Masculinity at work: The experiences of men in female dominated occupations

This paper presents the findings of a research project on the implications of men's non-traditional career choices for their experiences within the organization and for gender identity. The research is based on 40 in-depth interviews with male workers from four occupational groups: librarian-ship, cabin crew, nurses and primary school teachers. Results suggest a typology of male workers in female dominated occupations: seekers (who actively seek the career), finders (who find the occupation in the process of making general career decisions) and settlers (who settle into the career after periods of time in mainly male dominated occupations). Men benefit from their minority status through assumptions of enhanced leadership (the assumed authority effect), by being given differential treatment (the special consideration effect) and being associated with a more careerist attitude to work (the career effect). At the same time, they feel comfortable working with women (the zone of comfort effect). Despite this comfort, men adopt a variety of strategies to re-establish a masculinity that has been undermined by the 'feminine' nature of their work. These include re-labeling, status enhancement and distancing from the feminine. The dynamics of maintaining and reproducing masculinities within the non-traditional work setting are discussed in the light of recent theorising around gender, masculinity and work

Gamma radiation survey of the LDEF spacecraft

The retrieval of the Long Duration Exposure Facility spacecraft in January 1990 after nearly six years in orbit offered a unique opportunity to study the long term buildup of induced radioactivity in the variety of materials on board. We conducted the first complete gamma-ray survey of a large spacecraft on LDEF shortly after its return to earth. A surprising observation was the Be-7 activity which was seen primarily on the leading edge of the satellite, implying that it was picked up by LDEF in orbit. This is the first known evidence for accretion of a radioactive isotope onto an orbiting spacecraft. Other isotopes observed during the survey, the strongest being Na-22, are all attributed to activation of spacecraft components. Be-7 is a spallation product of cosmic rays on nitrogen and oxygen in the upper atmosphere. However, the observed density is much greater than expected due to cosmic-ray production in situ. This implies transport of Be-7 from much lower altitudes up to the LDEF orbit

The significance of seniority for women managers’ interpretations of organizational restructuring

This paper examines the impact of restructuring within the transport and logistics sector on women managers working at senior and less senior (middle/junior management) levels of the organization. The majority of women experienced increased performance pressures and heavier workloads as well as an increase in working hours. At the same time, there were pressures to work at home (i.e. week-ends and evenings) and reduced opportunities to work from home (i.e. during normal office hours). Management level emerged as an important factor in how these changes were interpreted. Senior managers perceived more positive outcomes in terms of increased motivation and loyalty. Despite a longer working week, they were less likely to report low morale as an outcome from long hours. In fact, irrespective of management level, women working shorter hours were more likely to report low morale as an outcome. Results are discussed in relation to literature on restructuring and careers, in terms of perceptual framing and in relation to different levels of investment in the organization

Gold nanomaterials functionalised with gadolinium chelates and their application in multimodal imaging and therapy

Over the last decade, much work has been dedicated to improving the performance of gadolinium-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents by tethering them to biocompatible gold nanoparticles. The enhancement in performance (measured in terms of ‘relaxivity’) stems from the restriction in motion experienced by the gadolinium chelates on being attached to the gold nanoparticle surface. More recently, the unique properties of gold nanoparticles have been exploited to create very promising tools for multimodal imaging and MRI-guided therapies. This review addresses the progress made in the design of gadolinium-functionalised gold nanoparticles for use in MRI, multimodal imaging and theranostics. It also seeks to connect the chemical properties of these assemblies with potential application in the clinic

A Phase Transition between Small and Large Field Models of Inflation

We show that models of inflection point inflation exhibit a phase transition from a region in parameter space where they are of large field type to a region where they are of small field type. The phase transition is between a universal behavior, with respect to the initial condition, at the large field region and non-universal behavior at the small field region. The order parameter is the number of e-foldings. We find integer critical exponents at the transition between the two phases.Comment: 21 pages, 8 figure

The puzzling case of the radio-loud QSO 3C 186: a gravitational wave recoiling black hole in a young radio source?

Context. Radio-loud AGNs with powerful relativistic jets are thought to be associated with rapidly spinning black holes (BHs). BH spin-up may result from a number of processes, including accretion of matter onto the BH itself, and catastrophic events such as BH-BH mergers. Aims. We study the intriguing properties of the powerful (L_bol ~ 10^47 erg s^-1) radio-loud quasar 3C 186. This object shows peculiar features both in the images and in the spectra. Methods. We utilize near-IR Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images to study the properties of the host galaxy, and HST UV and Sloan Digital Sky Survey optical spectra to study the kinematics of the source. Chandra X-ray data are also used to better constrain the physical interpretation. Results. HST imaging shows that the active nucleus is offset by 1.3 +- 0.1 arcsec (i.e. ~11 kpc) with respect to the center of the host galaxy. Spectroscopic data show that the broad emission lines are offset by -2140 +-390 km/s with respect to the narrow lines. Velocity shifts are often seen in QSO spectra, in particular in high-ionization broad emission lines. The host galaxy of the quasar displays a distorted morphology with possible tidal features that are typical of the late stages of a galaxy merger. Conclusions. A number of scenarios can be envisaged to account for the observed features. While the presence of a peculiar outflow cannot be completely ruled out, all of the observed features are consistent with those expected if the QSO is associated with a gravitational wave (GW) recoiling BH. Future detailed studies of this object will allow us to confirm this type of scenario and will enable a better understanding of both the physics of BH-BH mergers and the phenomena associated with the emission of GW from astrophysical sources.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics. New appendix adde

Key Issues for Navigation and Time Dissemination in NASA's Space Exploration Program

The renewed emphasis on robotic and human missions within NASA's space exploration program warrants a detailed consideration of how the positions of objects in space will be determined and tracked, whether they be spacecraft, human explorers, robots, surface vehicles, or science instrumentation. The Navigation Team within the NASA Space Communications Architecture Working Group (SCAWG) has addressed several key technical issues in this area and the principle findings are reported here. For navigation in the vicinity of the Moon, a variety of satellite constellations have been investigated that provide global or regional surface position determination and timely services analogous to those offered by GPS at Earth. In the vicinity of Mars, there are options for satellite constellations not available at the Moon due to the gravitational perturbations from Earth, such as two satellites in an aerostationary orbit. Alternate methods of radiometric navigation as considered, including one- and two-way signals, as well as autonomous navigation. The use of a software radio capable of receiving all available signal sources, such as GPS, pseudolites, and communication channels, is discussed. Methods of time transfer and dissemination are also considered in this paper

Isoflavones in Legumes as Functional Forages and Feeds in Ruminant Grazing Systems

Legumes are often utilized in livestock grazing systems to improve diet quality, diversity, and consequently animal performance. In addition to their nutritional utility, legumes contain phytoestrogenic isoflavones that have selective antimicrobial activity in the rumen and once absorbed can cause arterial vasodilation. These added bioactive functions of isoflavones suggest that legumes could be strategically utilized in grazing systems as functional forages to improve ruminant performance and health. The objective of this presentation will be to discuss past and current research on the application of isoflavones via legumes as an antimicrobial for growth promotion and as a mitigation strategy for fescue toxicosis in grazing ruminants