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posted by cmn32480 on Wednesday August 05 2015, @12:18PM   Printer-friendly

Temperatures are set based on formulas that aimed to optimize employees' thermal comfort, a neutral condition of the body when it doesn't have to shiver to produce heat because it's too cold or sweat because it's too hot. It's based on four environmental factors: air temperature, radiant temperature, air velocity and humidity. And two personal factors: clothing and metabolic rate, the amount of energy required by the body to function.

The problem, according to a study in Nature Climate Change on Monday, is that metabolic rates can vary widely across humans based on a number of factors -- size, weight, age, fitness level and the type of work being done -- and today's standards are based on the assumption that every worker is, you guessed it, a man.

Or if you want to be really specific, a 40-year-old, 154-pound man.
...
Kingma and van Marken Lictenbelt's work builds on research out of Japan which found that the neutral temperature for Japanese women was 77.36 degrees (Fahrenheit) while it was 71.78 for European and North American males.

5.58 degrees is a significant difference. Is it better for half the people in the office to be sweaty than half the people in the office to be chilly?


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  • (Score: 3, Touché) by kurenai.tsubasa on Wednesday August 05 2015, @01:06PM

    by kurenai.tsubasa (5227) on Wednesday August 05 2015, @01:06PM (#218478) Journal

    Mine isn't, you insensitive clod! I think it's around 72-ish right now. 77°F is what I'm supposed to be comfortable at?! Holy shit! Are you trying to make me wear a miniskirt? Hentai!

    Srsly, everywhere I've worked the temperature is set by consensus. That means that one person is going to need to get out a space heater at the same temperature someone else will need one of those mini desk fans. Grow up, figure out how heavily you need to dress vs. your absolute fucking need to show off skin (be lucky I use actual skills for my job instead of being eye candy for men, otherwise my absolute cuteness would roflstomp you!), and live with it.

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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by VLM on Wednesday August 05 2015, @01:23PM

    by VLM (445) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday August 05 2015, @01:23PM (#218484)

    Are you trying to make me wear a miniskirt? Hentai!

    Tell people that's Japanese for "men's Scottish kilt". What could possibly go wrong?

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 05 2015, @06:06PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 05 2015, @06:06PM (#218685)

    Unfortunately no employer lets this hairy, broad man wear a miniskirt, sandals, and a razor-thin blouse with a plunging neckline. For some odd reason I have to wear a three-piece suit with an undershirt; attire that is appropriate for outside snowy weather but not so great in a 77 degree board meeting.

    • (Score: 3, Funny) by kurenai.tsubasa on Thursday August 06 2015, @12:37AM

      by kurenai.tsubasa (5227) on Thursday August 06 2015, @12:37AM (#218871) Journal

      You, fine sir (somewhat in line with VLM's proposal to ensure lols), need a Utilikilt [utilikilts.com]!

      Perhaps we can refocus this brave new social justice movement to charge forward in recognizing the kilt as the proper attire of true men!