scholarly journals Learning Human Factors/Ergonomics (HFE) in Architectural Education: A Study of Studio Approach in Bangladesh

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-41
Author(s):  
Sudipti Biswas ◽  
Gourab Kundu ◽  
Chowdhury Ali Imam
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
Human Factors ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Research Participant ◽  
Architectural Education ◽  
Thought Process ◽  
Space Design ◽  
Space Requirements

All the human activities take place in the built environment and therefore human factors/ergonomics (HFE) is an essential design consideration for the built environment designing process. Surprisingly, there have been limited studies on integrating HFE in the design process as well as in the education of architecture. Teaching HFE in architecture is different from teaching HFE in the disciplines that focuses on precise ergonomic application. Architectural education primarily deals with accommodating human activities in the built environment; and therefore, teaching HFE focuses on anthropometry, space standards, and an in-depth understanding of space requirements for relevant human activities. In architectural education, HFE can be taught as theory courses and/or in the design studio courses. This article focuses on the studio approach with an overview of several studio courses and a meticulous study of a studio course that teaches HFE principles. The study follows desktop research, participant observation, and a questionnaire survey. It is observed that the studio approach provides an opportunity for a deeper understanding of the HFE principles and their application in space design. Specifically, the practice of learning within the studio setup, group work and peer critique, assessment and feedback with critique sessions before the evaluation, etc. have a profound impact on the students to internalizeHFE in their thought process. A survey among the students also indicates the effectiveness of the studio approach for learning HFE. 

scholarly journals A Clear Past and a Murky Future: Life in the Anthropocene on the Pampana River, Sierra Leone

Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Marcantonio ◽  
Agustin Fuentes
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Change ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Complex Adaptive Systems ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Adaptive Systems ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Earth System ◽  
Sierra Leonean ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Complex Adaptive

The impacts of human activities on ecosystems are significantly increasing the rate of environmental change in the earth system, reshaping the global landscape. The rapid rate of environmental change is disrupting the ability of millions of people around the globe to live their everyday lives and maintain their human niche. Evidence suggests that we have entered (or created) a new epoch, the Anthropocene, which is defined as the period in which humans and human activities are the primary drivers of planetary change. The Anthropocene denotes a global shift, but it is the collective of local processes. This is our frame for investigating local accounts of human-caused disruptive environmental change in the Pampana River in Tonkolili District, Northern Province, Sierra Leone. Since the end of the Sierra Leonean civil war in 2002, the country has experienced a rapid increase in extractive industries, namely mining. We explored the effects of this development by working with communities along the Pampana River in Tonkolili, with a specific focus given to engaging local fishermen through ethnographic interviews (N = 21 fishermen and 33 non-fishermen), focus group discussions (N = 21 fishermen), and participant observation. We deployed theoretical and methodological frameworks from human niche construction theory, complex adaptive systems, and ethnography to track disruptive environmental change in and on the Pampana from upstream activities and the concomitant shifts in the local human niche. We highlight the value of integrating ethnographic methods with human evolutionary theory, produce important insights about local human coping processes with disruptive environmental change, and help to further account for and understand the ongoing global process of human modification of the earth system in the Anthropocene.

Human Factors in Architecture: A View from the Field

1982 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-203
Author(s):  
James A. Wise
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
Human Factors ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Real World ◽  
Architectural Design ◽  
Recent Case ◽  
Panel Session ◽  
Real World Problems

This is a panel session focused on the applications of Human Factors to real world problems in architectural design. Five representatives from various design & research professions will present recent case studies of theirs, and examine the contribution that Human Factors made to these projects. The diversity of their examples shows the usefulness and importance on integrating concerns for the human user into plans for the built environment.

