Cognitive Neuroscience of Human Systems: Work and Everyday Life (Human Factors and Ergonomics)

While there have been tremendous advances in our scientific understanding of the brain, this work has been largely academic, and often oriented toward clinical publication. **Cognitive Neuroscience of Human Systems: Work and Everyday Life** addresses the relationship between neurophysiological processes and the performance and experience of humans in everyday life. It samples the vast neuroscience literature to identify those areas of research that speak directly to the performance and experience of humans in everyday settings, highlighting the practical, everyday application of brain science. The book explains the underlying basis for well-established principles from human factors, ergonomics, and industrial engineering and design. It also sheds new light on factors affecting human performance and behavior. This is not an academic treatment of neuroscience, but rather a translation that makes modern brain science accessible and easily applicable to systems design, education and training, and the development of policies and practices. The authors supply clear and direct guidance on the applications of principles from brain science to everyday problems. With discussions of topics from brain science and their relevance to everyday activities, the book focuses on the science, describing the findings and the studies producing these findings. It then decodes how these findings relate to everyday life and how you can integrate them into your work to achieve more effective outcomes based on a fundamental understanding of how the operations of the human brain produce behavior and modulate performance. "While there have been tremendous advances in our scientific understanding of the brain, this work has been largely academic, and often oriented toward clinical publication. This book addresses the relationship between neurophysiological processes and the performance and experience of humans in everyday life. It samples the vast neuroscience literature to identify those areas of research that speak directly to the performance and experience of humans in everyday settings. The book explains the underlying basis for well-established principles from Human Factors, Ergonomics, and Industrial Engineering and Design"-- "1 1 Introduction What do most people know about their brains? Do they know as much as they know about their favorite sports teams or their favorite celebrities? Can they describe the operations of their brains with the precision that they list the ingredients and steps in a favorite recipe or explain the nuances of playing a popular electronic game? Do they track their brains with the regularity that they follow the weather, the price of gas, or how much money they have in their wallets? Yet, all that we experience, all that we know, and all that we do is a direct, inseparable product of our brains. For most of us, our brains serve as the conduit through which we experience life, but nothing more. We may have thoughtfully devised programs for exercising our bodies, and on any given day, we may know our weight within a couple of pounds, but we pay scant attention to the state of our brains, how we may be affecting them, how we may be affecting the brains of others, and how our own brains are being affected during the course of everyday life. In the following chapters, our primary objective is to summarize current brain science, but most importantly, highlight and explain the practical, everyday application of brain science. Today, there may be no field that produces a larger volume of scientific papers, books, and other publications than brain science, or neuroscience. However, with little exception, these publications are esoteric and beyond the reach of those without the requisite academic training (i.e., generally, an advanced degree in neuroscience or a similar field)"-- "1 1 Introduction What do most people know about their brains? Do they know as much as they know about their favorite sports teams or their favorite celebrities? Can they describe the operations of their brains with the precision that they list the ingredients and steps in a favorite recipe or explain the nuances of playing a popular electronic game? Do they track their brains with the regularity that they follow the weather, the price of gas, or how much money they have in their wallets? Yet, all that we experience, all that we know, and all that we do is a direct, inseparable product of our brains. For most of us, our brains serve as the conduit through which we experience life, but nothing more. We may have thoughtfully devised programs for exercising our bodies, and on any given day, we may know our weight within a couple of pounds, but we pay scant attention to the state of our brains, how we may be affecting them, how we may be affecting the brains of others, and how our own brains are being affected during the course of everyday life. In the following chapters, our primary objective is to summarize current brain science, but most importantly, highlight and explain the practical, everyday application of brain science. Today, there may be no field that produces a larger volume of scientific papers, books, and other publications than brain science, or neuroscience. However, with little exception, these publications are esoteric and beyond the reach of those without the requisite academic training (i.e., generally, an advanced degree in neuroscience or a similar field)"-- Provided by publisher