The ergonomics of information presentation

This article is restricted to the human aspects of information presentation. Clearly any practical problem of display design must be solved in the context of current instrumentation and the final choice may well be dominated by relative availability and cost. It could be argued that ergonomics as a technology distinct from the human sciences must incorporate these wider factors but it seems justifiable, for the present purpose, to use the term ergonomics to signify an approach to information presentation based entirely on the limitations and advantages of the human operator.

This article is based on a keynote address to the IEE Conference on ‘Display’ at Loughborough University, 7–10 September 1971.