‘Being Yourself’ in the Electronic Sweatshop: New Forms of Normative Control

This article extends research about high-commitment management practices in tightly controlled work environments typified by the call centre. One promising research avenue suggests that normative management systems in such contexts, involving ‘fun’ exercises and culture programmes, etc., are more about distracting employee attention away from other, more taxing controls. This article develops such an approach by exploring the specific nature and conditions of such distraction. An empirical study of a call centre in which employees were encouraged to ‘just be themselves’ (in relation to lifestyle differences, sexuality, diverse identities, etc.) reveals how the distractions are partly informed by the dysfunctions of existing technical, bureaucratic and conventional cultural controls, all of which homogenize workers. Furthermore, the new regime not only serves to distract employees, but proves instrumental in capturing their sociality, energy and ‘authentic’ or ‘non-work’ personalities as emotional labour. At the same time, it gives rise to some contestation and less individualistic forms of authenticity. These outcomes have wider implications for our understanding of worker autonomy in and around hybrid control systems

Search for new physics in events with opposite-sign leptons, jets, and missing transverse energy in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

A search is presented for physics beyond the standard model (BSM) in final states with a pair of opposite-sign isolated leptons accompanied by jets and missing transverse energy. The search uses LHC data recorded at a center-of-mass energy sqrt(s) = 7 TeV with the CMS detector, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of approximately 5 inverse femtobarns. Two complementary search strategies are employed. The first probes models with a specific dilepton production mechanism that leads to a characteristic kinematic edge in the dilepton mass distribution. The second strategy probes models of dilepton production with heavy, colored objects that decay to final states including invisible particles, leading to very large hadronic activity and missing transverse energy. No evidence for an event yield in excess of the standard model expectations is found. Upper limits on the BSM contributions to the signal regions are deduced from the results, which are used to exclude a region of the parameter space of the constrained minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard model. Additional information related to detector efficiencies and response is provided to allow testing specific models of BSM physics not considered in this paper.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

The feasibility of a randomised controlled trial to compare the cost-effectiveness of palliative cardiology or usual care in people with advanced heart failure: Two exploratory prospective cohorts

© 2018, © The Author(s) 2018. Background: The effectiveness of cardiology-led palliative care is unknown; we have insufficient information to conduct a full trial. Aim: To assess the feasibility (recruitment/retention, data quality, variability/sample size estimation, safety) of a clinical trial of palliative cardiology effectiveness. Design: Non-randomised feasibility. Setting/participants: Unmatched symptomatic heart failure patients on optimal cardiac treatment from (1) cardiology-led palliative service (caring together group) and (2) heart failure liaison service (usual care group). Outcomes/safety: Symptoms (Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale), Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire, performance, understanding of disease, anticipatory care planning, cost-effectiveness, survival and carer burden. Results: A total of 77 participants (caring together group = 43; usual care group = 34) were enrolled (53% men; mean age 77 years (33–100)). The caring together group scored worse in Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (43.5 vs 35.2) and Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (35.4 vs 39.9). The caring together group had a lower consent/screen ratio (1:1.7 vs 1: 2.8) and few died before approach (0.08% vs 16%) or declined invitation (17% vs 37%). Data quality: At 4 months, 74% in the caring together group and 71% in the usual care group provided data. Most attrition was due to death or deterioration. Data quality in self-report measures was otherwise good. Safety: There was no difference in survival. Symptoms and quality of life improved in both groups. A future trial requires 141 (202 allowing 30% attrition) to detect a minimal clinical difference (1 point) in Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale score for breathlessness (80% power). More participants (176; 252 allowing 30% attrition) are needed to detect a 10.5 change in Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire score (80% power; minimum clinical difference = 5). Conclusion: A trial to test the clinical effectiveness (improvement in breathlessness) of cardiology-led palliative care is feasible

Evolution of the Southwest Indian Ridge from 55°45′E to 62°E : changes in plate-boundary geometry since 26 Ma

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2007. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 8 (2007): Q06022, doi:10.1029/2006GC001559.From 55°45′E to 58°45′E and from 60°30′E to 62°00′E, the ultraslow-spreading Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR) consists of magmatic spreading segments separated by oblique amagmatic spreading segments, transform faults, and nontransform discontinuities. Off-axis magnetic and multibeam bathymetric data permit investigation of the evolution of this part of the SWIR. Individual magmatic segments show varying magnitudes and directions of asymmetric spreading, which requires that the shape of the plate boundary has changed significantly over time. In particular, since 26 Ma the Atlantis II transform fault grew by 90 km to reach 199 km, while a 45-km-long transform fault at 56°30′E shrank to become an 11 km offset nontransform discontinuity. Conversely, an oblique amagmatic segment at the center of a first-order spreading segment shows little change in orientation with time. These changes are consistent with the clockwise rotation of two ~450-km-wide first-order spreading segments between the Gallieni and Melville transform faults (52–60°E) to become more orthogonal to spreading. We suggest that suborthogonal first-order spreading segments reflect a stable configuration for mid-ocean ridges that maximizes upwelling rates in the asthenospheric mantle and results in a hotter and weaker ridge-axis that can more easily accommodate seafloor spreading.Funding for this work came from a JOI-Schlanger Fellowship to Baines and NSF grant 0352054 to Cheadle and John

Prognostic model to predict postoperative acute kidney injury in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery based on a national prospective observational cohort study.

