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."Ads_xl=0;Ads_yl=0;Ads_xp='';Ads_yp='';Ads_xp1='';Ads_yp1='';Ads_par='';Ads_cnturl='';Ads_prf='page=article';Ads_channels='RON_P6_IMU';Ads_wrd='humor,science';Ads_kid=0;Ads_bid=0;Ads_sec=0; Slacker or Sick Log in/Create an Account | Top | 222 comments | Search Discussion Display Options Threshold: -1: 222 comments 0: 212 comments 1: 154 comments 2: 100 comments 3: 34 comments 4: 20 comments 5: 12 comments Flat Nested No Comments Threaded Oldest First Newest First Highest Scores First Oldest First (Ignore Threads) Newest First (Ignore Threads) The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way. A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight (Score:5, Insightful) by saskboy (600063) on Thursday October 27, @12:46AM (#13886925) (http://www.abandonedstuff.com/ | Last Journal: Tuesday October 25, @10:38PM) "Early nerve damage caused by repetitive strain injuries can trigger "sick worker" syndrome -- characterized by malaise, fatigue and depression"If this doesn't prompt you to get up from your computer and go to bed a bit earlier tonight, there's no hope for you, in other words. You'll be involluntarily curled up like a rat ball, if you don't take charge of your wrist health. [ Reply to ThisRe:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by Spy der Mann (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @12:57AMRe:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by Hurricane78 (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @06:52AMRe:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by PhotoBoy (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @07:21AM Re:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight (Score:5, Funny) by jefe7777 (411081) on Thursday October 27, @01:02AM (#13886992) ....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 [ Reply to This | Parentslackdot?Re:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot by speculatrix (Score:3) Thursday October 27, @02:18AMRe:slackdot?Re:A good reason to stop reading Slash by crotherm (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @12:15PMRe:slackdot?Re:A good reason to stop reading Slash by MikeURL (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @04:29PMRe:slackdot?Re:A good reason to stop reading Slash by Aeiri (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @07:04PM2 replies beneath your current threshold.Re:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by Kelson (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @02:58AMRe:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by Anonymous Coward (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @04:24AMRe:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by kiatoa (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @11:05AMRe:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by soft_guy (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @12:29PMRe:A good reason to stop reading Slashdot tonight by BushCheney08 (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @08:56AMSo it isn't the strain causing the damage? by hackwrench (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @11:26AM Sick of slashdot (Score:1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 27, @12:47AM (#13886926) Can reading slashdot over and over make you sick? What about reading dupes on slashdot over and over? [ Reply to This2 replies beneath your current threshold. slacker or sick (Score:1) by funkapimpalicious (793969) on Thursday October 27, @12:47AM (#13886929) Man, I have been having the 'slacks' at work all week. I have also been having a lot of wrist/lower back pain because I have been doing a repetetive 'closing old records' task. This makes me think that I am not going through coffee withdrawal alone, but rather feeling the effects of RSD.Anyone else?-funkapimpalicious [ Reply to This Re:slacker or sick (Score:5, Funny) by Jozer99 (693146) on Thursday October 27, @01:06AM (#13887002) Not only were the rats sleepy, but their code was buggy as hell. [ Reply to This | Parent3 replies beneath your current threshold. I have emotionally damaging wrist pain. (Score:1) by joNDoty (774185) on Thursday October 27, @12:48AM (#13886933) Rats! [ Reply to This I'm confused (Score:3, Funny) by confused philosopher (666299) on Thursday October 27, @12:49AM (#13886935) (http://www.blackpeopleloveus.com/ | Last Journal: Saturday February 05, @03:01PM) When did employers ACTUALLY start hiring real rats for the rat race?Oh, sorry, I read the story a bit more carefully now. Never mind. [ Reply to ThisRe:I'm confused by jazman_777 (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @12:53AMRe:I'm confused by Anonymous Coward (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @12:58AM Two words: (Score:5, Funny) by StandardDeviant (122674) on Thursday October 27, @01:24AM (#13887074) (http://uptime.netcra.../?host=www.goatse.cx | Last Journal: Wednesday September 11, @08:46PM) 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. [ Reply to This | ParentRe:Two words: by kilodelta (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @07:28AM1 reply beneath your current threshold.Re:Two words: by tolkienfan (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @12:02PMRe:I'm confused by EvilTwinSkippy (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @07:48AM1 reply beneath your current threshold. That explains it! (Score:2, Funny) by Matt Perry (793115) <perrym3 AT gmail DOT com> on Thursday October 27, @12:51AM (#13886943) No wonder I've been nodding off at wo...Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz [ Reply to This Re:That explains it! (Score:5, Funny) by grammar fascist (239789) on Thursday October 27, @01:33AM (#13887096) No wonder I've been nodding off at wo...ZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzAmazing! 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. [ Reply to This | ParentWhy this story is tagged as humor by weighn (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @02:47AM1 reply beneath your current threshold.Re:That explains it! by Cally (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @09:20AMRe:That explains it! by vertinox (Score:3) Thursday October 27, @11:20AMRe:Whoops by vertinox (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @11:23AMRe:Whoops by BorgHunter (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @10:32PM4 replies beneath your current threshold. Re:That explains it! (Score:5, Funny) by BorgHunter (685876) <borghunter@ g m ail.com> on Thursday October 27, @08:17AM (#13888043) (http://www.sys-rq.net/) 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. [ Reply to This | Parent oh boy (Score:2) by GenKreton (884088) on Thursday October 27, @12:51AM (#13886945) Damn, now they really have a reason to block slashdot at work places: it adds to RSI and then "sick worker syndrome" [ Reply to ThisRe:oh boy by laughingcoyote (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @01:01AMRe:oh boy by TheSpoom (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @08:45AM2 replies beneath your current threshold. Am i the only one... (Score:2) by silverkniveshotmail. (713965) * on Thursday October 27, @12:52AM (#13886948) (Last Journal: Sunday October 23, @02:24AM) ...who felt sorry for the rats? [ Reply to ThisRe:Am i the only one... by Deviant Q (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @01:54AMRe:Am i the only one... by oostevo (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @02:13AMRe:Am i the only one... by PatrickThomson (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @02:35AMRe:Am i the only one... by DMorritt (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @02:50AM Re:Am i the only one... (Score:5, Funny) by softweyr (2380) on Thursday October 27, @03:03AM (#13887344) (http://softweyr.com/) who felt just like the rats? [ Reply to This | ParentRe:Am i the only one... by GospelHead821 (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @09:41AM1 reply beneath your current threshold.Re:Am i the only one... by kbw (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @04:31AM1 reply beneath your current threshold.1 reply beneath your current threshold. Just like a kitten! (Score:2, Funny) by Black Parrot (19622) on Thursday October 27, @12:53AM (#13886950) > By five weeks to eight weeks, when cytokine production reached "peak" levels, some rats curled up in a ball and slept in between tasks.I do that at work from time to time as well. [ Reply to This How did they cause these injuries? (Score:5, Funny) by maxarturo (71956) on Thursday October 27, @12:55AM (#13886967) What kind of exercises give rats "wrist injuries"? Did they get little rat-sized keyboards? [ Reply to This Re:How did they cause these injuries? (Score:5, Funny) by Nefarious Wheel (628136) on Thursday October 27, @01:07AM (#13887009) 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. [ Reply to This | ParentRe:How did they cause these injuries? by ergo98 (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @01:38AMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by EvilTwinSkippy (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @07:52AM Re:How did they cause these injuries? (Score:4, Funny) by Zordak (123132) on Thursday October 27, @01:59AM (#13887166) (http://www.cranesable.com/ | Last Journal: Saturday December 07, @04:57PM) I thought that was sharks' work. [ Reply to This | ParentRe:How did they cause these injuries? by Gojira Shipi-Taro (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @08:41AM Re:How did they cause these injuries? (Score:5, Funny) by Kjella (173770) on Thursday October 27, @02:19AM (#13887225) (http://slashdot.org/) 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. [ Reply to This | ParentRe:How did they cause these injuries? by Mike Keester (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @01:08AMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by Mike Keester (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @01:14AMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by Shano (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @04:44AMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by cerberusss (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @04:45AMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by drinkypoo (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @01:42AMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by TheGratefulNet (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @02:16AMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by killkillkill (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @07:51PMRe:How did they cause these injuries? by StikyPad (Score:2) Friday October 28, @12:00AM Rats? (Score:4, Interesting) by Associate (317603) on Thursday October 27, @12:57AM (#13886969) (http://slashdot.org/) Who Moved My Cheese [whomovedmycheese.com] if you really want to be insulted. [ Reply to ThisRe:Rats? by ScruffyScrode (Score:3) Thursday October 27, @01:25AMRe:Rats? by