POTENTIAL CONFLICT OCCURS WHEN A B727 FLT CREW CLBS ABOVE THEIR ASSIGNED ALT OF FL290 TOWARDS THAT OF ANOTHER XING ACR FLT AT FL310 WHILE 60 NM NE OF GSO; NC.

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I WAS THE FE ON A FLT BTWN RIC AND ATL. DURING STEP-UP CLBOUT; THE FO WAS FLYING AND THE CAPT HANDLING THE RADIOS. AFTER FL180; I WAS DOING SOME PAPERWORK AND LISTENING UP ON THE RADIO. WE WERE LEVEL AT FL260 AND CLRED TO FL280 AND THEN FL290 BEFORE REACHING FL280. SHORTLY AFTER PASSING FL285; I SHIFTED MY ATTN TOTALLY UP FRONT AND SAW THAT FL310 WAS SET IN THE ALT ALERT SYS. I THOUGHT OUR LAST CLRNC WAS FL290 BUT ASSUMED I HAD MISSED SOMETHING. I WAS JUST ABOUT TO SAY SOMETHING WHEN ATC ASKED WHAT OUR ALT WAS. THE CAPT WAVED HIS HAND TO LEVEL OFF; WHICH THE FO DID. RIGHT AWAY ATC SAID TO 'GO AHEAD AND CONTINUE TO FL310.' A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR I BELIEVE IS THE LOCATION OF THE ALT ALERTER SELECTOR ON THE FORWARD R-HAND SIDE OF THE CTR PEDESTAL. I BELIEVE GLARE SHIELD MODELS ARE MUCH BETTER. THE HUMAN FACTORS; I BELIEVE WERE THAT I DIDN'T SPEAK UP INSTANTLY WHEN I NOTICED FL310 SET IN SINCE I WAS THINKING WE WERE CLRED TO FL290. THE OTHER HUMAN FACTOR WAS THE BREAKDOWN OF THE READBACK; SET AND POINT TO AND CONFIRM THE CLRNC ALT IS CORRECTLY SET IN THE ALT ALERT SYS.