Background: Acute illness, existing co-morbidities and surgical stress response can all contribute to postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery. The aim of this study was prospectively to develop a pragmatic prognostic model to stratify patients according to risk of developing AKI after major gastrointestinal surgery. Methods: This prospective multicentre cohort study included consecutive adults undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection, liver resection or stoma reversal in 2-week blocks over a continuous 3-month period. The primary outcome was the rate of AKI within 7 days of surgery. Bootstrap stability was used to select clinically plausible risk factors into the model. Internal model validation was carried out by bootstrap validation. Results: A total of 4544 patients were included across 173 centres in the UK and Ireland. The overall rate of AKI was 14·2 per cent (646 of 4544) and the 30-day mortality rate was 1·8 per cent (84 of 4544). Stage 1 AKI was significantly associated with 30-day mortality (unadjusted odds ratio 7·61, 95 per cent c.i. 4·49 to 12·90; P < 0·001), with increasing odds of death with each AKI stage. Six variables were selected for inclusion in the prognostic model: age, sex, ASA grade, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate, planned open surgery and preoperative use of either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker. Internal validation demonstrated good model discrimination (c-statistic 0·65). Discussion: Following major gastrointestinal surgery, AKI occurred in one in seven patients. This preoperative prognostic model identified patients at high risk of postoperative AKI. Validation in an independent data set is required to ensure generalizability

Mortality and pulmonary complications in patients undergoing surgery with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection: an international cohort study

Background: The impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on postoperative recovery needs to be understood to inform clinical decision making during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. This study reports 30-day mortality and pulmonary complication rates in patients with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: This international, multicentre, cohort study at 235 hospitals in 24 countries included all patients undergoing surgery who had SARS-CoV-2 infection confirmed within 7 days before or 30 days after surgery. The primary outcome measure was 30-day postoperative mortality and was assessed in all enrolled patients. The main secondary outcome measure was pulmonary complications, defined as pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, or unexpected postoperative ventilation. Findings: This analysis includes 1128 patients who had surgery between Jan 1 and March 31, 2020, of whom 835 (74·0%) had emergency surgery and 280 (24·8%) had elective surgery. SARS-CoV-2 infection was confirmed preoperatively in 294 (26·1%) patients. 30-day mortality was 23·8% (268 of 1128). Pulmonary complications occurred in 577 (51·2%) of 1128 patients; 30-day mortality in these patients was 38·0% (219 of 577), accounting for 81·7% (219 of 268) of all deaths. In adjusted analyses, 30-day mortality was associated with male sex (odds ratio 1·75 [95% CI 1·28–2·40], p\textless0·0001), age 70 years or older versus younger than 70 years (2·30 [1·65–3·22], p\textless0·0001), American Society of Anesthesiologists grades 3–5 versus grades 1–2 (2·35 [1·57–3·53], p\textless0·0001), malignant versus benign or obstetric diagnosis (1·55 [1·01–2·39], p=0·046), emergency versus elective surgery (1·67 [1·06–2·63], p=0·026), and major versus minor surgery (1·52 [1·01–2·31], p=0·047). Interpretation: Postoperative pulmonary complications occur in half of patients with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection and are associated with high mortality. Thresholds for surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic should be higher than during normal practice, particularly in men aged 70 years and older. Consideration should be given for postponing non-urgent procedures and promoting non-operative treatment to delay or avoid the need for surgery. Funding: National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland, Bowel and Cancer Research, Bowel Disease Research Foundation, Association of Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeons, British Association of Surgical Oncology, British Gynaecological Cancer Society, European Society of Coloproctology, NIHR Academy, Sarcoma UK, Vascular Society for Great Britain and Ireland, and Yorkshire Cancer Research

Abrupt Onsets in Visual Search: Foundations and Emerging Issues

The study of attentional allocation due to external stimulation has a long history in psychology. Since the early work by Yantis and Jonides, there has been a growing and consistent interest in the effect of abrupt visual onsets on such attentional allocation. Yantis and Jonides concluded that abrupt onsets constitute a possibly unique class of stimuli that captures attention in a stimulus-driven fashion, unless attention is proactively directed elsewhere. Since then, the field of visual search has evolved significantly. This article revisits the core conclusions by Yantis and Jonides in light of subsequent evidence and highlights emerging issues for future investigation. We argue that perhaps due to their strong potential to capture attention, abrupt onsets are often set aside as a special case in pursuit of conditions that show attenuation of capture by other types of distractors, such as color singletons. However, given their prevalence in real life, abrupt onsets represent the exact type of stimuli that we need to study more to understand the mechanisms of attentional guidance, including whether abrupt onsets can be suppressed. We also propose using methods that more precisely measure the temporal and spatial dynamics of visual attention beyond making binary judgments about whether attention is captured or not. We provide an example, the forced-response method, that might be suitable for this endeavor

Dissociating Parallel and Serial Processing of Numerical Value

Digits serve as useful tools for studying the interaction between low-level perceptual representations and higher-level semantic information, and also the degree to which processing these stimulus attributes relies on similar or different mechanisms. Following a body of literature that debates the influence of high-level, semantic information on perceptual processing, and work by Van Opstal and colleagues (2011) investigating whether subliminally presented digit arrays affect estimates of numerical averages, here we explored the temporal dynamics of extracting numerical values associated with each digit in an array. Specifically, we examined reaction times (RTs) for estimating the average of digit arrays of varying sizes to determine whether numerical meaning is extracted in parallel, or instead may require serial processing of individual digits. In Experiment 1, participants completed a numerical mean estimation task, along with visual search tasks designed to yield RT patterns across increasing display sizes thought to be characteristic of serial and parallel processes. In Experiment 2, we controlled for brightness cues that could have contributed to performance in Experiment 1. In both experiments, comparing RT patterns for the numerical averaging tasks to those of the search tasks suggested that semantic information from multiple digits may be extracted by a parallel processing mechanism. Unlike in either search task, RTs improved with increasing display size, indicating a potential benefit of larger displays as has been reported for extracting ensemble, or summary statistical representations of lower-level visual information