Taming Hal

Machines dominate our lives, from alarm clocks that wake us up in the morning to radios that lull us to sleep. Most of our interactions with automated machines and computers are problem-free, but more often than we would like, they can be irritating and confusing. This is frequently harmless, such as a VCR recording the wrong show, but when it involves a critical system like an autopilot or medical device it can be a matter of life or death. Taming HAL seeks to explain these miscommunications between humans and machines by exploring user interfaces of everyday devices. Degani examines thirty different systems for human use, including watches, consumer electronic products, Internet applications, cars, medical equipment, navigation systems onboard cruise ships, and autopilots of commercial aircraft. Readers will discover why interfaces between people and machines all too often do not work and what needs to be done to avoid potential tragedies.

AMAZON BEST BOOKS OF 2019 PICK FORTUNE WRITERS AND EDITORS' RECOMMENDED BOOKS OF 2019 PICK "User Friendly is a tour de force, an engrossing fusion of scholarly research, professional experience and revelations from intrepid firsthand reporting." —EDWARD TENNER, The New York Times Book Review In User Friendly, Cliff Kuang and Robert Fabricant reveal the untold story of a paradigm that quietly rules our modern lives: the assumption that machines should anticipate what we need. Spanning over a century of sweeping changes, from women’s rights to the Great Depression to World War II to the rise of the digital era, this book unpacks the ways in which the world has been—and continues to be—remade according to the principles of the once-obscure discipline of user-experience design. In this essential text, Kuang and Fabricant map the hidden rules of the designed world and shed light on how those rules have caused our world to change—an underappreciated but essential history that’s pieced together for the first time. Combining the expertise and insight of a leading journalist and a pioneering designer, User Friendly provides a definitive, thoughtful, and practical perspective on a topic that has rapidly gone from arcane to urgent to inescapable. In User Friendly, Kuang and Fabricant tell the whole story for the first time—and you’ll never interact with technology the same way again.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1843.

We've all been there. Seduced by the sleek designs and smart capabilities of the newest gadgets, we end up stumped by their complicated set-up instructions and exasperating error messages. In this fascinating history, Joseph J. Corn maps two centuries of consumer frustration and struggle with personal technologies. Aggravation with the new machines people adopt and live with is as old as the industrial revolution. Clocks, sewing machines, cameras, lawn mowers, bicycles, electric lights, cars, and computers: all can empower and exhilarate, but they can also exact a form of servitude. Adopters puzzle over which type and model to buy and then how to operate the device, diagnose its troubles, and meet its insatiable appetite for accessories, replacement parts, or upgrades. It intrigues Corn that we put up with the frustrations our technology thrusts upon us, battling with the unfamiliar and climbing the steep learning curves. It is this ongoing struggle, more than the uses to which we ultimately put our machines, that animates this quizzical study. Having extensively researched owner's manuals, computer user-group newsletters, and how-to literature, Corn brings a fresh, consumer-oriented approach to the history of technology. User Unfriendly will be valuable to historians of technology, students of American culture, and anyone interested in our modern dependency on machines and gadgets.

In Psychology and Human Performance in Space Programs: Research at the Frontier, leading space researchers from multiple fields of expertise summarize the recent growth of knowledge, the resulting tools and techniques, and the research still needed to protect humans in space. Making use of cutting-edge research and development related to composing, training, and supporting astronaut crews who will live and work together for future missions to Mars, this book examines the current practices of leaders in the field both at NASA and in academia. Presenting astronaut data alongside data from analogous extreme environments such as mission simulation habitats, this volume helpfully contrasts and compares to examine the lessons that can be learned from other approaches. Using the context of current International Space Station missions, the book discusses the influence of human factors and physiological health on individual and team job performance and social cohesion. With an overview of the physical and psychological hazards of space, and the challenges posed by conducting space-related applied psychology research, this volume uses the context of a long-duration Mars mission as a lens through which to discuss adaptation and resilience, technical and team training, technological advances related to working and living in space, and human interaction with onboard systems. Additionally, the book includes an essay from retired astronaut Clay Anderson on his experiences in space and thoughts on future missions to the moon and Mars. This first of two volumes will be of interest to professionals in the field of human factors and psychology at work, as well as academics examining human performance in extreme environments and aerospace.

An indispensable guide to dealing with challenging, childish boss behavior and building a great career, with laugh- out-loud humor built in. Based on extensive interviews among workers, managers and psychologists, Tame Your Terrible Office TyrantTM draws hilarious but true parallels between toddlers and managers. When under stress, both often have trouble moderating their power, or lose the ability to think rationally. Traits in common include tantrum-throwing, demanding, stubborn, moody, fickle, self-centered, needy and whiny behavior. BADD (Boss Attention Deficit Disorder) is discussed as part of “Short Attention Spans.” There are 20 chapter traits in all, divided into “Bratty” and “Little Lost Lamb” categories, for easy reference, including real anecdotes and many useful tips. When bad bosses run amok in companies, nobody wins. This book shows readers how to build positive relationships with even the most out-of-control boss, and still thrive in your job. The key to success lies in dealing with a Terrible Office Tyrant (or TOTTM) much like a parent deals with a troublesome toddler. With true stories and time-tested solutions, this is the perfect guide managing a boss stuck in his Terrible Twos. Taylor takes you behind all the bossy blustering, so that you can focus on getting ahead – and achieve career excellence. Savvy top management will also gain insight on what not to do with their team. They know that Terrible Office Tyrant (TOT) managers may not be in plain sight (they don’t leave juice stains on the hallway carpet!) But they do wreak havoc on the bottom line. A special section helps senior management and Human Resource departments mitigate TOT behavior for a more productive workplace.