The haptic perception of spatial orientations

This review examines the isotropy of the perception of spatial orientations in the haptic system. It shows the existence of an oblique effect (i.e., a better perception of vertical and horizontal orientations than oblique orientations) in a spatial plane intrinsic to the haptic system, determined by the gravitational cues and the cognitive resources and defined in a subjective frame of reference. Similar results are observed from infancy to adulthood. In 3D space, the haptic processing of orientations is also anisotropic and seems to use both egocentric and allocentric cues. Taken together, these results revealed that the haptic oblique effect occurs when the sensory motor traces associated with exploratory movement are represented more abstractly at a cognitive level

Does the Integration of Haptic and Visual Cues Reduce the Effect of a Biased Visual Reference Frame on the Subjective Head Orientation?

The selection of appropriate frames of reference (FOR) is a key factor in the elaboration of spatial perception and the production of robust interaction with our environment. The extent to which we perceive the head axis orientation (subjective head orientation, SHO) with both accuracy and precision likely contributes to the efficiency of these spatial interactions. A first goal of this study was to investigate the relative contribution of both the visual and egocentric FOR (centre-of-mass) in the SHO processing. A second goal was to investigate humans' ability to process SHO in various sensory response modalities (visual, haptic and visuo-haptic), and the way they modify the reliance to either the visual or egocentric FORs. A third goal was to question whether subjects combined visual and haptic cues optimally to increase SHO certainty and to decrease the FORs disruption effect.Thirteen subjects were asked to indicate their SHO while the visual and/or egocentric FORs were deviated. Four results emerged from our study. First, visual rod settings to SHO were altered by the tilted visual frame but not by the egocentric FOR alteration, whereas no haptic settings alteration was observed whether due to the egocentric FOR alteration or the tilted visual frame. These results are modulated by individual analysis. Second, visual and egocentric FOR dependency appear to be negatively correlated. Third, the response modality enrichment appears to improve SHO. Fourth, several combination rules of the visuo-haptic cues such as the Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE), Winner-Take-All (WTA) or Unweighted Mean (UWM) rule seem to account for SHO improvements. However, the UWM rule seems to best account for the improvement of visuo-haptic estimates, especially in situations with high FOR incongruence. Finally, the data also indicated that FOR reliance resulted from the application of UWM rule. This was observed more particularly, in the visual dependent subject. Conclusions: Taken together, these findings emphasize the importance of identifying individual spatial FOR preferences to assess the efficiency of our interaction with the environment whilst performing spatial tasks

A systematic tool for Assessment and Classification of Hazards in Laboratories (ACHiL)

Large organizations as technological universities comprise numerous laboratories which are very rarely audited by health and safety professionals due to limited manpower. Moreover, research activities are permanently progressing with a rapid hazard evolution hardly affordable for safety manager. The present paper proposes a methodology based on Assessment and Classification of Hazards in Laboratories (ACHiL). It allows professionals evaluating their laboratories' hazard level using an innovative platform. This tool includes a series of 28 specific hazards classified in a four level scale (from 0 to 3) allowing to identify laboratories with high level of danger or cumulative hazards. In fine, ACHiL, a hazard mapping platform, can be used as a safety management decision-making support tool for Safety Officers and Dean of School. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd

Hydrogen bonding control of self-assembly: Simple isophthalic acid derivatives form cyclic hexameric aggregates

In this paper we demonstrate that six molecules of a functionalized isophthalic acid derivative form a cyclic aggregate stabilized by a network of 12 hydrogen bonds. The structure and stability of the aggregate were studied by X-ray crystallography, vapor phase osmometry and 1H NMR

Safety Decision-Making in Academia

This paper illustrates the challenges of safety management in Academia, which are difficult to overcome using conventional methods of risk management. The positive aspects and disadvantages of the risk management tools specifically designed for the laboratory collection are addressed. We propose a different approach to hazard detection that can ease the burden for Academia safety experts of tedious time-consuming risk assessment. Based on the observations of Academia’s safety management, we are attempting to build a semi-quantitative risk analysis model that will conform to the concept of safety-II. This paper suggests an approach that allows to integrate this model into human oriented performance driven decision making