Haonan Li, Elizabeth A. Holzhausen, Devendra Paudel
et al.
Abstract This study investigates independent and joint effects of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) components on early childhood neurodevelopment and explores emission sources of key toxic components. We included 165 mother-infant dyads from Southern California. Annual average concentrations of 15 PM2.5 components, including carbonaceous components, secondary inorganic salts, and trace elements, were estimated for the birth year. Neurodevelopment across cognitive, language, motor, social-emotional, and adaptive behavior domains was assessed at age 2 using Bayley-III Scales. Mixture effects and key contributors were evaluated using weighted quantile sum (WQS) and Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR). Source inference was conducted through inter-component clustering and spatial analysis. Linear regression showed PM2.5, sulfate (SO4 2−), nitrate (NO3 −), ammonium (NH4 +), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), and vanadium (V) were inversely, while calcium (Ca) and zinc (Zn) were positively, associated with adaptive behavior scores (p < 0.05). WQS showed negative associations between the mixture and adaptive behavior (p = 0.02–0.06), with Ni, Cu, V, and SO₄²⁻ as key contributors. BKMR showed similar trends. Ni, V, and SO4 2− likely originate from heavy oil combustion, and Cu from brake wear. Findings suggest that PM2.5 components, particularly from traffic and marine fuel combustion, may adversely affect adaptive behavior in early childhood.
Society 5.0 and Industry 5.0 call for human-centric technology integration, yet the concept lacks an operational definition that can be measured, optimized, or evaluated at the firm level. This paper addresses three gaps. First, existing models of human-AI complementarity treat the augmentation function phi(D) as exogenous -- dependent only on the stock of AI deployed -- ignoring that two firms with identical technology investments achieve radically different augmentation outcomes depending on how the workplace is organized around the human-AI interaction. Second, no multi-dimensional instrument exists linking workplace design choices to augmentation productivity. Third, the Society 5.0 literature proposes human-centricity as a normative aspiration but provides no formal criterion for when it is economically optimal. We make four contributions. (1) We endogenize the augmentation function as phi(D, W), where W is a five-dimensional workplace design vector -- AI interface design, decision authority allocation, task orchestration, learning loop architecture, and psychosocial work environment -- and prove that human-centric design is profit-maximizing when the workforce's augmentable cognitive capital exceeds a critical threshold. (2) We conduct a PRISMA-guided systematic review of 120 papers (screened from 6,096 records) to map the evidence base for each dimension. (3) We provide secondary empirical evidence from Colombia's EDIT manufacturing survey (N=6,799 firms) showing that management practice quality amplifies the return to technology investment (interaction coefficient 0.304, p<0.01). (4) We propose the Workplace Augmentation Design Index (WADI), a 36-item theory-grounded instrument for diagnosing human-centricity at the firm level. Decision authority allocation emerges as the binding constraint for Society 5.0 transitions, and task orchestration as the most under-researched dimension
A central socioeconomic concern about Artificial Intelligence is that it will lower wages by depressing the labor share - the fraction of economic output paid to labor. We show that declining labor share is more likely to raise wages. In a competitive economy with constant returns to scale, we prove that the wage-maximizing labor share depends only on the capital-to-labor ratio, implying a non-monotonic relationship between labor share and wages. When labor share exceeds this wage-maximizing level, further automation increases wages even while reducing labor's output share. Using data from the United States and eleven other industrialized countries, we estimate that labor share is too high in all twelve, implying that further automation should raise wages. Moreover, we find that falling labor share accounted for 16\% of U.S. real wage growth between 1954 and 2019. These wage gains notwithstanding, automation-driven shifts in labor share are likely to pose significant social and political challenges.
Zora Zhiruo Wang, Sanidhya Vijayvargiya, Aspen Chen
et al.
AI agents are increasingly developed and evaluated on benchmarks relevant to human work, yet it remains unclear how representative these benchmarking efforts are of the labor market as a whole. In this work, we systematically study the relationship between agent development efforts and the distribution of real-world human work by mapping benchmark instances to work domains and skills. We first analyze 43 benchmarks and 72,342 tasks, measuring their alignment with human employment and capital allocation across all 1,016 real-world occupations in the U.S. labor market. We reveal substantial mismatches between agent development that tends to be programming-centric, and the categories in which human labor and economic value are concentrated. Within work areas that agents currently target, we further characterize current agent utility by measuring their autonomy levels, providing practical guidance for agent interaction strategies across work scenarios. Building on these findings, we propose three measurable principles for designing benchmarks that better capture socially important and technically challenging forms of work: coverage, realism, and granular evaluation.