GospelHead821 (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @09:29AM1 reply beneath your current threshold.Re:Rats? by TapeCutter (Score:3) Thursday October 27, @05:09AMRe:Rats? by Associate (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @06:06AMRe:Rats? by Suicyco (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @08:54PMRe:Rats? by powerpointmonkey (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @06:42AM Re:Rats? (Score:4, Insightful) by Skater (41976) on Thursday October 27, @07:40AM (#13887940) (http://rjmarq.org/ | Last Journal: Thursday March 24, @11:19AM) I had to stop reading it about halfway through because I couldn't stand the patronizing tone. I kept thinking, "Okay, I get it. I have to look for opportunities, and I shouldn't let myself get too comfortable, and I should be ready for a sudden upheaval. What's your next point?" But there never was another point - it just kept bashing those into the readers' heads. I felt like ripping the book in half.And I had a similar (but not as pronounced) reaction: I remembered that I work to live, not live to work. [ Reply to This | Parent1 reply beneath your current threshold.Re:Rats? by Pchelka (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @11:39AMRe:Rats? by rebelcan (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @12:23PMRe:Rats? by Pchelka (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @04:23PMRe:Rats? by rebelcan (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @04:45PMRe:Rats? by Suicyco (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @08:52PM1 reply beneath your current threshold.Re:Rats? by Associate (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @05:12PM2 replies beneath your current threshold. Personally, I'm a slaker (Score:4, Insightful) by slaker (53818) on Thursday October 27, @12:57AM (#13886971) Personally, I'm a slaker. But I come by that naturally. My father, and his father, and his father, were all slakers. It is the way of our people. [ Reply to ThisRe:Personally, I'm a slaker by krazikamikaze (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @04:00AM1 reply beneath your current threshold.Re:Personally, I'm a slaker by ScrewMaster (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @07:49PM1 reply beneath your current threshold. Cytokines (Score:5, Informative) by Red Flayer (890720) on Thursday October 27, @12:59AM (#13886979) Here's some more info on Cytokines: http://microvet.arizona.edu/Courses/MIC419/Tutoria ls/cytokines.html [arizona.edu] I wish TFA was a little more specific on which kind of cytokines they found... I guess we'll have to wait for the human studies. Really, though, this should be no surprise. It's been known for some time that stress to the body results in immunological cytokine release. The symptoms (pre-RSS) that they mention, like depression, fatigue, etc, are eerily similar to Epstein-Barr... I wonder if the immne system is revved up by the repetitive motions (hence feeling sick), or inhibited, like the EBV toxin. [ Reply to ThisJust give them some nachos (with jalepenos) by Brown Eggs (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @12:06PMRe:Just give them some nachos (with jalepenos) by Red Flayer (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @02:27PM Re:Cytokines (Score:4, Informative) by Red Flayer (890720) on Thursday October 27, @01:42AM (#13887118) Nope. Serum cytokines means cytokines in the blood, that's all. So that statement can be interpreted as meaning that they observed elevated levels of cytokines that are normally found in the blood. [ Reply to This | ParentRe:Cytokines by walders (Score:3) Thursday October 27, @06:05AMRe:Cytokines by Red Flayer (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @02:51PM2 replies beneath your current threshold. Officespace (Score:1) by beaso (925040) on Thursday October 27, @01:01AM (#13886990) Quote: often mistaken for poor performanceIt's not that I am lazy, it's just that I don't care... [ Reply to This1 reply beneath your current threshold. hmmmm (Score:1) by GregoryD (646395) on Thursday October 27, @01:09AM (#13887018) does the rats have other rats yelling at them to get off thier lazy asses and work? or do they just get the cheese without lifting a finger?are the more dominate rats asking the lab to give them more cheese since their work is more valuable?do the dominate rats complain that any old mouse can do the lazy rats job? [ Reply to ThisRe:hmmmm by GregoryD (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @01:12AMRe:hmmmm by GregoryD (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @01:22AM "low-force, highly repetitive work" (Score:5, Funny) by BocaJuniors (924973) on Thursday October 27, @01:11AM (#13887022) Hello, Peter. We need to talk about your TPS reports. [ Reply to This residency (Score:2, Funny) by frankmu (68782) on Thursday October 27, @01:13AM (#13887027) (http://slashdot.org/) sounds like life as a resident. boy did it suck. yep, not much different than life as a lab rat. [ Reply to This Strange (Score:2) by carcosa30 (235579) on Thursday October 27, @01:16AM (#13887040) Maybe that's why I get so incredibly tired when I'm typing 20-30 pages a day. Earlier this summer it was so bad I thought I had narcolepsy. Then it got better, but now that I'm writing a lot again it's heated up. I slept for 23 hours yesterday. [ Reply to ThisRe:Strange by rvw (Score:1) Thursday October 27, @06:14AMRe:Strange by JustOK (Score:2) Thursday October 27, @06:32AM1 reply beneath your current threshold.