"When Clean Angels Calls, I Run": Working Conditions of a Gigified Care-Worker

In this chapter, Marisol Keller sheds the light on subjectivities and living realities of gig workers that work on digital care platforms. She connects her autoethnographic empirical data with the idea of platform urbanism and the understanding of platforms as critical infrastructures in cities. Her findings present how workers navigate urban spaces in rhythms demanded by the platforms and thereby (re)negotiate power imbalances that are deliberately produced by the platform. Her conclusions unveil the enormous power of the platforms in shaping spatial and temporal patterns of gig workers and care labor in today's cities

Mitochondrial physiology

As the knowledge base and importance of mitochondrial physiology to evolution, health and disease expands, the necessity for harmonizing the terminology concerning mitochondrial respiratory states and rates has become increasingly apparent. The chemiosmotic theory establishes the mechanism of energy transformation and coupling in oxidative phosphorylation. The unifying concept of the protonmotive force provides the framework for developing a consistent theoretical foundation of mitochondrial physiology and bioenergetics. We follow the latest SI guidelines and those of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) on terminology in physical chemistry, extended by considerations of open systems and thermodynamics of irreversible processes. The concept-driven constructive terminology incorporates the meaning of each quantity and aligns concepts and symbols with the nomenclature of classical bioenergetics. We endeavour to provide a balanced view of mitochondrial respiratory control and a critical discussion on reporting data of mitochondrial respiration in terms of metabolic flows and fluxes. Uniform standards for evaluation of respiratory states and rates will ultimately contribute to reproducibility between laboratories and thus support the development of data repositories of mitochondrial respiratory function in species, tissues, and cells. Clarity of concept and consistency of nomenclature facilitate effective transdisciplinary communication, education, and ultimately further discovery

Mitochondrial physiology

As the knowledge base and importance of mitochondrial physiology to evolution, health and disease expands, the necessity for harmonizing the terminology concerning mitochondrial respiratory states and rates has become increasingly apparent. The chemiosmotic theory establishes the mechanism of energy transformation and coupling in oxidative phosphorylation. The unifying concept of the protonmotive force provides the framework for developing a consistent theoretical foundation of mitochondrial physiology and bioenergetics. We follow the latest SI guidelines and those of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) on terminology in physical chemistry, extended by considerations of open systems and thermodynamics of irreversible processes. The concept-driven constructive terminology incorporates the meaning of each quantity and aligns concepts and symbols with the nomenclature of classical bioenergetics. We endeavour to provide a balanced view of mitochondrial respiratory control and a critical discussion on reporting data of mitochondrial respiration in terms of metabolic flows and fluxes. Uniform standards for evaluation of respiratory states and rates will ultimately contribute to reproducibility between laboratories and thus support the development of data repositories of mitochondrial respiratory function in species, tissues, and cells. Clarity of concept and consistency of nomenclature facilitate effective transdisciplinary communication, education, and ultimately further discovery

Male privilege revisited: how men in female‐dominated occupations notice and actively reframe privilege

Our article aims at refocusing the debate in privilege studies from tackling the invisibility to challenging justifications of gender privilege. Focusing on instances in which men acknowledge that they receive preferential treatment, this study sheds light on how privilege is perceived and talked about in interviews with men in female-dominated occupations. In contrast to existing literature on the invisibility of privilege to the privileged, our analysis shows that the privileging of men is indeed known to them. However, our interviewees then employ specific discursive strategies to actively reframe and thereby silence privilege. They either justify privilege as an individual achievement or as a natural advantage of male bodies. In our discussion, we show how these discursive reframings build on existing discourses on gendered bodies and neoliberal subjectivity. Based on our key argument that gendered privilege is not invisible, but it is acknowledged and then actively reframed and thereby silenced, we argue for expanding the focus of privilege studies: Instead of primarily investing in making privilege visible to those who have it, we need to challenge the discourses that allow for reframing and silencing it

«Ohne die App geht gar nichts»: Aus dem Alltag einer Batmaid-Mitarbeiterin

Anna Silveira1 kam ursprünglich als Saisonarbeiterin in die Schweiz und arbeitete über viele Jahre in der Reinigung von Hotels. Nach längerer Arbeitssuche ohne Erfolg entschied sie sich im letzten Herbst erstmals dazu, sich bei Batmaid als Reinigungsfachfrau zu bewerben. Im Interview spricht Anna Silveira über ihren Alltag und ihre Arbeit für die Arbeitsvermittlungsplattform Batmaid

Getting the first gig: Exploring the affective relations of accessing place-based platform labour

Platform labour has established itself as a new form of work in recent years. The platforms themselves advertise the flexibility and freedom of being an independent contractor as beneficial characteristics of their working arrangements. However, existing studies show that these promises do not always correspond to workers' lived experiences. While manifold research discusses the often precarious working conditions of established platform workers, less is known about gaining access to gig work in the first place. This paper draws attention to onboarding processes in the place-based gig economy. From a feminist geography perspective and building on geographies of affect, this paper analyses the process of getting a first paid gig, focusing on how emotions shape platform workers' daily lives. Through autoethnography, I reflect on my own experiences of trying to establish myself as paid platform worker. Contrary to common assumptions, I argue that access to the place-based gig economy is not necessarily straightforward. The paper shows how the labour mediation processes implemented by the platforms create in- and exclusions from the beginning. By letting the workers chase a first gig, the platform capitalises on extended unpaid labour, which is key in maintaining the value production in the gig economy itself

"Opening up spaces for thought": Konstruktiver Dialog zwischen Geographie und Geographiedidaktik am Beispiel Kinder- und Jugendgeographien

In a seminar, the authors of this article (6 bachelor- and master students and their teacher) sought to connect the geographies of children and youth with new possibilities of thinking and writing about didactics in geography. This article is the result of our engagement with geography and cooperative writing. In a course seminar, we encountered individual and collective learning transcending conventional hierarchies of knowledge production at university level. In sum, we consider the seminar and its outcome a straightforward success. Der Beitrag geht der Frage nach, wie fachliche Inhalte mit neuen Möglichkeiten eines kooperativen Schreibens und Denkens über Geographie/-didaktik verbunden werden können. In- haltlich stehen Kinder- und Jugendgeographien im Mittelpunkt. Die Bilanz zum kooperativen Schreibprozess fällt positiv aus: Die Autor*innen, 6 Bachelor- und Masterstudierende und ihre Dozentin, konnten nicht nur individuelle und gemeinsame Lernfortschritte erfahren, sondern auch neue Formen der Wissensproduktion ausloten

Die digitale Plattform als Chefin: Arbeiten für die Gig-Economy

Seit wenigen Jahren sind digitale Plattformen wie Helpling, Coople oder Batmaid auch in der Schweiz als Vermittlerinnen von Mikrojobs aktiv. Wie funktioniert Plattformarbeit? Und welche Potenziale bietet die Plattformarbeit zur Veränderung bestehender Geschlechterungleichheiten