We formalize a constructive subclass of locality-preserving deterministic operators acting on graph-indexed state systems. We define the class of Bounded Local Generator Classes (BLGC), consisting of finite-range generators operating on bounded state spaces under deterministic composition. Within this class, incremental update cost is independent of total system dimension. We prove that, under the BLGC assumptions, per-step operator work satisfies W_t = O(1) as the number of nodes M \to \infty, establishing a structural decoupling between global state size and incremental computational effort. The framework admits a Hilbert-space embedding in \ell^2(V; \mathbb{R}^d) and yields bounded operator norms on admissible subspaces. The result applies specifically to the defined subclass and does not claim universality beyond the stated locality and boundedness constraints.
The decision to annuitize wealth in retirement planning has become increasingly complex due to rising longevity risk and changing retirement patterns, including increased labor force participation at older ages. While an extensive literature studies consumption, labor, and annuitization decisions, these elements are typically examined in isolation. This paper develops a unified stochastic control and optimal stopping framework in which habit formation and endogenous labor supply shape retirement and annuitization decisions under age-dependent mortality. We derive optimal consumption, labor, portfolio, and annuitization policies in a continuous-time lifecycle model. The solution is characterized via dynamic programming and a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman variational inequality. Our results reveal a rich sequence of retirement dynamics. When wealth is low relative to habit, labor is supplied defensively to protect consumption standards. As wealth increases, agents enter a work-to-retire phase in which labor is supplied at its maximum level to accelerate access to retirement. Human capital acts as a stabilizing asset, justifying a more aggressive pre-retirement investment portfolio, followed by abrupt de-risking upon annuitization. Subjective mortality beliefs are a key determinant in shaping retirement dynamics. Agents with pessimistic longevity beliefs rationally perceive annuities as unattractive, leading them to avoid or delay annuitization. This framework provides a behavior-based explanation for low annuity demand and offers guidance for retirement planning jointly linking labor supply, portfolio choice, and the timing of annuitization.
Ali Mufraih Albarrati, Siddig Ibrahim Abdelwahab, Rakan Nazer
This study employed bibliometric analysis using the Scopus database to evaluate Saudi disability research (SDR). From an initial dataset of 17,102 documents (0.54% of global output), the scope was refined to 13,246 data-driven publications for detailed examination. Trends, themes, and collaborations were analyzed using R packages and VOSviewer. Metrics such as citations, total link strength (TLS), and thematic mapping were used to identify key contributors, emerging topics, and international partnerships. Saudi authors demonstrated strong international collaboration, with 59.53% of publications involving co-authorships, particularly with the United States, Egypt, and India. Prolific contributors include Alkuraya, F.S. and leading institutions such as King Saud University. Key motor themes include “quality of life” and “Alzheimer’s disease,” while emerging themes such as “deep learning” and “molecular docking” reflect a shift toward advanced technologies. Machine learning is a trending topic applied in early diagnosis, drug discovery, and rehabilitation of conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, autism, and epilepsy. These findings underscore the evolving priorities and global relevance of SDR.
Vocational rehabilitation. Employment of people with disabilities
Background: Regular physical activity has a positive impact on brain function, improves perception, and significantly influences academic achievement.
Objective: This study aimed to determine the association of physical activity, motor skills, and academic performance in high school students in Hayatabad, Peshawar.
Methodology: A total of 349 students were recruited using stratified random sampling from both public and private high schools within the Hayatabad region, Peshawar, Pakistan from December 2020 to May 2021. Only students in 9th and 10th grades from public and private schools who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria, were included. PA was assessed using the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). Academic performance was documented based on grades and percentages from recent exams, following Peshawar Board of Education rules. Motor skills were evaluated through vertical jumps, average hand strength, sit-and-reach flexibility, and 60-second pushups.
