The best way to find to the best way
What is Ergonomics?
The beauty of human thought – indeed, intelligent thought of any kind – is that great ideas and actions exist well before any one person has given a name to a concept. For the ancient Babylonian worker tilling the fields who was introduced to irrigation, the word meant nothing – all that mattered was that there was an easier way to guarantee a fruitful harvest. To the surgeon who realized that stitching up his patients could prevent further infection, the word suture didn’t contribute to his actions. Indeed, to anyone who has had a revolutionary idea that was then discovered to have already been branded, names meant nothing. All that mattered was the application of an idea.
Ergonomics is really the perfect metaphor for science; constant betterment and never-ending improvement.
As a result, human factors and ergonomics – the study of optimizing user and object performance – have existed as philosophical, metaphysical, and literal constructs since the dawn of intelligent thought. Indeed, the desire to make a task easier by reducing the amount of effort an individual must exert is at the core of every intelligent species. Animals are remarkably lazy, and if there is an easier way to accomplish a task, it is an absolute certainty that we will find this way.
How does Ergonomics work?
If one has ever sharpened a pencil instead of taking a knife to wood and lead, if one has ever used a disposable razor instead of using a machete, if one has ever bought bread instead of growing wheat and baking mixtures in an oven, they have taken advantage of ergonomics.
if one has ever bought bread instead of growing wheat…they have taken advantage of ergonomics.
It is true that our modern societies are obsessed with the notion of reducing stress and effort, but the desire to make life easier has existed since life began. However, the modern idea of ergonomics has existed for only the past 200 or so years. At one point in time, designers focused on creating objects utilizing the most extravagant, ostentatious, and conspicuous design languages. Now, they are more concerned with streamlined applications that reduce the overall strain exerted on a system.
For example, cars from the 1950s were built to the same rigorous standards as tanks. Hard angles, boxy frames, and gaudy amalgamations of rubber and steel were smashed together to form the cars that our grandfathers and great-grandfathers drooled over. Today, cars resemble sleek starships from the pulp era; aerodynamics reigns supreme as we attempt to create vehicles that move with the least resistance.
Modern ergonomics is divided into three categories: physical, concerned with human anatomy; cognitive, concerned with mental processes; and organizational, concerned with socio-technical systems like offices and governments. Each category seeks to move towards ideal optimization. For instance, workers at desks should sit at precise angles in order to avoid back pain, neck strain, and carpal tunnel. Astrophysicists should keep their minds sharp with puzzles. Governments should be structured to account for inappropriate uses of power.
Why is Ergonomics important?
Earlier, I opined on the notion that names are irrelevant so long as ideas exist. The truth is far less optimistic. The human species names things for the same reason that we attend to ergonomics; giving something a name makes it more real, and working on optimizing user-object interactions ensures that we are reducing the wear-and-tear associated with such interactions.
For a simple answer, however, ergonomics is important because it enables us to optimize the way we live our lives by reducing the amount of time and effort we need to spend working on a task. Why bother with constructing a car using organic workers when a robot can do a better – and safer – job? Why bother hunting with bow-and-arrow when guns work so much better? Why bother lugging around a briefcase-sized mobile phone when an iPhone is more appealing? The simple truth is that, for every one step humanity takes forward, there are 100 ways that humanity can better itself. Therefore, we must study ergonomics to find the ways to better ourselves.
What is the future of Ergonomics?
I want to end this year’s final Science Avenue by addressing my excitement for the future of Planet Earth. There will come a time when we look to the stars and no longer wonder what lies in the distance. We will think on the atom, recognize its potential, and realize the wonders trapped within each electron. The human species – indeed, all species – are only bound by the limits of their own imaginations. It is when we choose to accept our place in the universe – when we look at ourselves and gleam with pride – that we truly begin to face our limits. The future of ergonomics is the never-ending march towards perfection.
As always, I’m excited for the absurd possibilities.