Environmental microbes, and how they influence how we think and behave, were a hot topic of discussion at NeoCon this year. A 2016 article in Building and Environment, whose text is available at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360132316303419, shares important insights on these topics.
Adams and her team report that “Buildings represent habitats for microorganisms that can have direct or indirect effects on the quality of our living spaces, health and wellbeing.”
The researchers organize their discussion as answers to 10 questions that they feel indicate “important lessons learned regarding the microbiology of buildings and suggest future areas of investigation.” These questions are: “Q1) What does the microbiome of a typical indoor environment look like? Q2) How do building characteristics, including occupants and their behaviors, influence the indoor microbiome? Q3) How do moisture problems alter typical indoor microbiomes? Q4) How does the microbiome affect indoor chemistry, and how do chemical processes and the composition of building materials influence the indoor microbiome? Q5) What do DNA sequencing and modern analytical techniques tell us about the indoor environment? Q6) What are appropriate sampling methods and constraints for studies of the microbiology of the built environment? Q7) What technological developments will enhance our understanding of the microbiology of the built environment? Q8) What are the connections between indoor microbiomes and occupant health? Q9) What are the implications of recent work for building design and maintenance? Q10) What do all these recent studies NOT tell us?”
The article by Adams and her colleagues is a handy, relatively easy to read introduction to a topic that is likely to be discussed with increased frequency in the months ahead – microbes!
Rachel Adams, Seema Bhangar, Karen Dannemiller, Jonathan Eisen, Noah Fierer, Jack Gilbert, Jessica Green, Linsey Marr, Shelly Miller, Jeffrey Siegel, Brent Stephens, Michael Waring, and Kyle Bibby. 2016. “Ten Questions Concerning the Microbiomes of Buildings.” Building and Environment, vol. 109, pp. 224-234.
Sally Augustin, PhD, a cognitive scientist, is the editor of Research Design Connections (www.researchdesignconnections.com), a monthly subscription newsletter and free daily blog, where recent and classic research in the social, design, and physical sciences that can inform designers’ work are presented in straightforward language. Readers learn about the latest research findings immediately, before they’re available elsewhere. Sally, who is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, is also the author of Place Advantage: Applied Psychology for Interior Architecture (Wiley, 2009) and, with Cindy Coleman, The Designer’s Guide to Doing Research: Applying Knowledge to Inform Design (Wiley, 2012). She is a principal at Design With Science (www.designwithscience.com) and can be reached at sallyaugustin@designwithscience.com.