Pioneering neuroergonomics researcher to lead Human Effectiveness seminar

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WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  Dr. Raja Parasuraman, university professor and director of the doctoral program in human factors and applied cognition at George Mason University, will lead a research seminar on "Trust in Automation" on February 27, 2009 from 10:00 AM to noon at the Air Force Institute of Technology's Kenney Hall at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. 

Dr. Parasuraman will deliver two presentations, one on "Trust and Complacency in Human Interaction with Automated and Networked Systems," and a second entitled "Molecular Genetics and Proteomics of Individual Differences in Cognition." 

The seminar is open to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base personnel. It is not open to the general public.

In the first talk, Dr. Parasuraman will discuss human trust as a factor in the effective use of automated systems. His second topic addresses identification of differences in cognitive function among individuals and how these differences can affect human training and the design of human-machine interfaces. 

An internationally recognized researcher in the fields of human factors and cognitive neuroscience, Dr. Parasuraman has focused his research in two primary areas: human performance in human-machine systems, in particular the role of human attention, memory and vigilance in automated and robotic systems; and the cognitive neuroscience of attention. 

In 1997, he combined his interests in the ergonomic aspects of human factors and cognitive neuroscience to develop the now-emerging field of neuroergonomics, which he defines as "the study of brain and behavior at work." This discipline seeks to better understand how neural bases (brain mechanisms related to functions such as seeing, hearing, attending, remembering, deciding, and planning) relate to technologies, and how they can be used to solve real-world human factors problems such as optimizing the fit between people and technology. 

Dr. Parasuraman's visit to Wright-Patterson is sponsored by the 711th Human Performance Wing. He is the first in a planned series of high-visibility guest speakers to be coordinated by Dr. Morley Stone, who was recently named the 711th HPW chief scientist. 

"The multi-disciplinary approach that Dr. Parasuraman is bringing to human cognition studies is exactly the direction the 711th Human Performance Wing is moving in," Dr. Stone said. "Whether optimizing unmanned aerial systems operator training or understanding how to enhance human cognitive abilities, progress will require a broad scientific and engineering skill set. This is a skill set the Wing is uniquely positioned to provide for the Air Force." 

Dr. Parasuraman's books include The Psychology of Vigilance (Academic Press, 1982), Varieties of Attention (Academic Press, 1984), Event-Related Brain Potentials (Oxford University Press, 1990), Automation and Human Performance (Erlbaum, 1996), The Attentive Brain (MIT Press, 1998), and Neuroergonomics: The Brain at Work (Oxford University Press, 2007). 

 For more information, please contact John Schutte at (937) 255-3796.