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Like your desk chair? Thank a human-factors psychologist

Like your desk chair? Thank a human-factors psychologist

The human factors area of psychology developed at 30,000 feet: World War II pilots, under stress, too often pressed the wrong button, ejecting before they meant to.

Military scientists reconfigured the cockpits, placing related controls in clusters and shape-coding others. By adding circular or triangle-shaped knobs to control toggles, they helped pilots identify the controls by touch. That led to fewer mistakes, which meant fewer pilots dangling from parachutes.

Like your desk chair? Thank a human-factors psychologist

In World War II pilots, under stress, too often pressed the wrong button, ejecting before they meant to. In an effort to correct this situation, military scientists reconfigured the cockpits, placing related controls in clusters and shape-coding others. By adding circular or triangle-shaped knobs to control toggles, they helped pilots identify the controls by touch. That led to fewer mistakes, which meant fewer pilots dangling from parachutes.