Results: A statistically significant association was observed between PA and academic performance in high school students (P<0.05). Similarly, there was a statistically significant association between motor skills including vertical jump, handgrip strength and academic performance (P<0.05). However, no statistically significant associations were found between sit-and-reach test performance, (60s) push-ups and academic performance (P>0.05).
Conclusion: In conclusion, this study demonstrates an association between physical activity (PA) and academic performance in high school students. However, motor skills including vertical jump and handgrip strength is associated with academic performance in high school students.
Keywords: Physical activity, Motor skills, Academic performance, Academic achievement
Vocational rehabilitation. Employment of people with disabilities, Therapeutics. Psychotherapy
AbstractFrom the late 16th century to early 18th, silver mining was the economic engine of empire in the Andes, playing a significant role in Spain’s European ambitions and the forging of global trade. Yet this productivity came at a terrible cost for Andean people forced to work in the mines, and colonial critics forcefully debated the morality and legality of the mining economy even as it became essential to the colonial project itself. More than any others, the mercury mines of Huancavelica, Peru became synonymous with this conflict between the human toll of colonial exploitation and immense mineral wealth of the Andes. As the only Andean source of the mercury required to refine silver and a mine infamous for its toxic conditions, Huancavelica became a crucial source of debate over the conditions in which the Spanish Empire could and should employ forced labor. Royal officials attempted to soothe pious critics, maintain mercury production, and preserve the Andean labor force while Spanish miners and Andean communities vied for their own interests. This article examines conflicts over nocturnal labor to shed light on these dynamics, challenging simplistic understandings of labor relations at the mines where Andeans actively advocated for themselves, miners challenged royal policy, and even seemingly favorable conditions failed to yield tangible reforms.
This article examines what it means to use Large Language Models in everyday work. Drawing on a seven-month longitudinal qualitative study, we argue that LLMs do not straightforwardly automate or augment tasks. We propose the concept of configuration work to describe the labor through which workers make a generic system usable for a specific professional task. Configuration work materializes in four intertwined consequences. First, workers must discretize their activity, breaking it into units that the system can process. Second, operating the system generates cluttering, as prompting, evaluating, and correcting responses add scattered layers of work that get in the way of existing routines. Third, users gradually attune their practices and expectations to the machine's generic rigidity, making sense of the system's limits and finding space for it within their practices. Fourth, as LLMs absorb repetitive tasks, they desaturate the texture of work, shifting activity toward logistical manipulation of outputs and away from forms of engagement that sustain a sense of accomplishment. Taken together, these consequences suggest that LLMs reshape work through the individualized labor required to configure a universal, task-agnostic system within situated professional ecologies.
The article advocates for a more socially transformative and non-individual-oriented approach to social pedagogy, emphasizing the potential of the empowerment concept in efforts to contribute to individuals' emancipation and the transformation of their life conditions. The significance of this pedagogical aim is examined based on an exploration of the historical development of social pedagogy as a normative and political foundational idea, inspired by two central pedagogical and learning theorists: Paulo Freire and Oskar Negt. Drawing on these critical social analyses and transformative possibilities, illustrative examples from previous studies of social pedagogical practice are included to uncover the presence or absence of educators' reflections on critical social and transformative perspectives and transgressive orientations. The prevailing societal tendency towards an individualized and organizationally internal perspective is revealed to dominate, with the reduced social pedagogical potential inherent in such a compensatory view of citizens. However, another study indicates that the need for pedagogical encounters across the organizational frameworks of the workplace can highlight the importance of a broader societal perspective, with solidaristic identification and a focus on the empowerment of the citizens involved. This might be a useful way to contribute to a renewed generation of meaning and a transformative dimension of social pedagogical work, as well as its practitioners in this field.
Background: Lateral epicondylitis, commonly known as tennis elbow, is characterized by pain and functional limitations at the elbow due to overuse. This study focuses on evaluating the effects of Tyler twist wrist extensor-strengthening exercises, aiming to provide insights into an effective intervention for this condition.
Objective: This study aimed to determine the effects of Tyler twist wrist extensor strengthening exercises on pain, disability, and grip strength in patients with lateral epicondylitis.
