-derived binding measures correlate strongly with the corresponding autoradiography protein levels. The strong correlation enables the transformation of the PET-derived human brain atlas into a protein density map of the serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) system. Next, we compared the regional receptor/transporter protein densities with mRNA levels and uncovered unique associations between protein expression and density at high detail. This new in vivo neuroimaging atlas of the 5-HT system not only provides insight in the human brain's regional protein

Influence of human and bovine substrate on the microleakage of two adhesive systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karoline Guará Brusaca Almeida

2009-04-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to evaluate in vitro the marginal sealing of two adhesive systems and to analyze the influence of human and bovine substrates on marginal microleakage in enamel. Rectangular-shaped class V cavities (4 mm wide x 2 mm high x 2 mm deep were made as follows: 8 cavities were prepared on the buccal and lingual surfaces of the human teeth with margins located on enamel and 16 cavities were prepared on the buccal surfaces of the bovine teeth. The cavities were randomly assigned to 4 groups of 8 cavities according to the adhesive system and substrate: G1 - Prime & Bond 2.1 (Dentsply/human substrate; G2 - Adhese (Ivoclar/Vivadent/human substrate; G3 - Prime & Bond 2.1 (Dentsply/bovine substrate; G4 - Adhese (Ivoclar/Vivadent/bovine substrate. The cavities were filled with microhybrid composite resin (Fillmagic and after polishing/finishing procedures, the teeth were subjected to a thermocycling regimen of 500 cycles with 1-min immersions in water at 55° ±2°C and 5° ± 2°C. Next, the teeth were coated with two layers of nail polish to within 1 mm of the margin, submerged in a 50% silver nitrate solution for 2 h, rinsed thoroughly in running tap and immersed in developing solution for 8 h. The restorations were bisected resulting in 16 specimens. Microleakage was observed under a stereomicroscope at x25 and recorded using four-point (0-3 scoring system. The data were analyzed statistically by the Mann Whitney U-test at 5% significance level. Leakage was present in all specimens and there was statistically significant difference between the adhesive systems. Adhese self-etching system showed significantly more leakage in both substrates (human - p= 0.0001 and bovine - p= 0.0031. There was no statistically significant difference between human and bovine substrates for either of the adhesive systems based on different bonding mechanisms (Prime & Bond 2.1 - p= 0.6923 and Adhese - p= 0.6109. Neither of the adhesive systems was

Virtual Habitat -a dynamic simulation of closed life support systems -human model status

Science.gov (United States)

Markus Czupalla, M. Sc.; Zhukov, Anton; Hwang, Su-Au; Schnaitmann, Jonas

In order to optimize Life Support Systems on a system level, stability questions must be in-vestigated. To do so the exploration group of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) is developing the "Virtual Habitat" (V-HAB) dynamic LSS simulation software. V-HAB shall provide the possibility to conduct dynamic simulations of entire mission scenarios for any given LSS configuration. The Virtual Habitat simulation tool consists of four main modules: • Closed Environment Module (CEM) -monitoring of compounds in a closed environment • Crew Module (CM) -dynamic human simulation • P/C Systems Module (PCSM) -dynamic P/C subsystems • Plant Module (PM) -dynamic plant simulation The core module of the simulation is the dynamic and environment sensitive human module. Introduced in its basic version in 2008, the human module has been significantly updated since, increasing its capabilities and maturity significantly. In this paper three newly added human model subsystems (thermal regulation, digestion and schedule controller) are introduced touching also on the human stress subsystem which is cur-rently under development. Upon the introduction of these new subsystems, the integration of these into the overall V-HAB human model is discussed, highlighting the impact on the most important I/F. The overall human model capabilities shall further be summarized and presented based on meaningful test cases. In addition to the presentation of the results, the correlation strategy for the Virtual Habitat human model shall be introduced assessing the models current confidence level and giving an outlook on the future correlation strategy. Last but not least, the remaining V-HAB mod-ules shall be introduced shortly showing how the human model is integrated into the overall simulation.

