When 3+1 > 4: Gift Structure and Reciprocity in the Field

Do higher wages elicit reciprocity and hence higher effort? In a field experiment with 266 employees, we find that paying above-market wages, per se, does not have an effect on effort relative to paying market wages. However, structuring a portion of the wage as a clear and unexpected gift (by offering a raise with no further conditions after the employee has accepted the contract – with no future employment) does lead to higher effort for the duration of the job. Targeted gifts are more efficient than hiring more workers. However, the mechanism makes this unlikely to explain persistent above-market wages

Risk Factors for Long-Term Coronary Artery Calcium Progression in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

BackgroundCoronary artery calcium (CAC) detected by noncontrast cardiac computed tomography scanning is a measure of coronary atherosclerosis burden. Increasing CAC levels have been strongly associated with increased coronary events. Prior studies of cardiovascular disease risk factors and CAC progression have been limited by short follow-up or restricted to patients with advanced disease.Methods and resultsWe examined cardiovascular disease risk factors and CAC progression in a prospective multiethnic cohort study. CAC was measured 1 to 4 times (mean 2.5 scans) over 10 years in 6810 adults without preexisting cardiovascular disease. Mean CAC progression was 23.9 Agatston units/year. An innovative application of mixed-effects models investigated associations between cardiovascular disease risk factors and CAC progression. This approach adjusted for time-varying factors, was flexible with respect to follow-up time and number of observations per participant, and allowed simultaneous control of factors associated with both baseline CAC and CAC progression. Models included age, sex, study site, scanner type, and race/ethnicity. Associations were observed between CAC progression and age (14.2 Agatston units/year per 10 years [95% CI 13.0 to 15.5]), male sex (17.8 Agatston units/year [95% CI 15.3 to 20.3]), hypertension (13.8 Agatston units/year [95% CI 11.2 to 16.5]), diabetes (31.3 Agatston units/year [95% CI 27.4 to 35.3]), and other factors.ConclusionsCAC progression analyzed over 10 years of follow-up, with a novel analytical approach, demonstrated strong relationships with risk factors for incident cardiovascular events. Longitudinal CAC progression analyzed in this framework can be used to evaluate novel cardiovascular risk factors

Work-life imbalance: informal care and paid employment

In the United Kingdom informal carers are people who look after relatives or friends who need extra support because of age, physical or learning disability or illness. The majority of informal carers are women and female carers also care for longer hours and for longer durations than men. Thus women and older women in particular, shoulder the burden of informal care. We consider the costs of caring in terms of the impact that these kinds of caring responsibilities have on employment. The research is based on the responses of informal carers to a dedicated questionnaire and in-depth interviews with a smaller sub-sample of carers. Our results indicate that the duration of a caring episode as well as the hours carers commit to caring impact on their employment participation. In addition carers’ employment is affected by financial considerations, the needs of the person they care for, carers’ beliefs about the compatibility of informal care and paid work and employers’ willingness to accommodate carers’ needs. Overall, the research confirms that informal carers continue to face difficulties when they try to combine employment and care in spite of recent policy initiatives designed to help them

A strategic framework to support the implementation of citizen science for environmental monitoring. Final report to SEPA

In this report we provide a decision framework that can be used to guide whether and when to use a citizen science approach for environmental monitoring. Before using the decision framework we recommend that five precursors to a citizen science approach are considered

Choosing and using citizen science: a guide to when and how to use citizen science to monitor biodiversity and the environment

Here we aim to provide guidance to support people considering using a citizen science approach, especially (but not necessarily restricted to) monitoring biodiversity and the environment in the UK. It will help you decide whether citizen science is likely to be useful, and it will help you decide which broad approach to citizen science is most suitable for your question or activity. This guide does not cover the practical detail of developing a citizen science project. That information is provided in the ‘Guide to Citizen Science’ (Tweddle et al., 2012)

A Wide-Field CCD Survey for Centaurs and Kuiper Belt Objects

A modified Baker-Nunn camera was used to conduct a wide-field survey of 1428 square degrees of sky near the ecliptic in search of bright Kuiper Belt objects and Centaurs. This area is an order of magnitude larger than any previously published CCD survey for Centaurs and Kuiper Belt Objects. No new objects brighter than red magnitude m=18.8 and moving at a rate 1"/hr to 20"/hr were discovered, although one previously discovered Centaur 1997 CU26 Chariklo was serendipitously detected. The parameters of the survey were characterized using both visual and automated techniques. From this survey the empirical projected surface density of Centaurs was found to be SigmaCentaur(m<18.8)=7.8(+16.0 -6.6)x10^-4 per square degree and we found a projected surface density 3sigma upper confidence limit for Kuiper Belt objects of SigmaKBO(m< 18.8)<4.1x10^-3 per square degree. We discuss the current state of the cumulative luminosity functions of both Centaurs and Kuiper Belt objects. Through a Monte Carlo simulation we show that the size distribution of Centaurs is consistent with a q=4 differential power law, similar to the size distribution of the parent Kuiper Belt Objects. The Centaur population is of order 10^7 (radius > 1 km) assuming a geometric albedo of 0.04. About 100 Centaurs are larger than 50 km in radius, of which only 4 are presently known. The current total mass of the Centaurs is 10^-4 Earth Masses. No dust clouds were detected resulting from Kuiper Belt object collisions, placing a 3sigma upper limit <600 collisionally produced clouds of m<18.8 per year.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures, Accepted for Publication in A

Reverse genetics in Candida albicans predicts ARF cycling is essential for drug resistance and virulence

Peer reviewedPublisher PD