Methodology: A randomized controlled trial was conducted at Cina Medical Center Rawalpindi from February 2022 to January 2023. Fifty-two participants meeting the inclusion criteria were assigned to either Group A or Group B. Group A received eccentric Tyler twist exercises in addition to conventional physiotherapy, while Group B received conventional physiotherapy alone. Pain, functional disability, and grip strength were assessed at baseline, the second week, and the fourth week. Data was analyzed with SPSS version 25. Demographics and descriptive data is presented in form of percentages, frequencies and mean + SD. Normality of the data is determined via Shapiro Wilk Test. We applied mixed-way ANOVA to find the interaction between two groups.
Results: Within-group analysis demonstrated a significant improvement in pain, functional disability, and grip strength for both groups (p-value < 0.01). Between-group analysis revealed a significant difference in pain, functional disability, and grip strength.
Conclusion: The addition of eccentric Tyler twist exercises to conventional therapy showed a statistically significant difference in terms of pain, functional disability, and grip strength in patients with lateral epicondylitis.
Keywords: Extensor Carpi Radialis Brevis, Lateral Epicondylitis.
Vocational rehabilitation. Employment of people with disabilities, Therapeutics. Psychotherapy
Abstract Background Increasing attention is being paid to the environmental and health impacts of nanoplastics (NPs) pollution. Exposure to nanoplastics (NPs) with different charges and functional groups may have different adverse effects after ingestion by organisms, yet the potential ramifications on mammalian blood glucose levels, and the risk of diabetes remain unexplored. Results Mice were exposed to PS-NPs/COOH/NH2 at a dose of 5 mg/kg/day for nine weeks, either alone or in a T2DM model. The findings demonstrated that exposure to PS-NPs modified by different functional groups caused a notable rise in fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels, glucose intolerance, and insulin resistance in a mouse model of T2DM. Exposure to PS-NPs-NH2 alone can also lead the above effects to a certain degree. PS-NPs exposure could induce glycogen accumulation and hepatocellular edema, as well as injury to the pancreas. Comparing the effect of different functional groups or charges on T2DM, the PS-NPs-NH2 group exhibited the most significant FBG elevation, glycogen accumulation, and insulin resistance. The phosphorylation of AKT and FoxO1 was found to be inhibited by PS-NPs exposure. Treatment with SC79, the selective AKT activator was shown to effectively rescue this process and attenuate T2DM like lesions. Conclusions Exposure to PS-NPs with different functional groups (charges) induced T2DM-like lesions. Amino-modified PS-NPs cause more serious T2DM-like lesions than pristine PS-NPs or carboxyl functionalized PS-NPs. The underlying mechanisms involved the inhibition of P-AKT/P-FoxO1. This study highlights the potential risk of NPs pollution on T2DM, and provides a new perspective for evaluating the impact of plastics aging.
A 12-year-old female patient, with large nasal bridge, mongoloid slants, clinodactyly, saddle gap of toes, slanting palpebral fissures, and a flat facies with ocular hypertelorism was reported. The patient’s medical history showed intellectual impairment, hypothyroidism, and allergy to penicillin and cow milk. Intraoral examination revealed that there was severe crowding, with Angles class I Dewey’s modification type I. A radiographic examination showed that the root of tooth 44 has sharp dilaceration toward the mesial in the apical third. Impacted canines were measured approximately 17.5 mm from the cusp till root apex. Treatment plan included prescription for pain relief. Oral prophylaxis was followed by root canal treatment and full coverage restoration. Induced eruption was planned. This case report provides insight into various oral conditions associated with Down syndrome (DS). The treatment was challenging and it needed a comprehensive approach with a preventive dentistry practice and regular screening. Dental practitioners should be aware of DS and its effect on oral health with the main focus on an effective treatment plan.
Vocational rehabilitation. Employment of people with disabilities
Мета роботи: удосконалити методику прогнозування наслідків надзвичайних ситуацій на гідротехнічних спорудах терористичного характеру.
Метод дослідження: основними методами досліджень є методи : аналізу та синтезу.
Теоретична цінність дослідження: Запропонована методика має суттєве значення для теорії цивільного захисту та може бути використана не лише для проведення розрахунків при прогнозуванні масштабів та обсягів негативного впливу наслідків зруйнування гідротехнічних споруд, а і для проведення наступних наукових досліджень..
