Health, Safety & Lab Hygiene (Ergonomics)

To maintain electronic hardware and prevent laboratory accidents, strict codes of conduct must be observed: • General Laboratory Regulations: 1. No Food or Drinks: Liquids spilled on keyboards cause electrical short-circuits that permanently fry motherboards; food crumbs attract ants and rodents that chew internal wiring. 2. Dust and Moisture Protection: Keep windows closed during harmattan winds; cover system units with anti-dust covers when not in use. 3. Electrical Safety: Never overload wall sockets with multiple extension boards; avoid touching bare or frayed electrical cables; report burning smells immediately. 4. Cable Management: Tuck network and power cables neatly inside wall trunkings to prevent students from tripping. 5. Stable Power Protection: Connect all computers to an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) and voltage surge suppressors to guard against sudden blackouts and power surges. 6. Ventilation: Ensure air conditioners or ceiling extractors run continuously to dissipate heat generated by processors.

Ergonomics is the scientific study of designing equipment, furniture, and workspace environments to fit the human body's natural anatomical posture, minimizing physical discomfort and injury. • Ideal Ergonomic Sitting Posture: - Feet: Resting flat on the floor or supported by an ergonomic footrest (never dangling). - Knees: Bent at an open, comfortable 90-degree angle. - Back: Straight and fully supported by an adjustable chair with lumbar lower-back support. - Forearms and Wrists: Forearms kept parallel to the desk; wrists kept flat in a neutral, relaxed horizontal position while typing (avoid bending wrists upward or downward). - Eyes & Monitor Positioning: The top edge of the monitor screen should be level with or slightly below eye level. The monitor should be positioned directly in front of the user at approximately an arm's length (50 to 70 cm away) to prevent neck craning.

Prolonged, improper computer use causes specific physiological conditions: • 1. Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) / Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: - Pain, numbness, and tingling in fingers and wrists caused by repetitive keystrokes and awkward mouse gripping over long periods. - Prevention: Take short 5-minute typing breaks every hour; use ergonomic split keyboards and wrist rests; shake out fingers regularly. • 2. Computer Vision Syndrome (Digital Eye Strain): - Dry eyes, redness, burning sensations, headaches, and blurred vision caused by staring at illuminated screens without blinking. - Prevention: The 20-20-20 Rule! Every 20 minutes of screen work, look away at an object 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. Use anti-glare screen filters and ensure balanced room lighting. • 3. Chronic Musculoskeletal Back and Neck Ache: - Caused by slouching forward or cradling a phone between ear and shoulder while typing. - Prevention: Sit upright, adjust chair height, and stretch shoulders periodically.

• What is Booting? Booting is the initial process of loading the operating system kernel from the secondary storage (hard disk/SSD) into main memory (RAM) when a computer is started. • Two Types of Booting: 1. Cold Booting (Hard Boot): Starting a computer from a totally powered-off, cold state by pressing the physical Power button on the system unit. 2. Warm Booting (Rebooting / Soft Boot): Restarting a computer while it is already running without turning off the main electrical power supply (via Start → Restart or pressing Ctrl + Alt + Delete). Used after software updates or when a program freezes. • Proper Shutdown Procedure: Always click Start → Power → Shut Down. Allow the operating system to safely close background files, save registry states, and park hard disk read heads. - DANGER: Never turn off a desktop computer by switching off the wall socket or pulling the plug directly! Sudden power cuts cause operating system corruption, lost data, and physical disk head crashes.