Language as Symbol System: Islam, Javanese Muslem and Cultural Diplomacy

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mochammad Arief Wicaksono ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Context ◽  
Cultural Diplomacy ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Research Participant ◽  
Symbol System ◽  
Symbolic System ◽  
The Past ◽  
Nahdlatul Ulama ◽  
Great Tradition ◽  
Linguistic Aspect

Islamic diaspora throughout the world has its own characteristics depending on cultural context in each region. Observing the characteristics of the entry process and the rise of Islam in Java in the past, Indonesia can be viewed significantly through a linguistic perspective. By focusing on the narratives of how Islam was constructed in Java by kiai, we will be able to understand that the pattern of the entry process and the rise of Islam in Java emerged through“language diplomacy.” There are various symbols which later became the symbol system in Islamic languages that were contextualized to Javanese language and knowledge systems. In other words, I see that language in this context is a symbol system. These symbols are a strategy of how Islam was “planted” and developed in Java. I will compare the symbol system of the language in the Quran as the Great Tradition of Islam with a symbol system on the narratives that a kiai expressed in Javanese society as the Little Tradition. By taking some narratives that the kiai gave to the Javanese Moslems in East Java region, this paper argues that the linguistic aspect in some narratives and Quran recitation which has the symbolic system of the language have an important role in planting and developing Islam in Java. This paper is based on ethnographic research-participant observation among Nahdlatul Ulama Muslim society in East Java, Indonesia and reviews Islamic narratives in society as an important unit of analysis.

Human Factors Analysis of Infection Prevention Practices in the Anesthesia Work Environment

2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 639-642
Author(s):  
Ella Franklin ◽  
Lucy Stein
Keyword(s):  
Human Factors ◽  
Work Environment ◽  
Operating Room ◽  
Physical Environment ◽  
Infection Prevention ◽  
Pathogen Transmission ◽  
Organizational Influences ◽  
Space Design ◽  
Factors Analysis ◽  
Emerging Themes

The department of anesthesia for a Washington, D.C. hospital engaged the MedStar National Center for Human Factors in Healthcare to identify opportunities for improving the anesthesia work environment with aims to mitigate the risk of pathogen transmission during operating room procedures. The human factors approach included operating room visits for observation and thematic analysis to identify emerging themes. Process inconsistencies in hand hygiene and cleaning practices were indicative of system vulnerabilities, including organizational influences and the design of the physical environment. Work-space design recommendations as well as strategies to improve infection control processes and safety culture are presented.

scholarly journals Architectural Education as Interface between Culture and Built Environment

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 34-51
Author(s):  
Yasira Naeem Pasha ◽  
Shahla Adnan
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
External Factors ◽  
Architectural Education ◽  
External Influences ◽  
New Form ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Existing Form ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Considerable Period

The main focus of this paper is the discussion about non-coherent appearance of built environment in Pakistan that does not reflect the culture of society, but external influences more than natives. Being a part of a larger territory in yester centuries, the country is influenced heavily by external factors and deliberated efforts for “modernization” since after a decade of independence in 1947. Many parts of the subcontinent including India and Pakistan are influenced by Modernist trends in architecture that are evident in the built environment. The probability of inclusion of many diversified attributes of culture over a considerable period of time has been increased. It is therefore important to discuss the most relevant possibilities through which these influences were adopted and then were translated in the built environment. These influences are assumed to be translated through the taught content in the architectural education in the country. The paper also discusses the relationship of three entities; Culture, Built Environment and Architectural Education. It takes into account some examples of residences from Pakistan to analyze the interfacing capacity of culture and built environment. It adopts the methodology of qualitative study through literature and evidences from some cities of Pakistan to seek the validity of argument. It also relates the role of curriculum driven architectural education in the process of built environment. The findings reveal that the existing form of culture has grasped external influences in a subtle manner adopting a new form which appears as non-coherent to the generally perceived one. The role of architectural education in this regard holds a pivotal position in relation to the built environment. The findings established also connote architectural education as the interfacing factor of culture and built environment.

scholarly journals RITUAL MAGI DALAM BUDAYA MASYARAKAT MUSLIM BANTEN

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 26-52
Author(s):  
Humaeni Ayatullah
Keyword(s):  
Life Style ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Research Participant ◽  
Functional Approach ◽  
Important Condition ◽  
Anthropological Perspective ◽  
Muslim Society ◽  
Library Research ◽  
Depth Interview

