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Hi Monica,
Just as an aside on using the microscope and PC standing up, watch out for 'tennis elbow'. I was using a draftmen's chair (that came with the foot rest) with my main works/office PC on a lab bench top (higher than an office desk). I didn't like the chair much as it had a domed top and fixed rubber feet and I couldn't shuffle about on it. So I stood up and used the computer that way instead. That seemed cool as Goethe always stood at a tall wooden desk to write - I've even seen his desk in his house in Frankfurt - however his sloped wooden desk was very high and he would have been able to keep his hand and wrist straight when writing. After many months of standing regularly at the PC I started to get pains in the muscles just below the elbow on the outer arm and the wrist/thumb area. I assumed it was RSI from mouse use as I sit at a desktop PC 24/7, but in fact it was due to standing above the mouse and bending my hand backwards against the wrist all the time (i.e. pushing back the hand, up and backwards towards the wrist, going towards a right angle). It took more than a year to get rid of the pain once it arrived (largely as I didn't know initially what was causing it) and now I make sure my forearm is straight with the wrist and hand when using the mouse (they also suggested using a smaller mouse ball shaped mouse, but I stuck with my sculptured Logitech performance MX I like). Apparently tennis elbow is tiny tears and inflammation developing near the bony lump (the lateral epicondyle) on the outside of your elbow caused by muscle strain on the muscles used to straighten your wrist. I now sit at a desk + operators chair with my PC in the lab (we had the lab benching modified to a lower desking area within the lab)
We have a few adjustable foot rests around for users with our operators chairs and all our full height draftsman chairs have the integral footrest. One colleague uses a kick step/stepstool with locking castors as a footrest on the draughtsman chairs (so they don't sit with their feet tucked back underneath them all the time). Seems to work well for them, so thanks for the tip. We also and encourage users to adjust the chairs for themselves when they get to the microscope. On one research microscope, our inverted Nikon TE2000U, the eyepieces binocular head can rotate up and down to accommodate different users height (I think it's called the T-Terg Ergonomic Tube), and that works really well - shame it's not more common.
Have a nice weekend.
Regards
Keith
Without haste, without rest
Johann Von Goethe's motto
-----------------------------------------------------------
Dr Keith J Morris
Cellular Imaging Microscopy Core,
The Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics,
Roosevelt Drive,
Oxford,
OX3 7BN,
United Kingdom.
Tel: +44 ( 0 ) 1865 287568
Email: [log in to unmask]
Webpage: www.well.ox.ac.uk/microscopy-facilities
-----Original Message-----
From: Confocal Microscopy List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of MJ Tomaszewski
Sent: 04 December 2014 12:09
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Lab chairs
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Another thing to take into consideration are the short people:
I've often found that the only way I could scope for a long time was by standing due to 2 reasons:
1. my torso is too short to sit with my legs under the table and still look into the binocs (no so much of a problem now that we mostly look at things on a screen), and 2. My feet generally don't touch the ground if the chair is raised up at all (I'm 5 foot 2), and this makes my legs fall asleep if I sit all the way back, or if I sit forward, I get no back support. I'd recommend chairs with the foot rings on them so people can rest their feet/ or get the foot risers.
Monica
On Wed, Dec 3, 2014 at 10:19 PM, Barbara Foster <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> *****
> To join, leave or search the confocal microscopy listserv, go to:
> http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A0=confocalmicroscopy
> Post images on http://www.imgur.com and include the link in your posting.
> *****
>
> Hi, Marcia
>
> This question brings up an important point: In microscopy, unlike any
> other analytical technique, the user is part of the system. Chairs
> should not only be adjustable in height, but also should have back
> support so that the user can address the microscope in a relaxed
> position... neither straining too high or crouched too low.
>
> Also, regarding putting your arms on the table:
> Most microscopes are designed so that, when you are properly seated,
> you can rest your forearms in a relaxed position on either side of the
> microscope so that you can make adjustments to both stage position and
> focus without much additional movement. I realize that many systems
> are now computer controlled, but either way, be aware of how much
> extra elbow and shoulder motion is needed to go from stage adjustment
> to focus adjustment.
>
> I agree with the comments that advocate for fabric rather than leather
> or wood.
>
> As for Craig's comment re: the alternative to conventional chairs: I
> know folks who swear by them, but I also know that they are an
> acquired taste
>
> Personally, in my lab, I have what would be equivalent to a
> well-padded office stool, with short arms.
>
> Hope this is helpful!
>
> Good hunting!
> Barbara Foster, President & Chief Consultant Microscopy/Microscopy
> Education* www.MicroscopyEducation.com
>
> Have you taken part yet in the current MME user study: "20 Really
> Quick Questions"? If not, please give us your input. Every data
> point is important! Deadline: Dec 6. "Thank you gift": A chance to
> win one of TEN
> $100 Amazon gift cards
> Click here or paste into your browser:
> <http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/1885625/c7c50d3c93fb>http:/
> /www.surveygizmo.com/s3/1885625/c7c50d3c93fb
>
>
> At 07:51 PM 12/3/2014, you wrote:
>
>> *****
>> To join, leave or search the confocal microscopy listserv, go to:
>> http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A0=confocalmicroscopy
>> Post images on http://www.imgur.com and include the link in your posting.
>> *****
>>
>> Dear Microscopists, i have a question that will require deep expertise))).
>> What would be the best chairs to equip the imaging facility with?
>> Thay have to be durable and should withstand multiple height
>> adjustment every day.
>> Any other considerations? I was looking at those below:
>> [log in to unmask]" target="_blank">http:[log in to unmask]
>> I am very gratefull for any suggestions.
>> Thank you!
>> Marcia
>>
>
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