Практична цінність дослідження: дана методика дає можливість враховувати міграційні процеси населення та темпи розбудови урбанізованої місцевості при прогнозуванні параметрів надзвичайних ситуацій терористичного характеру на гідротехнічних спорудах.
Цінність дослідження: розроблена методика враховує зниження прохідності місцевості, неоднорідність щільності забудови урбанізованої місцевості та густини заселеності районів виникнення надзвичайних ситуацій в межах зон затоплень
Тип статті: практичний.
AbstractIn 1920s Seattle, dance halls charging ten cents per dance became the focus of debate. Tracing the dance workers’ self-representations and labor organizing in a city increasingly hostile to interracial social spaces, this paper evaluates how gender, race, labor organizing, and politics intersected in unprecedented ways in Seattle’s nightlife. In a decade of tepid labor organizing and in a sexual labor sector where unions were extremely rare, female dancers in Seattle unionized. Moreover, they did so in what became under Mayor Betha Knight Landes (1926–1928) the first major American city to have a female mayor. The Women Dancing Entertainers’ Union’s (WDEU) tactics of emphasizing the respectability of their profession enjoyed initial successes, yet faltered when dance hall critics increasingly constructed the presence of interracial couples as a sign of immorality. The closure in 1929 of numerous ten-cent halls south of Yesler Way reflects how Anti-Asian prejudice entered into regulation of the city’s nightlife, adversely impacting dance hall workers, women in politics, and minoritized men. The WDEU’s insistence that they were upstanding workers and economic providers nonetheless provides a powerful corrective to contemporaries’ and, until recently, historians’ tendency to overlook sexual sector night labor.
The next big step in technological development is the expansion of the physical world and the emergence of virtual worlds. The technology is now reaching the right level for this to spread, so it is predicted that the virtual presence of individuals will become more common in the coming years. This will naturally bring with it the emergence of working in virtual worlds, as the virtual presence of firms can provide a clear competitive advantage. However, the question arises as to whether labour law, with its current instruments, is suitable for the legal regulation of work in the virtual world and whether this type of work can be understood at all within the framework of the classical employment relationship. The very notion of work, the contracting parties, the contract's content, the place of performance, etc., can be called into question. In this article, I will examine these issues and consider the challenges facing future legislation.
Law in general. Comparative and uniform law. Jurisprudence, Labor. Work. Working class
El presente artículo recoge nuestro interés por aproximarnos a los principales mercados de trabajo de la industria del vestido al servicio de las reinas consortes de España. Las protagonistas de las siguientes páginas son las artesanas de la apariencia de la realeza femenina. El marco cronológico seleccionado va de 1790 a 1830, período para el que analizaremos los principales centros de confección y tiendas de las modistas afincadas en Madrid. Asimismo, examinaremos a las principales modistas que trabajaban para las soberanas consortes, ubicaremos sus tiendas y expondremos las diferencias salariales entre las modistas y los sastres dentro de Palacio. Las fuentes empleadas para esta panorámica general del trabajo de las modistas proceden de los fondos de: Archivo General de Palacio, Archivo Histórico Nacional, Archivo Histórico de Protocolos y Archivo de la Villa, todos ellos ubicados en Madrid
History of Civilization, History (General) and history of Europe
Camila Ribeiro Duarte Lisboa, Paula Regina Pereira Marcelino
O artigo traz resultados de um survey aplicado junto aos usuários do serviço de metrô da cidade de São Paulo no ano de 2019. O objeto de análise da investigação foi a percepção dos usuários do metrô sobre as greves conflagradas pelos metroviários. Percebeu-se que os usuários tendem a aprovar as atividades grevistas por compreenderem que os metroviários têm “direito a ter direitos”, ou seja, teriam o direito de lutar por melhores condições de emprego e remuneração. A análise parte da compreensão de que o apoio dos usuários às greves aumentaria se eles também reivindicassem melhorias no serviço prestado, mas isto é limitado pelas formas de divulgação das greves, de seus motivos e de suas consequências pela imprensa comercial. O artigo apresenta questões e dados específicos sobre como os usuários se informam e porque a interpretação das greves por parte da imprensa não é completamente hegemônica entre eles tomando como referência as contribuições da Sociologia da Recepção.
Labor. Work. Working class, Social sciences (General)