Annual Meeting

2011 HFES Fellows and Awardees Honored in Las Vegas

The Human Factors and Ergonomics Society elected three Fellows and presented several awards on September 20, 2011, during the Opening Plenary Session of the 55th Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Newly elected Fellows are David B. Kaber, Professor, Industrial and Systems Engineering, North Carolina State University; John D. Lee, Professor, Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison; and William F. Moroney, Professor Emeritus, Department of Psychology, University of Dayton.

Recipients of the Jerome H. Ely Human Factors Article Award were Jamie C. Gorman, Texas Tech University, and Nancy J. Cooke and Polemnia G. Amazeen, Arizona State University, for their paper, ?Training Adaptive Teams.? (Volume 52, Number 4, August 2010). In this paper the authors researched the best training methods for team coordination in system development.

Peter Vink, head of the Department of Ergonomics and Innovation at TNO and a professor in the Department of Industrial Design at the Technical University of Delft, was honored with the Hal W. Hendrick Distinguished International Colleague Award. Vink has been an international leader in ergonomics for decades, sharing his research findings and knowledge in many countries. He is especially recognized for his work on participatory ergonomics and for design principles to provide comfort in products, tools, and workplaces.

The Paul M. Fitts Education Award was presented to Michael J. Smith, Professor Emeritus in Industrial and System Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in recognition of exceptional contributions to the education and training of human factors/ergonomics specialists. Smith served as an outstanding teacher and mentor during a distinguished career that spanned 23 years.

Carol Pollack-Nelson, Independent Safety Consulting in Rockville, Maryland, received the 2011 A. R. Lauer Safety Award in recognition of outstanding contributions to human factors/ergonomics in safety. Pollack-Nelson has worked for several years to improve consumer product safety by collaborating with all stakeholders, including consumers, manufacturers, distributors, and government organizations. Her tireless efforts have not only helped to improve consumer safety but have empowered the individual consumer to demand safe products by directly engaging government and manufacturers.

The recipient of the Alphonse Chapanis Best Student Paper Award is Stacy Balk, Department of Psychology, Clemson University, for ?The (In)Accuracy of Estimations of Our Own Visual Acuity in the Presence of Glare.? The paper is coauthored by Richard Tyrrell from Clemson University.

The Jack A. Kraft Innovator Award was presented to John W. Senders for his long and distinguished career in human factors/ergonomics. Senders?s contributions have fostered a greater understanding of sampling theory, control theory, time-critical tasks, and human error. His innovations have led to human performance improvements in aviation, space exploration, ground and sea transportation, medical services, and the power industry.

William C. Howell, Arizona State University, received the Oliver Keith Hansen Outreach Award for service and excellence in outreach to the federal government and its agencies, and to professional organizations. Howell has spent his career promoting awareness of the HF/E profession by way of publications, books, and appearances before many congressional committees and individual Congress members and staff. Additionally, he was instrumental in the creation of the Human Factors Division within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The Best Ergonomics in Design Article Award was presented to Beth Loring and Erin-Anne Lemieux for their paper, ?User Research Improves Laparoscopic Instruments? (Volume 18, Number 1, Winter 2010). This case study describes the redesign of a laparoscopic instrument handle and shows the practical value of good user-centered practice and design.

HFES President Anthony D. Andre presented the Arnold M. Small President?s Distinguished Service Award to Stuart O. Parsons for his career-long contributions that have brought honor to the profession and the Society.

HFES congratulates all the newly elected Fellows and award recipients.

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