Optimising human performance outside the laboratory

This article was originally published in The Atom, the University of Adelaide’s Centre for Radiation Research Education and Innovation newsletter. 

Traditionally, human performance has been measured in controlled laboratory settings. While this approach provides reliable and accurate data, it lacks the ability to monitor performance in real-time, in dynamic, real-world environments.

IPAS member A/Prof Hooker attended the Human Performance Optimisation and Protection Wearables Workshop in Canberra to investigate how to shift human performance measurement from the lab into the field. Measurement of human performance has applications across multiple areas including sport, defence, space and others.

The event was jointly hosted by the Australian Sports Commission (ASC), the Department of Defence and the Centre for Advanced Defence Research and Enterprise – Operating in Contaminated Environments (CADRE-OCE), of which A/Prof Hooker is Chief Investigator and the University of Adelaide is a Foundation Partner.

Utilising wearable technology and sensor systems, these projects aim to deliver lab-quality results to optimise human performance. The key areas of focus are continuous monitoring of biomarkers via blood or sweat, in-shoe force plates to measure ground reaction forces and real-time monitoring of brain activity and stress responses to enhance performance and well-being.

The utilisation of non-invasive continuous monitoring of biomarkers is of particular interest to CRREI’s radiation biology research around radiation exposure biodosimetry for use in radiation emergency preparedness and response.

The workshop brought together over 70 stakeholders from defence, sport, and academia. At the end of the day, the project outputs were presented and attendees voted on the most comprehensive and actionable solutions. These outputs will now be consolidated for funding submissions to advance this important research.