Sitting or standing for computer work - Does a negative-tilt keyboard tray make a difference?

BACKGROUND Research shows the feasibility of human activity recognition using Wearable accelerometer devices. Different studies have used varying number and placement for data collection using the sensors. OBJECTIVE To compare accuracy performance between multiple and variable placement of accelerometer devices in categorizing the type of physical activity and corresponding energy expenditure in older adults. METHODS Participants (n=93, 72.2±7.1 yrs) completed a total of 32 activities of daily life in a laboratory setting. Activities were classified as sedentary vs. non-sedentary, locomotion vs. non-locomotion, and lifestyle vs. non-lifestyle activities (e.g. leisure walk vs. computer work). A portable metabolic unit was worn during each activity to measure metabolic equivalents (METs). Accelerometers were placed on five different body positions: wrist, hip, ankle, upper arm, and thigh. Accelerometer data from each body position and combinations of positions were used in developing Random Forest models to assess activity category recognition accuracy and MET estimation. RESULTS Model performance for both MET estimation and activity category recognition strengthened with additional accelerometer devices. However, a single accelerometer on the ankle, upper arm, hip, thigh, or wrist had only a 0.03 to 0.09 MET increase in prediction error as compared to wearing all five devices. Balanced accuracy showed similar trends with slight decreases in balanced accuracy for detection of locomotion (0-0.01 METs), sedentary (0.13-0.05 METs) and lifestyle activities (0.08-0.04 METs) compared to all five placements. The accuracy of recognizing activity categories increased with additional placements (0.15-0.29). Notably, the hip was the best single body position for MET estimation and activity category recognition. CONCLUSIONS Additional accelerometer devices only slightly enhance activity recognition accuracy and MET estimation in older adults. However, given the extra burden of wearing additional devices, single accelerometers with appropriate placement appear to be sufficient for estimating energy expenditure and activity category recognition in older adults.

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Coffee intake and development of pain during computer work

BMC Research Notes ◽

10.1186/1756-0500-5-480 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Vegard Strøm ◽

Cecilie Røe ◽

Stein Knardahl

Keyword(s):

Computer Work ◽

Coffee Intake

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Alternative Workstations: Magic Pills for Office Worker Health?

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting ◽

10.1177/1541931213601595 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 61 (1) ◽

pp. 460-464 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jia-Hua Lin ◽

Carisa Harris-Adamson ◽

Stephen Bao ◽

David Rempel ◽

Lora Cavuoto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Computer Work ◽

Musculoskeletal Symptoms ◽

Office Worker ◽

Audience Participation ◽

Research Needs ◽

Health Concerns ◽

Research And Practice ◽

Workplace Interventions ◽

Worker Health

Routine office or computer work are of public health concerns due to their sedentary nature. Sit- stand desks may be prescribed for employees based on medical or ergonomic factors. Sit-stand or active workstations, either assigned to individual workers or made available in “unassigned” office areas are also making inroads into the workplace with the goal of reducing sedentary work, varying (alternating) work postures, improving productivity, or accommodating workers with musculoskeletal symptoms. This diverse panel will present recent research and practice findings and invite audience participation in a discussion of this trending topic. Studies examining the effects of sit-stand or active workstations on physiological and cardiovascular outcomes will be reported. The effects on movement patterns, performance and productivity will also be examined. Real workplace interventions and examples of practices will be presented. The goal is to provide a forum to share our understanding about the benefits and limitations of various office workstation designs and discuss research needs.

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Political Science as Training for the Information Age

Political Science Teacher ◽

10.1017/s089608280000115x ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 3 (4) ◽

pp. 1-5

Author(s):

Christopher Daniel

Keyword(s):

Political Science ◽

Information Age ◽

Computer Work ◽

Mixed Emotions ◽

Science Courses ◽

Work Style ◽

Work Session ◽

The Face ◽

Communications Skills ◽

Central Purpose

Computers inspire mixed emotions among political scientists. Love, hate, fascination, ennui, and frustration sometimes occur during the course of a single computer work session. Individuals come to terms with the beast in varying ways; obviously personal work style and level of computer dependency are each scholar's own business. However, expanded use of information technology in the disciplinary curriculum is a common concern deserving discussion. Like earlier debates between behavioralists and traditionalists, the current discussion raises questions about the discipline's central purpose. This essay reviews proposals to “computerize” political science curricula in light of contemporary theories about information and managerial work.Historically, political scientists' computer involvement has been limited, but it is now intensifying in response to educational, technological, and environmental influences. Political scientists have used computers as teaching tools since at least the early 1970s, when the APSA “SETUPs” began appearing, but as novelty items, diversions reflecting the devotion of idiosyncratic individuals. This publication has disseminated many such “experiments,” as have Social Science Computer Review and the National Collegiate Software Clearinghouse. Even as desktop machines began proliferating in the early 1980s, their use in the classroom was considered to be optional, something peripheral to the discipline which one could attempt if one had the inclination.This laissez-faire ambience may be ending in the face of societal transformations. In the classroom political scientists foster intellectual skills broadly useful to former students. A student may be an activist or an avid pre-lawyer, but his or her future professional development will be built on analytical, and communications skills honed in political science courses. This linkage between political science classrooms and the professional world could weaken if we do not adopt to societal change.

