The effect of information integration on team communication in a simulated submarine control room task.

Submarine control rooms are characterised by dedicated individual roles for information types (e.g. Sonar operator processes sound energy), with individuals verbally reporting the information that they receive to other team members to help resolve uncertainty in the operational environment (low information integration).

Determinants of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure among Wisconsin residents.

Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) include thousands of manufactured compounds with growing public health concerns due to their potential for widespread human exposure and adverse health outcomes. While PFAS contamination remains a significant concern, especially from ingestion of contaminated food and water, determinants of the variability in PFAS exposure among regional and statewide populations in the United States remains unclear.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to leverage The Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW), the only statewide representative cohort in the US, to assess and characterize the variability of PFAS exposure in a general population.

When tomorrow comes: A prospective risk assessment of a future artificial general intelligence-based uncrewed combat aerial vehicle system.

There are concerns that Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) could pose an existential threat to humanity; however, as AGI does not yet exist it is difficult to prospectively identify risks and develop requisite controls. We applied the Work Domain Analysis Broken Nodes (WDA-BN) and Event Analysis of Systemic Teamwork-Broken Links (EAST-BL) methods to identify potential risks in a future 'envisioned world' AGI-based uncrewed combat aerial vehicle system. The findings suggest five main categories of risk in this context: sub-optimal performance risks, goal alignment risks, super-intelligence risks, over-control risks, and enfeeblement risks.

Forecasting emergent risks in advanced AI systems: an analysis of a future road transport management system.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being increasingly implemented within road transport systems worldwide. Next generation of AI, Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) is imminent, and is anticipated to be more powerful than current AI. AGI systems will have a broad range of abilities and be able to perform multiple cognitive tasks akin to humans that will likely produce many expected benefits, but also potential risks.

Identifying interaction types and functionality for automated vehicle virtual assistants: An exploratory study using speech acts cluster analysis.

Onboard virtual assistants with the ability to converse with users are gaining favour in supporting effective human-machine interaction to meet safe standards of operation in automated vehicles (AVs). Previous studies have highlighted the need to communicate situation information to effectively support the transfer of control and responsibility of the driving task. This study explores 'interaction types' used for this complex human-machine transaction, by analysing how situation information is conveyed and reciprocated during a transfer of control scenario.

Fluoride removal in batch and column systems using bonechar produced in a top-lit updraft drum gasifier and furnace.

Hundreds of millions of people are exposed to excessive levels of fluoride in drinking water, predominately in low-resource communities. Activated alumina is recognized as the best available technology for fluoride removal from drinking water by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, but it has substantial economic and environmental costs. Bonechar is a more environmentally friendly and potentially lower cost alternative adsorbent.

Biomonitoring of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW) 2014-2016 and comparison with the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a growing class of manufactured chemical compounds found in a variety of consumer products. PFAS are ubiquitous in the environment and were found in many humans sampled in the United States (U.S.

Testing the reliability of accident analysis methods: a comparison of AcciMap, STAMP-CAST and AcciNet.

Accident analysis methods are used to model the multifactorial cause of adverse incidents. Methods such as AcciMap, STAMP-CAST and recently AcciNet, are systemic approaches that support the identification of safety interventions across sociotechnical system levels. Despite their growing popularity, little is known about how reliable systems-based methods are when used to describe, model and classify contributory factors and relationships.

Managing the risks associated with technological disruption in the road transport system: a control structure modelling approach.

Road transport is experiencing disruptive change from new first-of-a-kind technologies. While such technologies offer safety and operational benefits, they also pose new risks. It is critical to proactively identify risks during the design, development and testing of new technologies.

Exploring improvisations in road safety in a low-income setting.

Road collision types repeat themselves, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where countermeasures are often improvised and implemented with little planning. At the Shahbag intersection in Dhaka, Bangladesh, speed bumps were quickly constructed at the exit of the intersection as an improvised road safety measure following the occurrence of a fatal collision, which eventually contributed to another collision between a truck and a car. The events influencing the improvisation decision, and that action's consequences, have been analysed using the Impromap methodology, a variation of the Accimap approach that focusses specifically on improvisation.

A new approach for Training Needs Analysis: A case study using an Automated Vehicle.

Considerable resources are invested each year into training to ensure trainees have the required competencies to safely and effectively perform their tasks/jobs. As such, it is important to develop effective training programmes which target those required competencies. One method that can be used at the start of the training lifecycle to establish the tasks and competencies that are required for a task/job and is considered an important activity to perform when developing a training programme is a Training Needs Analysis (TNA).

Biomonitoring of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin (SHOW) 2014-2016 and comparison with the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a growing class of manufactured chemical compounds found in a variety of consumer products. PFAS have become ubiquitous in the environment and were found in many humans sampled in the United States (U.S.

Unraveling the Steric Link to Copper Precursor Decomposition: A Multi-Faceted Study for the Printing of Flexible Electronics.

