Director's Intramural Awards for Extraordinary Science (DIA)

Winner:

Dr. Hongwei Hsiao's contributions have significantly enhanced the scientific quality and rigor of the NIOSH Human Factors and Safety Engineering (HFSE) research program, bringing national and international recognition to the Division of Safety Research (DSR) and the Institute. He began his DSR career in 1991 as a biomechanical engineer. He was instrumental in developing the HFSE program and planning new laboratories for virtual reality, three-dimensional (3D) laser scanning anthropometry, impact testing, motion studies, sensor development, and digital human modeling. In 1996, Dr. Hsiao became Chief of the DSR Protective Technology Branch. His efforts to combine scientific excellence with a proactive approach for developing practical external partnerships have moved the results of NIOSH research to practice through the manufacturing and marketing of new, safer equipment and technologies. He has authored more than 140 publications and inventions and delivered numerous technical presentations. He is a Fellow of the Ergonomics Institute and Honorary Fellow of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. In 2011, he was recognized as the Federal Public Health Service Engineer of the Year. He is a recipient of the prestigious Liberty Mutual Prize, a three-time recipient of the Alice Hamilton Award, and a two-time recipient of the Bullard-Sherwood Award for his pioneering research to advance the design of fall-arrest harness devices for diverse worker populations. Dr. Hsiao introduced the concept of immersed virtual reality simulation to study human behavior, physical response, and decision-making skills during elevated work. His research has been well cited in the international literature and has been featured in the media several times. In the mid-1990s, Dr. Hsiao initiated a mentoring program in his branch that improved the development and retention of junior researchers and technical staff by providing them the opportunity to shadow more senior staff. During the 2000s, he supported technical training for scientific staff in dual areas, which enhanced staff productivity and individual career advancement. Dr. Hsiao has mentored three National Research Council Fellows, four Service Fellows, three international scholars, and five graduate interns over the past 15 years; all are now successful professionals. Dr. Hsiao would use any monetary award received to support enhancement of DSR laboratories, especially engineering software development.

Winner:

Dr. Taekhee Lee is a Fellow in the Health Effects Laboratory Division (HELD) and as a young researcher has made extraordinary contributions to the field of occupational safety and health. He received his Ph.D. in Environmental Health from the University of Cincinnati in late 2006, and published seven related peer-reviewed articles. He is the NIOSH lead of a collaborative project with the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) in the UK that examines the sampling accuracy of newly designed high flow rate samplers for measurement of respirable crystalline silica. Dr. Lee published two papers that concluded differences from calibrations carried out by HSL. Because without reconciliation both organizations would risk publishing disparate results, Dr. Lee was detailed to HSL at their request and was able to account for experimental differences and fully harmonize the results. A manuscript is in preparation, with joint US-UK recommendations that will be the basis of an international (ISO) standard. Dr. Lee also has participated significantly in three projects led by other NIOSH researchers. The first project provided guidance on the selection and use of samplers for the assessment of exposure to wood dust. The second project examined whether the size distributions of lead aerosols deposited on filters differed from those deposited on internal walls of the sampler, and whether the outcome was the same for both laboratory and field environments. The third project determined whether a sampling pump that modified sample collection according to a workers' breathing rate would provide more appropriate exposure data when used in environments where exertion and exposure are correlated. As a result of working on these projects, Dr. Lee published five articles, three as a first author. He has successfully competed for intramural funding, made award-winning presentations, and been a reviewer for several journals and an Editor in the Korean Society of Environmental Health. He provided support to the US Technical Representative in meetings of an ISO technical committee on silica, and is co-organizing an upcoming international symposium on silica. Dr. Lee would use any monetary award received to attend training to become a Certified Industrial Hygienist and to extend his current silica project.

Winner:

Shirley Robertson has provided extraordinary scientific support to research activities during her 32 years at NIOSH. Ms. Robertson began her career at NIOSH as an animal care technician and in 1979 started working in the laboratory as a scientific technician in immunochemistry, a new scientific area for her in Division of Applied Research and Technology (DART). She is currently a Biological Science Laboratory Technician. Ms. Robertson's scientific support includes her work on an intervention study for asphalt pavers and a latex allergy study. The first study involved a large collaborative group that included academicians, industry, unions, several large paving companies, and NIOSH. Ms. Robertson assisted in developing the sampling plan, coordinated the acquisition of sampling supplies, and packed worker sampling kits that contained all the supplies and media for each sampling week in the field where she collected biological and environmental samples, serving as the study manager on site. Once back in the laboratory, she logged in, prepared, and analyzed thousands of samples. As her contribution to the second study, Ms. Robertson was on the team that tested participants for latex allergy, identified a previously unknown protein as a major allergen, and re-tested participants to determine if their allergy had waned in the five years since they were no longer exposed to latex. She was also responsible for the testing of thousands of samples. In addition to her contributions in large studies, Ms. Robertson has assisted in the development of a number of methods produced by her team, including methamphetamine detection methods, detection of anthrax exposure, and multiplex immunoassay for pesticides. She also has shown great initiative in a number of activities within and outside her Branch. During the Environmental Tobacco Smoke Health Hazard Evaluation conducted in Las Vegas Ms. Robertson suggested that creatinine and cotinine analysis be run in house rather than at a contract laboratory, which resulted in substantial savings in money and time. Ms. Robertson is planning to use any monetary award she may receive to participate in training that will enhance her skills, and to fund travel to a scientific meeting.