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The role of muscle activity and mental load in the development of pain and degenerative processes at the muscle cell level during computer work

European Journal of Applied Physiology ◽

10.1007/s004210000285 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 83 (2-3) ◽

pp. 99-105 ◽

Cited By ~ 136

Author(s):

Gisela Sjøgaard ◽

Ulf Lundberg ◽

Roland Kadefors

Keyword(s):

Muscle Cell ◽

Muscle Activity ◽

Computer Work ◽

Cell Level ◽

Mental Load ◽

Degenerative Processes

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The effects on health of qualified computer work: Implications of the use of computer-aided design systems

International Journal of Human Factors in Manufacturing ◽

10.1002/hfm.4530040403 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

pp. 361-373 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Svante Hovmark ◽

Margareta Norell

Keyword(s):

Computer Aided Design ◽

Computer Work ◽

Computer Aided ◽

Design Systems ◽

Aided Design

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OPTIMIZING OPERATION OF WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANTS BY OFFLINE AND ONLINE COMPUTER SIMULATION

Water Science & Technology ◽

10.2166/wst.1994.0040 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 30 (2) ◽

pp. 165-174 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Ralf Otterpohl ◽

Thomas Rolfs ◽

Jörg Londong

Keyword(s):

Computer Simulation ◽

Wastewater Treatment ◽

Activated Sludge ◽

Nitrogen Removal ◽

Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽

Treatment Plant ◽

Historical Analysis ◽

Computer Work ◽

Biological Phosphorus Removal ◽

Wide Range

Computer simulation of activated sludge plant for nitrogen removal has become a reliable tool to predict the behaviour of the plant Models including biological phosphorus removal still require some practical experience but they should be available soon. This will offer an even wider range than today's work with nitrogen removal. One major benefit of computer simulation of wastewater treatment plants (WTP) is the optimization of operation. This can be done offline if hydrographs of a plant are collected and computer work is done with “historical” analysis. With online simulation the system is fed with hydrographs up to the actual time. Prognosis can be done from the moment of the computer work based on usual hydrographs. The work of the authors shows how accuratly a treatment plant can be described, when many parameters are measured and available as hydrographs. A very careful description of all details of the special plant is essential, requiring a flexible simulation tool. Based on the accurate simulation a wide range of operational decisions can be evaluated. It was possible to demonstrate that the overall efficiency in nitrogen removal and energy consumption of ml activated sludge plant can be improved.

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How is Satiety Affected When Consuming Food While Working on A Computer?

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu11071545 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 1545 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Lily Ding ◽

Nazimah Hamid ◽

Daniel Shepherd ◽

Kevin Kantono

Keyword(s):

Energy Intake ◽

Eating Behavior ◽

Normal Weight ◽

Restrained Eating ◽

Computer Work ◽

Meal Intake ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Before And After ◽

And Control ◽

The Impact

More people working at offices are choosing to eat meals at their desks, making “desktop dining” an increasingly common phenomenon. Previous studies have reported that environmental distractors, such as television viewing, can influence meal intake and subsequent snack intake. However, the impact of stressful mental tasks on eating behavior has received relatively less attention, focusing only on subsequent meal intake or concurrent snack intake. This study sets out to determine whether eating while working influenced current meal energy intake. This research also examined the relationship between dietary restraint status and energy intake. A crossover experimental design was employed requiring participants (14 males and 29 females) to eat pizza quietly and at rest (control), and while working on a computer (work). Measurements included BMI, energy intake, state anxiety, restrained eating behavior, stress levels (pre- and post-eating), and appetite (before and after both work and control sessions). The findings showed that consuming food while working on a computer significantly increased stress but had no influence on energy intake compared to the control condition. However, post-eating hunger levels were significantly higher in the work condition compared to the control condition. As expected, satiety levels decreased significantly from pre- to post-eating for both work and control conditions. In addition, no significant relationship was observed between restrained eating behavior and energy intake in both work and control conditions. These results suggest that eating while working affected satiety of normal weight participants, as indicated by the significant difference in post-meal satiety levels between work and control conditions.

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