Slacker or Sick

dancpsu writes "Researchers at Temple University's College of Health Professions found that early nerve damage caused by repetitive strain injuries can trigger "sick worker" syndrome -- often mistaken for poor performance. They discovered that nerve injuries caused by low-force, highly repetitive work can be blamed on an onslaught of cytokines -- proteins that help start inflammation. Unexpectedly, the researchers also found that the cytokines affected the rats' psychosocial responses. At three weeks, even before the rats experienced pain from their wrist injuries, they began to self-regulate their work behavior. By five weeks to eight weeks, when cytokine production reached "peak" levels, some rats curled up in a ball and slept in between tasks."

Comments

How did they cause these injuries?

[maxarturo]

What kind of exercises give rats "wrist injuries"? Did they get little rat-sized keyboards?

Re:How did they cause these injuries?

[Nefarious Wheel]

What kind of exercises give rats "wrist injuries"? Did they get little rat-sized keyboards?

Generally, typing up disclaimers, authoring EULA's, looking up court settlements, writing very large bills, initiating and responding to litigation, in no particular order.

Re:How did they cause these injuries?

[Kjella]

Generally, typing up disclaimers, authoring EULA's, looking up court settlements, writing very large bills, initiating and responding to litigation, in no particular order.

The rats don't deserve that comparison.

Re:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight

[jefe7777]

....must

(heavy breathing) ....turn

(straining reaching) ....off

(eyes watering) ....the

(millimeters from powerbutton) ....inter...net

(hand shaking violently) NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! my precious! evil hobitses!

/me quickly opens 12 more firefox tabs

Re:slacker or sick

[Jozer99]

Not only were the rats sleepy, but their code was buggy as hell.

"low-force, highly repetitive work"

[BocaJuniors]

Hello, Peter. We need to talk about your TPS reports.

Two words:

[StandardDeviant]

Middle.

Management.

*shrug* If they didn't hire rats, there'd be unemployed MBAs and JDs clogging up the gutters. It's as much a public health issue as anything else.

Re:That explains it!

[grammar fascist]

No wonder I've been nodding off at wo...Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Amazing! Your head hit just the 'z' key, and held down the SHIFT key simultaneously for the first one! And then, somehow, your computer submitted your comment. How do you do that?

I wish I could do that.

Anyway, more seriously: Why is this story tagged as humor? I read the article, and there's really nothing funny in it.

Not that that stops us from taking it lightly, of course.

Re:Am i the only one...

[softweyr]

who felt just like the rats?

Re:That explains it!

[BorgHunter]

MAYNARD: It reads, 'Here may be found the last words of Matt Perry. He who is valiant and pure of spirit may find the Holy Grail in the Castle of Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz'.
ARTHUR: What?
MAYNARD: '... the Castle of Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz'.
BEDEVERE: What is that?
MAYNARD: He must have fallen asleep while typing it.
LAUNCELOT: Oh, come on!
MAYNARD: Well, that's what it says.
ARTHUR: Look, if he was falling asleep, he wouldn't bother to type 'Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz'. He'd just snore it!
MAYNARD: Well, that's what's written in the post!
GALAHAD: Perhaps he was dictating.
ARTHUR: Oh, shut up.