The field of printed electronics strives for lower processing temperatures to move toward flexible substrates that have vast potential: from wearable medical devices to animal tagging. Typically, ink formulations are optimized using mass screening and elimination of failures; as such, there are no comprehensive studies on the fundamental chemistry at play. Herein, findings which describe the steric link to decomposition profile: combining density functional theory, crystallography, thermal decomposition, mass spectrometry, and inkjet printing, are reported.

Resilience engineering on the road: Using operator event sequence diagrams and system failure analysis to enhance cyclist and vehicle interactions.

Future visions of transport systems include both a drive towards automated vehicles and the need for sustainable, active, modes of travel. The combination of these requirements needs careful consideration to ensure the integration of automated vehicles does not compromise vulnerable road users. Transport networks need to be resilient to automation integration, which requires foresight of possible challenges in their interaction with other road users.

Towards a unified model of accident causation: refining and validating the systems thinking safety tenets.

The systems thinking tenets were developed based on a synthesis of contemporary accident causation theory, models and approaches and encapsulate 15 features of complex systems that interact to create both safety and adverse events. Whilst initial testing provided supportive evidence, the tenets have not yet been subject to formal validation. This article presents the findings from a three-round Delphi study undertaken to refine and validate the tenets and assess their suitability for inclusion in a unified model of accident causation.

Predicting and mitigating failures on the flight deck: an aircraft engine bird strike scenario.

Engine damage as a consequence of foreign object debris (FOD) during flight is frequently caused by birds. One approach to minimising disruption caused by this damage is to provide flight crew with accurate information relating to the continuing operational status of the aircraft's engines. Before designing such avionic systems however, understanding of current procedures is needed.

How does eco-driving make us feel? Considering the psychological effects of eco-driving.

Despite both the environmental and financial benefits of eco-driving being well known, the psychological impact of engaging in eco-driving behaviours has received less attention within the literature. It was anticipated that being asked to engage in eco-driving behaviours not only has an impact on vehicle fuel usage, but also on the driver, both in terms of their overall mood and willingness to re-engage with the task at a later time. Results from a simulated driving study suggest that although eco-driving was beneficial in reducing fuel consumption, being asked to eco-drive had a negative effect on overall journey time and mood.

Thinking aloud on the road: Thematic differences in the experiences of drivers, cyclists, and motorcyclists.

This study takes a qualitative approach to exploring the experiences (and differences therein) of individuals using either their car, bicycle, or motorcycle to navigate a ∼10.5 km urban route in a provincial UK city, with the aim of contributing to our understanding of the needs and requirements of different road users. Forty-six individuals provided concurrent verbal reports, using the 'think aloud' method, whilst using their vehicle to navigate the test route, the transcripts of which were subjected to a theory-agnostic, inductive, thematic analysis.

State of science: models and methods for understanding and enhancing teams and teamwork in complex sociotechnical systems.

This state of the science review brings together the disparate literature of effective strategies for enhancing and accelerating team performance. The review evaluates and synthesises models and proposes recommended avenues for future research. The two major models of the Input-Mediator-Output-Input (IMOI) framework and the Big Five dimensions of teamwork were reviewed and both will need significant development for application to future teams comprising non-human agents.

Taking a mixed-methods approach to collision investigation: AcciMap, STAMP-CAST and PCM.

Recently, ergonomics and safety researchers have turned their attention towards applying combinations of sociotechnical methods rather than using single methods in isolation. In the current research, a mixed-method approach combining two systems-based methods, Accimaps and the Systems Theoretic Accident Model and Process - Causal Analysis using Systems Theory (STAMP-CAST), and one cognitive approach, the Perceptual Cycle Model (PCM), were employed in analysing a rail-level crossing incident in Bangladesh. Each method was applied individually to investigate the collision, and interventions were proposed corresponding to incident events at different risk management framework levels.

To utilize automation or not to utilize automation, that is the question: An evaluation of how drills and procedures impact optronics mast usage from a sociotechnical systems perspective.

The delegation of tasks to a non-human agent in a sociotechnical system can extend human capabilities and performance. Effective performance is, however, reliant on a successful relationship between human operators and automation. Optronics is a partially automated system which has replaced periscope on board some modern submarine platforms, operating modes permit the completion of tasks either manually or utilizing automation.

Testing the reliability and validity of risk assessment methods in Human Factors and Ergonomics.

There is growing interest in the use of systems-based risk assessment methods in Human Factors and Ergonomics (HFE). The purpose of this study was to test the intra-rater reliability and criterion-referenced concurrent validity of three systems-based risk assessment approaches: (i) the Systems-Theoretic Process Analysis (STPA) method; (ii) the Event Analysis of Systemic Teamwork Broken Links (EAST-BL) method; and, (iii) the Network Hazard Analysis and Risk Management System (Net-HARMS) method. Reliability and validity measures were obtained using the Signal Detection Theory (SDT) paradigm.