Evidence for two numerical systems that are similar in humans and guppies.

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Christian Agrillo

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Humans and non-human animals share an approximate non-verbal system for representing and comparing numerosities that has no upper limit and for which accuracy is dependent on the numerical ratio. Current evidence indicates that the mechanism for keeping track of individual objects can also be used for numerical purposes; if so, its accuracy will be independent of numerical ratio, but its capacity is limited to the number of items that can be tracked, about four. There is, however, growing controversy as to whether two separate number systems are present in other vertebrate species. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In this study, we compared the ability of undergraduate students and guppies to discriminate the same numerical ratios, both within and beyond the small number range. In both students and fish the performance was ratio-independent for the numbers 1-4, while it steadily increased with numerical distance when larger numbers were presented. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results suggest that two distinct systems underlie quantity discrimination in both humans and fish, implying that the building blocks of uniquely human mathematical abilities may be evolutionarily ancient, dating back to before the divergence of bony fish and tetrapod lineages.

On the Interplay between Order Parameter Dynamics and System Parameter Dynamics in Human Perceptual-Cognitive-Behavioral Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Frank, T D

2015-04-01

Previous research has demonstrated that perceiving, thinking, and acting are human activities that correspond to self-organized patterns. The emergence of such patterns can be completely described in terms of the dynamics of the pattern amplitudes, which are referred to as order parameters. The patterns emerge at bifurcations points when certain system parameters internal and external to a human agent exceed critical values. At issue is how one might study the order parameter dynamics for sequences of consecutive, emergent perceptual, cognitive, or behavioral activities. In particular, these activities may in turn impact the system parameters that have led to the emergence of the activities in the first place. This interplay between order parameter dynamics and system parameter dynamics is discussed in general and formulated in mathematical terms. Previous work that has made use of this two-tiered framework of order parameter and system parameter dynamics are briefly addressed. As an application, a model for perception under functional fixedness is presented. Finally, it is argued that the phenomena that emerge in this framework and can be observed when human agents perceive, think, and act are just as likely to occur in pattern formation systems of the inanimate world. Consequently, these phenomena do not necessarily have a neurophysiological basis but should instead be understood from the perspective of the theory of self-organization.

A High-Resolution In Vivo Atlas of the Human Brain's Serotonin System

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Beliveau, Vincent; Ganz-Benjaminsen, Melanie; Feng, Ling

2017-01-01

The serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) system modulates many important brain functions and is critically involved in many neuropsychiatric disorders. Here, we present a high-resolution, multidimensional, in vivo atlas of four of the human brain's 5-HT receptors (5-HT1A, 5-HT1B, 5-HT2A, and 5-HT4...... with postmortem human brain autoradiography outcomes showed a high correlation for the five 5-HT targets and this enabled us to transform the atlas to represent protein densities (in picomoles per milliliter). We also assessed the regional association between protein concentration and mRNA expression in the human...... brain by comparing the 5-HT density across the atlas with data from the Allen Human Brain atlas and identified receptor- and transporter-specific associations that show the regional relation between the two measures. Together, these data provide unparalleled insight into the serotonin system...

Cognitive Technologies: The Design of Joint Human-Machine Cognitive Systems

OpenAIRE

Woods, David D.

1985-01-01

This article explores the implications of one type of cognitive technology, techniques and concepts to develop joint human-machine cognitive systems, for the application of computational technology by examining the joint cognitive system implicit in a hypothetical computer consultant that outputs some form of problem solution. This analysis reveals some of the problems can occur in cognitive system design-e.g., machine control of the interaction, the danger of a responsibility-authority doubl...

