Daniel Levitin, a cognitive neuroscientist and the author of "This is Your Brain on Music," says listening to music while you work is likely to make you less productive. "You're having so much more fun," said Levitin, "that you feel more productive." He cited a growing body of research suggesting that, in almost every case, your performance on intellectual tasks (think reading or writing) suffers considerably when you listen to music.

A Marine Corps Air Facility (MCAF) in Quantico, Va. has been recognized for its achievements in workplace safety and health. OSHA Regional Director Richard Mendelson presented MCAF Commanding Officer Lt. Colonel Daniel Murphy with a plaque and flag signifying the facility’s Star Status in OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Programs.

A new international standard released by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) classifies mining accidents by type and by cause in an effort to prevent them from happening in the future. Developed by the ISO’s technical committee on mining, ISO 19434 presents a comprehensive mine accidents classification system that lays out a standard scheme for all factors associated with the accidents. It enables a full analysis based on both software systems or manual assessment and uses a common understandable language for communication between all parts involved in safety, health and environment issues in mines.

A tax in Philadelphia intended to reduce consumption of sugary drinks is working, according to a public health expert who presented her findings at a national conference centered on interventions to reduce obesity. Sugar sweetened beverage (SSB) taxes – aimed at fighting the nation’s obesity epidemic - have been gaining momentum since Berkeley, California passed the nation’s first SSB tax in 2014.

New workplace safety and health issues continue to emerge around the relatively new fields of nanotechnology, advanced materials, and additive manufacturing, which makes updated on information a challenge for safety professionals and others. Because many people turn to Wikipedia for information, scientists with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) gathered with “Wikipedians” from across the Midwest to expand and improve Wikipedia articles about nanotechnology OSH.

The family of a sanitation worker who was accidentally run over by a colleague driving a street sweeper was awarded $41.5 million by a jury of six in Queens, New York last week. The incident occurred while 43-year-old Steven Frosch was making adjustments to his own street sweeper in a Department of Sanitation garage.

The NIOSH Center for Motor Vehicle Safety (CMVS) is taking up the challenge of communicating to employers and workers about the risks of driving for work and how to avoid motor vehicle crashes. Crash risk affects workers in all industries and occupations, whether they drive tractor-trailers, cars, pickup trucks, or emergency vehicles, and whether driving is a primary or occasional part of the job.

On the heels of an incident in which a worker was injected with a flammable propellant gas, OSHA has reached agreements with three Massachusetts packaging companies to correct workplace hazards and enhance safety. OSHA found that Dudley- based Shield Packaging Co. Inc. – which packages aerosol containers – failed to implement required procedures to lock out the machine's power sources or train the employee on how to recognize and avoid the hazard.

Additional scientific research and a broad sharing of existing data are needed by safety and health practitioners across the country to better protect workers in every industry, according to the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE). That’s why ASSE brought together dozens of industry leaders and safety experts recently for a research workshop aimed at creating a new wave of progress.

The man likely to become the next head of OSHA will first have to face a Senate review process – and safety advocacy groups like National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH) have some ideas about the topics that should be covered during those sessions. Scott Mugno, vice president for safety, sustainability and vehicle maintenance at FedEx Ground in Pittsburgh, Pa.. has been nominated by President Trump to lead the agency.