The Human Factor (book)
Encyclopedia
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
by Kim Vicente
Kim Vicente
Kim Vicente is a professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto. He is researcher, teacher, and author in the field of human factors. He is best known for his two books: The Human Factor and Cognitive Work Analysis....
that Routledge
Taylor and Francis
Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in the United Kingdom which publishes books and academic journals. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Kingdom-based publisher and conference company.- Overview :...
published
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
in 2004. Vicente asserts (as cited in the Optimize
Optimize (magazine)
Optimize magazine published its last issue in June 2007. Optimize's peer-based business leadership content for CIOs is now incorporated into the pages of InformationWeek...
article listed in the "References" section) technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
in such constructs as hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
s, airplane
Fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is an aircraft capable of flight using wings that generate lift due to the vehicle's forward airspeed. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft in which wings rotate about a fixed mast and ornithopters in which lift is generated by flapping wings.A powered...
s, and nuclear power plant
Nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...
s have significant room for improvement. Some of the specific industrial accidents Vicente analyzes are the Walkerton Tragedy
Walkerton Tragedy
The Walkerton Tragedy is a series of events that accompanied the contamination of the water supply of Walkerton, Ontario, Canada, by E. coli bacteria in May 2000.-Summary:Walkerton is a relatively small community located in Ontario...
and the Chernobyl Disaster
Chernobyl disaster
The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine , which was under the direct jurisdiction of the central authorities in Moscow...
. Also, for medical error
Medical error
A medical error may be defined as a preventable adverse effect of care, whether or not it is evident or harmful to the patient. This might include an inaccurate or incomplete diagnosis or treatment of a disease, injury, syndrome, behavior, infection, or other ailment.-Definitions:As a general...
, he details many fatal vincristine
Vincristine
Vincristine , formally known as leurocristine, sometimes abbreviated "VCR", is a vinca alkaloid from the Catharanthus roseus , formerly Vinca rosea and hence its name. It is a mitotic inhibitor, and is used in cancer chemotherapy.-Mechanism:Tubulin is a structural protein that polymerizes to...
dosage errors.