On April 5, the Clemson Human Factors and Ergonomics student group participated in iMagine Upstate, a STEAM festival in Greenville. We had a booth with 6 graduate students in psychology and industrial engineering teaching K-12 students (and parents!) about human factors and safety. There were three activities visitors could do. One was a short series of photos where we taught basics of design principles (e.g. would you like to ride a bike with square tires? How would it feel to ride a bike with square tires?). Next, participants could help in a design project featuring a small demo of a stove-top. In this activity, students had to figure out which knob matched which burner on a poorly designed stove, then we let them redesign and test. Finally, researchers on vision science and bike/pedestrian safety where we showed the power of retroreflective materials to improve the visibility of those on the roads at night. At the end of the activity, kids received an HFES sticker certifying them as a Human Factors Researcher or Engineer for the day.
