Authorizing Tolkien: Control, Adaptation, and Dissemination of J.R.R. Tolkien\u27s Works

This article is the introduction to the special theme issue consisting of four essays on Authorizing Tolkien. Reid and Elam discuss medieval and postmodern theories of adaptation and interpretation and introduce the essays in the issue

Work organization and Technology : Introduction to the Theme of the Special Issue

The relationship between work organization and technology has been conceptualized in economic and sociological studies in a variety of ways, depending on the authors’ ontological premises and use of terminology (e.g., Leonardi & Barley, 2010; Mackenzie & Wajcman, 1985). For one thing, many economic analyses have not even regarded work organization as an analytical entity in itself but rather as a subcategory under an umbrella category of ‘technology’. In cases like this, the concept of technology has been used in the broad sense, also referring to human activities and know-how to do things. In many classical and modern sociological studies of work, the analytical distinction between work organization and technology has been of crucial importance, often based on a narrower concept of technology as a set of physical objects (...)Non peer reviewe

Work Organization and Technology: Introduction to the Theme of the Special Issue

The relationship between work organization and technology has been conceptualized in economic and sociological studies in a variety of ways, depending on the authors’ ontological premises and use of terminology (e.g., Leonardi & Barley, 2010; Mackenzie & Wajcman, 1985). For one thing, many economic analyses have not even regarded work organization as an analytical entity in itself but rather as a subcategory under an umbrella category of ‘technology’. In cases like this, the concept of technology has been used in the broad sense, also referring to human activities and know-how to do things. In many classical and modern sociological studies of work, the analytical distinction between work organization and technology has been of crucial importance, often based on a narrower concept of technology as a set of physical objects (...

Precarious Work in the Nordics: Introduction to The Theme of The Special Issue

In recent years, we have seen a growing body of literature with a strong focus on labour market inequalities. In the Anglo-Saxon literature, concepts such as the working poor and bad jobs have been applied to jobs in, for example, the US to describe jobs with low pay and inferior working conditions (Kalleberg 2011; Klein & Rones 1989). In the UK and other parts of Europe, the concept of the precariat is often used to capture the employment situations characterized by fragmented and insecure employment and low income (Standing 2011). Also in Germany, the discussion on labour market inequalities has been revitalised. The emergence of mini jobs and various forms of bogus self-employment (Scheinselbständige), etc. have gained momentum in the political and academic debates as part of a larger trend of labour market dualization in line with some of the early works on labour market segmentation (Brady & Biegert 2017) (...

Research in Information Systems Analysis and Design: Introduction to the Special Theme Papers

Information systems analysis and design are basic topics in the Information Systems (IS) curriculum. A large number of IS graduates are employed as information systems developers. However, research in the IS field pays relatively little attention to IS analysis and design topics. Few of the articles published in leading IS research journals in the last decade deal with these topics In response, CAIS and JAIS are jointly presenting Special Themes on Research in Information Systems Analysis and Design to begin to fill this void and to attract attention of researchers to this important area

Introduction to the Special Theme on Human-Robot Interaction

International audienceThis special issue addresses the state of the art of human-robot interaction (HRI), discussing the current challenges faced by the research community for integrating both physical and social interaction skills into current and future collaborative robots

Psychosocial reflections on fifty years of cultural and political revolution:

Guest Editors' introduction to the special edition of the journal Free Associations: Psychoanalysis and Culture, Media, Groups, Politics, on the special edition theme: 'Psychosocial Reflections on Fifty Years of Cultural and Political Revolution'

Three phases in the evolution of the standard genetic code: how translation could get started

A primordial genetic code is proposed, having only four codons assigned, GGC meaning glycine, GAC meaning aspartate/glutamate, GCC meaning alanine-like and GUC meaning valine-like. Pathways of ambiguity reduction enlarged the codon repertoire with CUC meaning leucine, AUC meaning isoleucine, ACC meaning threonine-like and GAG meaning glutamate. Introduction of UNN anticodons, in a next episode of code evolution in which nonsense elimination was the leading theme, introduced a family box structure superposed on the original mirror structure. Finally, growth rate was the leading theme during the remaining repertoire expansion, explaining the ordered phylogenetic pattern of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. The special role of natural aptamers in the process is high-lighted, and the error robustness characteristics of the code are shown to have evolved by way of a stepwise, restricted enlargement of the tRNA repertoire, instead of by an exhaustive selection process testing myriads of codes

Gendered Labor Market (dis)advantages in Nordic Welfare States. Introduction to the Theme of the Special Issue

Gender equality has been named as one of the normative foundations of Nordic wel- fare states. This is reflected in how, year after year, Nordic states rank among the most gender egalitarian countries in the world (see, e.g., World Economic Forum 2020). In Nordic countries, the state has been, and continues to be, a central actor in shaping women’s citizenship, labor market opportunities, and caring roles. Especially publicly funded welfare services and policies that facilitate the reconciliation of work and care have played a major part in advancing women’s labor market participation (see, e.g., Bergquist et al. 1999; Borchorst & Siim 2002; Ellingsæter & Leira 2006; Siim & Stoltz 2015). The institutional framework of Nordic welfare state policies has been central to what has been called the ‘social democratic public service route’ (Walby 2004).One of the important building blocks of gender equality has been the aim of making policies in Nordic countries ‘women-friendly’. More than 30 years ago, Helga Hernes (1987) identified the Nordic countries as ‘potentially women-friendly societies’. She char- acterized women-friendly societies as those that ‘would not force harder choices on women than on men’ (ibid., 15), particularly in relation to work and care. Hernes also envisaged that woman-friendliness should be achieved without increasing other forms of inequality, such as class or ethnicity-based inequalities among different groups of women.However, achieving gender equality in working life and the sort of womenfriendliness that Hernes envisaged at the societal level has in many ways also proved to be challenging, as the ties between the state and gender equality goals are more complex than what they might seem at first glance. Gender disparities have proven persistent also within the Nordic context. When we issued a call for this special issue, we were inter- ested in various forms of gendered labor market (dis)advantage in Nordic countries. Furthermore, we asked how gender segregation, welfare state policies, labor market policies, and various labor market actors interact to produce, maintain, challenge, or change gender equality in the labor market in the Nordic countries and beyond. The five articles presented in this special issue address the issue of gendered labor market (dis)advantages in Nordic countries from several vantage points, focusing on both on ‘traditional’ questions, such as corporate power and sustainable employment, and ‘emerging’ questions such as intersectionality, gender culture, and aesthetic work