A Mechanical Musculo-Skeletal System for a Human-Shaped Robot Arm

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koichi Koganezawa

2014-06-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a mechanical system with a similar configuration to a human musculo-skeletal system for use in anthropomorphic robots or as artificial limbs for disabled persons. First, a mechanical module called ANLES (Actuator with Non-Linear Elasticity System is introduced. There are two types of ANLES: the linear-type ANLES and rotary-type ANLES. They can be used as a voluntary muscle in a wide-range of musculo-skeletal structures in which at least double actuators work in an antagonistic setup via some elastic elements. Next, an application of the two types of ANLES to a two-degree-of-freedom (DOF manipulator that has a similar configuration to the human elbow joint is shown. The experimental results of the joint stiffness and joint angle control elucidate that the developed mechanism effectively regulates joint stiffness in the same way as a musculo-skeletal system.

Analysis on nuclear power plant control room system design and improvement based on human factor engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao Feng; Liu Yanzi; Sun Yongbin

2014-01-01

The design of nuclear power plant control room system is a process of improvement with the implementation of human factor engineering theory and guidance. The method of implementation human factor engineering principles into the nuclear power plant control room system design and improvement was discussed in this paper. It is recommended that comprehensive address should be done from control room system function, human machine interface, digital procedure, control room layout and environment design based on the human factor engineering theory and experience. The main issues which should be paid more attention during the control room system design and improvement also were addressed in this paper, and then advices and notices for the design and improvement of the nuclear power plant control room system were afforded. (authors)

Decomobil, Deliverable 3.6, Human Centred Design for Safety Critical Transport Systems

OpenAIRE

PAUZIE, Annie; MENDOZA, Lucile; SIMOES, Anabela; BELLET, Thierry; MOREAU, Fabien

2014-01-01

The scientific seminar on 'Human Centred Design for Safety Critical Transport Systems' organized in the framework of DECOMOBIL has been held the 8th of September 2014 in Lisbon, Portugal, hosted by ADI/ISG. The aims of the event were to present the scientific problematic related to the safety of the complex transport systems and the increasing importance of human-­centred design, with a specific focus on Resilience Engineering concept, a new approach to safety management in highly complex sys...

The principle of systemic integration in human rights law

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rachovitsa, Adamantia

International lawyers and courts consider the principle of systemic integration to be a potential answer to difficulties arising from the fragmentation of public international law. This article questions the application of this approach in the context of human rights treaties. It is argued, first,

Development and evaluation of a computer-aided system for analyzing human error in railway operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Dong San; Baek, Dong Hyun; Yoon, Wan Chul

2010-01-01

As human error has been recognized as one of the major contributors to accidents in safety-critical systems, there has been a strong need for techniques that can analyze human error effectively. Although many techniques have been developed so far, much room for improvement remains. As human error analysis is a cognitively demanding and time-consuming task, it is particularly necessary to develop a computerized system supporting this task. This paper presents a computer-aided system for analyzing human error in railway operations, called Computer-Aided System for Human Error Analysis and Reduction (CAS-HEAR). It supports analysts to find multiple levels of error causes and their causal relations by using predefined links between contextual factors and causal factors as well as links between causal factors. In addition, it is based on a complete accident model; hence, it helps analysts to conduct a thorough analysis without missing any important part of human error analysis. A prototype of CAS-HEAR was evaluated by nine field investigators from six railway organizations in Korea. Its overall usefulness in human error analysis was confirmed, although development of its simplified version and some modification of the contextual factors and causal factors are required in order to ensure its practical use.

Human-machine interactions: The human element of expert systems for the nuclear industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, W.R.

1989-01-01

This paper will begin with a brief history of the development of expert systems in the nuclear industry. This discussion will serve to provide the reader with an understanding of how the field of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in the nuclear industry has developed. Next, this paper will discuss the general human factors issues relative to the development and implementation of expert systems for the nuclear industry. It will summarize the relevant research that addresses these issues and identify those areas that need the most effort for success. Since much of the prominent work for the application of expert systems has focused on computerized aids for decisionmaking in emergencies, this paper will draw from this area for its examples. This area tends to highlight the issues because of the safety-critical nature of the application. The same issues, however, are relevant to other applications of expert systems in the nuclear industry as well, even though the consequences of failure may not be as dramatic. (orig./GL)