This article discusses various magical rituals and their meaningsfor Muslim society of Banten. How the meanings and functions of rituals; what kinds of magical rituals used and practiced by Muslim society of Banten become two main focuses of this article; besides, it also tries to analyze how Muslim society of Banten understand the various magical rituals. This article is the result of a field research using ethnographical method based on anthropological perspective. To analyze the data, the researcher uses structural-functional approach. Library research, participant-observation, and depth-interview are the methods used to collectthe data. Performing various magical rituals for the practicians of magic in Banten is a very important action that must be conducted by the magicians or someone who learns magical sciences. Magical ritual becomes an important condition for the successfulness of magic. If they do not this, there is a belief that they will fail in obtaining the magical effects. Magical ritual should be also conducted in certain places and certain time withvarious magical formula and magical actions under the supervision of magicians. The use of these magical rituals becomes a portrait of the pragmatical life style of Bantenese society who still believes in magical powers.

scholarly journals The use of literacy approach to teach writing of descriptive text at the seventh grade students of SMPN 1 Ngebel

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 15
Author(s):  
Tanti Yuliani
Keyword(s):  
Junior High School ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Research Participant ◽  
Teaching Writing ◽  
Seventh Grade ◽  
Problems And Solutions ◽  
Teaching Learning

The main purpose of teaching learning English in Junior High School to develop the students’ competence and knowledge in four language skills, Speaking, Reading, Listening and Writing. One of the difficult skills is writing. In this research are describe how are the uses, problems, and solutions of the use of Literacy Approach to Teach Writing of Descriptive Text At The Seventh Grade Students of SMPN 1 Ngebel.  Literacy approach is one of the approaches used to teach writing especially in descriptive text because Literacy approach is the ability to read and write. There are some step of teaching writing, they are planning, composing, and revising. This research uses descriptive qualitative research. Participant/Informant of the research are the English teacher and the seventh grade students of SMPN I Ngebel Ponorogo. This research uses purposive sampling technique. The techniques which are used to collect the data are observation, interview, and documentation. Techniques of the data analysis are data reduction, data display and drawing conclusions. The result of the analyzing data indicates that the uses of literacy approach in teaching writing of descriptive text are divided into two steps. The first is preparation steps and the second is learning process. The learning process uses literacy approach includes introduce and giving explanation the descriptive text, give the modal of the descriptive text and have text to analyze, make group work to discussion the students’ ideas, give the chance to make students’ own product and also checking the students’ understanding about the material. Besides, the problem of the use literacy approach in writing of descriptive text are sometimes the students are noisy in the classroom and their vocabulary are still low. The students feel afraid to deliver their opinion and ideas in teaching and learning process. The solution of the use literacy approach in writing of descriptive are the students must make group work of the students’ worksheet, Teacher controls the students and gives scores for students.

scholarly journals Response of a Coastal Groundwater System to Natural and Anthropogenic Factors: Case Study on East Coast of Laizhou Bay, China

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (14) ◽  
pp. 5204
Author(s):  
Ya Sun ◽  
Shiguo Xu ◽  
Qin Wang ◽  
Suduan Hu ◽  
Guoshuai Qin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Factors ◽  
Groundwater Level ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Research Area ◽  
Laizhou Bay ◽  
Natural Background ◽  
Groundwater System ◽  
Irrigated Area ◽  
Groundwater Environment ◽  
Groundwater Samples

