A selection of articles in today's online newspapers make me wonder about the effects of travel and conferences, diet and outdoor activities on health.
I should be looking at transport to England and the World Travel Market.
The event is changing from four days to three. One of the reasons given is that the sales people conducting selling and buying at the show would prefer a three day event to four. Three longer days. That cuts down costs of travel to and from the show daily, the overnight hotel accommodation for foreign visitors and the hours away from the home office desk.
What about the effects on health of the building? Other articles have looked at the effects of sunlight and vitamin D on asthma. We have all known for years that too little sunlight causes health problems, although so does too much. (Too little sunlight ... I'll research this later and come back; too much sunlight skin cancer and possibly an effect on the eyes.)
Quite apart from any difficulty getting out in the case of a fire, it's good to focus the eyes on the distance and to breathe fresh air. Some of the conference areas and bars at ExCel look out over the water. Smokers are ironically the people who go looking for the outdoors. It's a very long walk to either end of the building. So sign of exits along the middle. How do you get out in a fire, or other emergency?
Then there are the simple logistics. Dragging a suitcase on wheels to collect brochures and free samples (exhibition visitors) or set up (stand organisers) - yet you are faced with staircases.
And toilets. Why not have toilets on every floor. Architects should consider this. You have the plumbing in place, the staircases, the water pipes, the sewage pipes. So much wasted time going up and down stairs. You can't take a toilet break.
You lose you friends and family. You break off a meeting. Your contact thinks you have abandoned them and goes away. You leave your heavy bag with a stranger because you can't carry it up and down the stairs to the toilets.You leave your stand unmanned during your food and toilet breaks. In offices you have food trolleys bringing water and coffee. surely these could visit stands.
A conference centre caters to hundreds of people. Some will be in wheelchairs or walking with sticks, have twisted ankles from ski accidents and sports even if young. As for the Over 50 show - do you really expect several thousand over 50 visitors and those at shows for pensioners (retirees) to not need more ground level toilets. (Plus older people need toilets more often. So do younger women, pregnant women and nursing mothers needing to feed children and people with toddlers and those needing to change babies.)
One article I looked at was on the benefits and dangers of cats and dogs and animals and farms in immune systems. Another was on cats and lions can turn on you any time. Another was on vitamin D saving you from allergies. Another thought was that hairless dogs may help those who already have allergies but like dust mites, it's what comes out of, or off, the creature which causes problems. Dogs and other animals lick to clean themselves and the skin dropping is coated with bacteria.On the subject of bacteria, it's the good bacteria in fruit fibres which causes the protective effect.
So what Do I need in a conference building, disco, evening meeting? A chance to walk, eat fruit, drink water rather than alcohol.
My other discovery on the thealh front is that sweet wines have lower alcohol content. I was looking at a bottle of low alcohol lambrusco. A pink drink with only 4% alcohol. Like been's lower level of alcohol. Workers tend to drink beer in the daytime.
Traditionally wine would be drunk in the evening. After six. (When ladies wore diamonds - not during working hours.)You don't want to get drunk while operating machinery, or even walking about.
As for conference centres. No I don't want to drink acohol during my working day and walk up and down flights of stairs, and have long walks to the loo on a diet of coffee and alcohol.
More and more stands are offering free water. The dehydration effect of conference centres makes you tired. One for the road is a glass of water.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-22570859
asthma.org.uk
https://www.nhs.uk/symptom-checker
I should be looking at transport to England and the World Travel Market.
The event is changing from four days to three. One of the reasons given is that the sales people conducting selling and buying at the show would prefer a three day event to four. Three longer days. That cuts down costs of travel to and from the show daily, the overnight hotel accommodation for foreign visitors and the hours away from the home office desk.
What about the effects on health of the building? Other articles have looked at the effects of sunlight and vitamin D on asthma. We have all known for years that too little sunlight causes health problems, although so does too much. (Too little sunlight ... I'll research this later and come back; too much sunlight skin cancer and possibly an effect on the eyes.)
Quite apart from any difficulty getting out in the case of a fire, it's good to focus the eyes on the distance and to breathe fresh air. Some of the conference areas and bars at ExCel look out over the water. Smokers are ironically the people who go looking for the outdoors. It's a very long walk to either end of the building. So sign of exits along the middle. How do you get out in a fire, or other emergency?
Then there are the simple logistics. Dragging a suitcase on wheels to collect brochures and free samples (exhibition visitors) or set up (stand organisers) - yet you are faced with staircases.
And toilets. Why not have toilets on every floor. Architects should consider this. You have the plumbing in place, the staircases, the water pipes, the sewage pipes. So much wasted time going up and down stairs. You can't take a toilet break.
You lose you friends and family. You break off a meeting. Your contact thinks you have abandoned them and goes away. You leave your heavy bag with a stranger because you can't carry it up and down the stairs to the toilets.You leave your stand unmanned during your food and toilet breaks. In offices you have food trolleys bringing water and coffee. surely these could visit stands.
A conference centre caters to hundreds of people. Some will be in wheelchairs or walking with sticks, have twisted ankles from ski accidents and sports even if young. As for the Over 50 show - do you really expect several thousand over 50 visitors and those at shows for pensioners (retirees) to not need more ground level toilets. (Plus older people need toilets more often. So do younger women, pregnant women and nursing mothers needing to feed children and people with toddlers and those needing to change babies.)
One article I looked at was on the benefits and dangers of cats and dogs and animals and farms in immune systems. Another was on cats and lions can turn on you any time. Another was on vitamin D saving you from allergies. Another thought was that hairless dogs may help those who already have allergies but like dust mites, it's what comes out of, or off, the creature which causes problems. Dogs and other animals lick to clean themselves and the skin dropping is coated with bacteria.On the subject of bacteria, it's the good bacteria in fruit fibres which causes the protective effect.
So what Do I need in a conference building, disco, evening meeting? A chance to walk, eat fruit, drink water rather than alcohol.
My other discovery on the thealh front is that sweet wines have lower alcohol content. I was looking at a bottle of low alcohol lambrusco. A pink drink with only 4% alcohol. Like been's lower level of alcohol. Workers tend to drink beer in the daytime.
Traditionally wine would be drunk in the evening. After six. (When ladies wore diamonds - not during working hours.)You don't want to get drunk while operating machinery, or even walking about.
As for conference centres. No I don't want to drink acohol during my working day and walk up and down flights of stairs, and have long walks to the loo on a diet of coffee and alcohol.
More and more stands are offering free water. The dehydration effect of conference centres makes you tired. One for the road is a glass of water.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-22570859
asthma.org.uk
https://www.nhs.uk/symptom-checker
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