The Ecology of Human Fear: Survival Optimization and the Nervous System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dean eMobbs

2015-03-01

Full Text Available We propose a Survival Optimization System (SOS to account for the strategies that humans and other animals use to defend against recurring and novel threats. The SOS attempts to merge ecological models that define a repertoire of contextually relevant threat induced survival behaviors with contemporary approaches to human affective science. We first propose that the goal of the nervous system is to reduce surprise and optimize actions by (i predicting the sensory landscape, through simulation of possible encounters with threat, selecting appropriate action by pre-encounter avoidance and (ii prevention strategies in which the organism manufactures safe environments. When a potential threat is encountered the (iii threat orienting system is engaged to determine whether the organism ignores the stimulus or switches into a process of (iv assessment, where the organism monitors the stimulus, weighs the threat value, predicts the actions of the threat, searches for safety, and guides behavioral actions crucial to directed escape. When under imminent attack, (v defensive systems evoke fast reflexive indirect escape behaviors (i.e. fight or flight. This cascade of responses to threat of increasing magnitude are underwritten by an interconnected neural architecture that extends from cortical and hippocampal circuits, to attention, action and threat systems including the amygdala, striatum, and hard-wired defensive systems in the midbrain. The SOS also includes a modulatory feature consisting of cognitive appraisal systems that flexibly guide perception, risk and action. Moreover, personal and vicarious threat encounters fine-tune avoidance behaviors via model-based learning, with higher organisms bridging data to reduce face-to-face encounters with predators. Our theory unifies the divergent field of human affective science, proposing the highly integrated, interconnected nervous systems are optimized to avoid ecological dangers.

Digital evaluation of sitting posture comfort in human-vehicle system under Industry 4.0 framework

Science.gov (United States)

Tao, Qing; Kang, Jinsheng; Sun, Wenlei; Li, Zhaobo; Huo, Xiao

2016-09-01

Most of the previous studies on the vibration ride comfort of the human-vehicle system were focused only on one or two aspects of the investigation. A hybrid approach which integrates all kinds of investigation methods in real environment and virtual environment is described. The real experimental environment includes the WBV(whole body vibration) test, questionnaires for human subjective sensation and motion capture. The virtual experimental environment includes the theoretical calculation on simplified 5-DOF human body vibration model, the vibration simulation and analysis within ADAMS/VibrationTM module, and the digital human biomechanics and occupational health analysis in Jack software. While the real experimental environment provides realistic and accurate test results, it also serves as core and validation for the virtual experimental environment. The virtual experimental environment takes full advantages of current available vibration simulation and digital human modelling software, and makes it possible to evaluate the sitting posture comfort in a human-vehicle system with various human anthropometric parameters. How this digital evaluation system for car seat comfort design is fitted in the Industry 4.0 framework is also proposed.

Coupled human and natural systems approach to wildlife research and conservation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Neil H. Carter

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Conserving wildlife while simultaneously meeting the resource needs of a growing human population is a major sustainability challenge. As such, using combined social and environmental perspectives to understand how people and wildlife are interlinked, together with the mechanisms that may weaken or strengthen those linkages, is of utmost importance. However, such integrated information is lacking. To help fill this information gap, we describe an integrated coupled human and natural systems (CHANS approach for analyzing the patterns, causes, and consequences of changes in wildlife population and habitat, human population and land use, and their interactions. Using this approach, we synthesize research in two sites, Wolong Nature Reserve in China and Chitwan National Park in Nepal, to explicate key relationships between people and two globally endangered wildlife conservation icons, the giant panda and the Bengal tiger. This synthesis reveals that local resident characteristics such as household socioeconomics and demography, as well as community-level attributes such as resource management organizations, affect wildlife and their habitats in complex and even countervailing ways. Human impacts on wildlife and their habitats are in turn modifying the suite of ecosystem services that they provide to local residents in both sites, including access to forest products and cultural values. These interactions are further complicated by human and natural disturbance (e.g., civil wars, earthquakes, feedbacks (including policies, and telecouplings (socioeconomic and environmental interactions over distances that increasingly link the focal systems with other distant systems. We highlight several important implications of using a CHANS approach for wildlife research and conservation that is useful not only in China and Nepal but in many other places around the world facing similar challenges.

