AI (Apple Intelligence) launched in late October 2024. Apple’s new products excite a lot of people. Take this quiz and find out if you can tell the difference between hype and hyperbole, particularly with some Apple products that may impact occupational health.

True or False: Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 passive mode (shut off, no battery) has an NRR 10 that is derived from 40 CFR Part 211, Subpart B. In layman terms, when a worker is exposed to 94 dBA and AirPods Pro 2 is used for hearing protection, attenuated noise reaching the worker’s ears is only 84 dBA. OSHA 29 CFR 1910.95 establishes that noise below 85 dBA is recognized as “safe” for regulatory purposes.

True or False: Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 used with Noise Cancellation Mode can attenuate noise by 25-30 dB, as derived from ANSI/ASA S12.68-2007.

True or False: An employee may use an Apple AirPods 2 along with a compatible iPhone or iPad to create a “clinical grade” audiogram within 5 minutes.

True or False: When the audiogram in question 3 detects hearing loss, adjustments can be automatically applied to phone calls, music, movies and games across all the user’s Apple devices to allow them to hear sounds normally. 

True or False: The “Hearing Aid Feature” in question 4 is approved by the FDA to amplify sounds for individuals 18 years or older with perceived mild to moderate hearing impairment. 

True or False: The federal government established guidelines in 2022 to advance the above hearing aid technologies to achieve reductions in frequency or severity of cognitive decline and depression among adults.

True or False: If questions 1-6 above are all True, the FDA would still require the technology to be valid only when accompanied by a medical exam, medical prescription or seeing an audiologist.

True or False: The Health app and Cycle Tracking app used, respectively, with Apple iOS 16 and Apple watchOS 9 can detect menstrual Cycle Deviation, such as the possibility of infertility. OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard at 29 CFR 1910.1200 contains requirements for a Hazard Statement for chemicals that may “damage fertility.” These are two separate issues, and they have no relationships at the workplace.

True or False: Apple’s 2023 Regulated Substances Specification 069-0135-M prohibits Toluene from being found in any Apple product at 5 ppm Minimal Detection Limit using solvent extraction and analyzed by GC-MS or HPLC-MS. Apple’s actions toward Toluene are sufficient to avoid any prenatal tort liability risk.

True or False: PWFA at 29 CFR 1636.3(f)(2) Example 1, allows Akira to “avoid” certain chemicals found in a paint manufacturing plant. Assume the chemical of interest is Toluene with OSHA GHS Hazard Statement H361: Suspected of damaging fertility or the unborn child. Assume Akira is concerned about the health of her pregnancy. The PWFA allows Akira, along with her chosen HCP, as necessary, to define what avoid means. In this case, the HCP encourages Akira to avoid Toluene “above its minimal detection limit.” The plant’s OHS pro measures Toluene with a Gastec Dosimeter Tube with a TWA range between 2-500 ppm that was worn by Akira. No color change was observed with the tube during Akira’s daily work. The OHS pro shows Akira the results from the tube and advises Akira that no Toluene was detected in the air sample. The OHS pro advises Akira that the OSHA PEL for Toluene is 200 ppm and its ACGIH TLV© 8-hr. TWA is 20 ppm. The OHS pro’s actions are sufficient to avoid any prenatal tort liability risk.

ANSWERS: Questions 7, 8, and 10 are False. The rest are True. Answers are based upon my understanding of the topic. A score less than 70% correct warrants greater technology awareness.

Technological advancements

People soon will be separated by those that use technology and those that are abused by technology. 

I am trying to keep pace with rapid advancements in technology. As soon as the Apple iPhone 16 hit the market, for example, I bought the Pro Max version with 1 TB of storage. I am now contemplating going all-in with the latest Apple ecosystem of products; where the watch integrates with the phone, the phone integrates with the tablet, and so on. I want all these products to do all that I can envision with my work career, particularly with AI capabilities.

Conflicted future

As the 2024 presidential election demonstrated, about one-half of the American public believes the other half are idiots. Conflict among people, particularly conflict interpreting occupational health issues, is certain to grow. Questions 8, 9 and 10 are examples of these future conflicts. 

Courts will need expert witnesses to help resolve these conflicts. I have been prepping my career to excel in winning these conflicts. I cannot win these conflicts without a firm grasp of technology and being able to explain technology in plain language to the public, triers of fact, or a jury, where applicable. 

My concern is that I will need to compete with AI to initially frame arguments. For example, I asked AI to put the following sentence in plain language: “The EPA’s 2023 worker ECEL for Trichloroethylene is 0.0011 ppm.” AI explained the acronyms. AI was able to explain that 0.0011 ppm is equivalent to about one second in 32 years with just a few prompts. Playing with AI, I realized that it will always be smarter and quicker to answer questions than me.

When workers such as Akira (question 10) let AI guide them in determining reasonable PWFA accommodations, we all must learn to manage new conflicts. In Akira’s case, I firmly believe that AI will not agree that colorimetric tube sample measurements will suffice to “avoid” exposure to Toluene. Anticipating this problem, I banked on getting “Industrial Hygienist” placed into the PWFA final rules, to stay a couple steps ahead of AI.

Example now

If you want to see right now how technology is advancing, go to https://notebooklm.google.com. Link this article, or any article or report available to you, at the web page. Within a few short moments listen to the “deep dive” podcast discuss the article. The podcast goes beyond the words in the article. The two podcasters sound very real, but they are just AI. Amazing. More amazingly, you may up the verbal podcast to other technologies and watch a webcast where the speakers look human, but again they are AI.

Conclusion

Technology is everywhere. I just asked Siri (AI enhanced) how many people in the world use smartphones in 2024. She said 7 billion. I fact-checked Siri. Reputable online sources claim there are slightly over 8 billion people in the world. I don’t think Siri gave me the correct answer. I am too busy to debate Siri over a trivial issue, however. Should we trust Siri in this situation, or not? Be prepared for seemingly endless decisions on technology use. Your choice is simple, either keep pace with advancements in technology or be prepared for abuse.