With a shifting climate pattern and enhancement of human activities, coastal areas are exposed to threats of groundwater environmental issues. This work takes the eastern coast of Laizhou Bay as a research area to study the response of a coastal groundwater system to natural and human impacts with a combination of statistical, hydrogeochemical, and fuzzy classification methods. First, the groundwater level dynamics from 1980 to 2017 were analyzed. The average annual groundwater level dropped 13.16 m with a descent rate of 0.379 m/a. The main external environmental factors that affected the groundwater level were extracted, including natural factors (rainfall and temperature), as well as human activities (irrigated area, water-saving irrigated area, sown area of high-water-consumption crops, etc.). Back-propagation artificial neural network was used to model the response of groundwater level to the above driving factors, and sensitivity analysis was conducted to measure the extent of impact of these factors on groundwater level. The results verified that human factors including irrigated area and water-saving irrigated area were the most important influencing factors on groundwater level dynamics, followed by annual precipitation. Further, groundwater samples were collected over the study area to analyze the groundwater hydrogeochemical signatures. With the hydrochemical diagrams and ion ratios, the formation of groundwater, the sources of groundwater components, and the main hydrogeochemical processes controlling the groundwater evolution were discussed to understand the natural background of groundwater environment. The fuzzy C-means clustering method was adopted to classify the groundwater samples into four clusters based on their hydrochemical characteristics to reveal the spatial variation of groundwater quality in the research area. Each cluster was spatially continuous, and there were great differences in groundwater hydrochemical and pollution characteristics between different clusters. The natural and human factors resulted in this difference were discussed based on the natural background of the groundwater environment, and the types and intensity of human activity.

scholarly journals Nursing agents' perceptions on their work in mental health with psychotic patients in a psychosocial community center

2009 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 368-373 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debora Isane Ratner Kirschbaum
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Psychosocial Rehabilitation ◽  
Research Participant ◽  
Community Center ◽  
Moral Treatment ◽  
The Third ◽  
Qualitative Descriptive

This study aimed to analyze nursing workers' concepts on the purpose, object and tools used to provide care to psychotic patients in a Psychosocial Community Center - III, Brazil. This qualitative, descriptive and exploratory study used document research, participant observation and interviews. Results reveal diverse concepts regarding the purposes and characteristics of the object, linked to the knowledge each concept is based on. We observed that the first is inspired on Care, Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Psychoanalysis; the second re-signifies principles of Rehabilitation and recovers aspects of moral treatment, and the third translates the idea of professional core and field. We conclude that there is a need for investments in the production of a conceptual corpus and practices that permit changing workers' position on the production of services at CAPS.

scholarly journals Spatiotemporal Variation of Vegetation Coverage and Its Response to Climate Factors and Human Activities in Arid and Semi-Arid Areas: Case Study of the Otindag Sandy Land in China

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 5214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hao Wang ◽  
Fei Yao ◽  
Huasheng Zhu ◽  
Yuanyuan Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Human Factors ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Vegetation Dynamics ◽  
Spatiotemporal Variation ◽  
Vegetation Coverage ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Climate Factors ◽  
Sandy Land ◽  
Otindag Sandy Land ◽  
Semi Arid

Vegetation coverage is a key variable in terrestrial ecosystem monitoring and climate change research and is closely related to soil erosion and land desertification. In this article, we aimed to resolve two key scientific issues: (1) quantifying the spatial-temporal vegetation dynamics in the Otindag Sandy Land (OSL); and (2) identifying the relative importance of climate factors and human activities in impacting vegetation dynamics. Based on correlation analysis, simple regression analysis, and the partial derivative formula method, we examined the spatiotemporal variation of vegetation coverage in the OSL, belonging to the arid and semiarid region of northern China, and their interaction with climate-human factors. The results showed that the vegetation coverage of the area showed a downward trend with a rate of −0.0006/a during 2001–2017, and gradually decreased from east to west. Precipitation was the main climate factor controlling the overall distribution pattern of vegetation coverage, while the human factors had a more severe impact on the vegetation coverage than the climate factors in such a short period, and the overall impact was negative. Among the human factors, population pressure, urbanization, industrialization, pastoral production activities, and residents’ lifestyles had a negative impact. However, ecological restoration polices alleviated the contradiction between human development and vegetation deterioration. The results of this article provide a scientific basis for restoring grassland systems in arid and semi-arid areas

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