A histological ontology of the human cardiovascular system.

Science.gov (United States)

Mazo, Claudia; Salazar, Liliana; Corcho, Oscar; Trujillo, Maria; Alegre, Enrique

2017-10-02

In this paper, we describe a histological ontology of the human cardiovascular system developed in collaboration among histology experts and computer scientists. The histological ontology is developed following an existing methodology using Conceptual Models (CMs) and validated using OOPS!, expert evaluation with CMs, and how accurately the ontology can answer the Competency Questions (CQ). It is publicly available at http://bioportal.bioontology.org/ontologies/HO and https://w3id.org/def/System . The histological ontology is developed to support complex tasks, such as supporting teaching activities, medical practices, and bio-medical research or having natural language interactions.

Functional structure and dynamics of the human nervous system

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrence, J. A.

1981-01-01

The status of an effort to define the directions needed to take in extending pilot models is reported. These models are needed to perform closed-loop (man-in-the-loop) feedback flight control system designs and to develop cockpit display requirements. The approach taken is to develop a hypothetical working model of the human nervous system by reviewing the current literature in neurology and psychology and to develop a computer model of this hypothetical working model.

Wearable sensor system for human localization and motion capture

OpenAIRE

Zihajehzadeh, Shaghayegh

2017-01-01

Recent advances in MEMS wearable inertial/magnetic sensors and mobile computing have fostered a dramatic growth of interest for ambulatory human motion capture (MoCap). Compared to traditional optical MoCap systems such as the optical systems, inertial (i.e. accelerometer and gyroscope) and magnetic sensors do not require external fixtures such as cameras. Hence, they do not have in-the-lab measurement limitations and thus are ideal for ambulatory applications. However, due to the manufacturi...

Disease induction by human microbial pathogens in plant-model systems: potential, problems and prospects.

Science.gov (United States)

van Baarlen, Peter; van Belkum, Alex; Thomma, Bart P H J

2007-02-01

Relatively simple eukaryotic model organisms such as the genetic model weed plant Arabidopsis thaliana possess an innate immune system that shares important similarities with its mammalian counterpart. In fact, some human pathogens infect Arabidopsis and cause overt disease with human symptomology. In such cases, decisive elements of the plant's immune system are likely to be targeted by the same microbial factors that are necessary for causing disease in humans. These similarities can be exploited to identify elementary microbial pathogenicity factors and their corresponding targets in a green host. This circumvents important cost aspects that often frustrate studies in humans or animal models and, in addition, results in facile ethical clearance.

A Novel Parametric Model For The Human Respiratory System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Clara Mihaela IONESCU

2003-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this work is to present some recent results in an ongoing research project between Ghent University and Chess Medical Technology Company Belgium. The overall aim of the project is to provide a fast method for identification of the human respiratory system in order to allow for an instantaneously diagnosis of the patient by the medical staff. A novel parametric model of the human respiratory system as well as the obtained experimental results is presented in this paper. A prototype apparatus developed by the company, based on the forced oscillation technique is used to record experimental data from 4 patients in this paper. Signal processing is based on spectral analysis and is followed by the parametric identification of a non-linear mechanistic model. The parametric model is equivalent to the structure of a simple electrical RLC-circuit, containing a non-linear capacitor. These parameters have a useful and easy-to-interpret physical meaning for the medical staff members.

Human brain as the model of a new computer system. II

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Holtz, K; Langheld, E

1981-12-09

For Pt. I see IBID., Vol. 29, No. 22, P. 13 (1981). The authors describe the self-generating system of connections of a self-teaching no-program associative computer. The self-generating systems of connections are regarded as simulation models of the human brain and compared with the brain structure. The system hardware comprises microprocessor, PROM, memory, VDU, keyboard unit.