Babes in tech land: expo labor as capitalist technology’s erotic body

This article investigates the tech industry practice of hiring “booth babes”—female models costumed in erotic outfits—to introduce new technologies at expos. My research identifies a gendered industrial logic that simultaneously sexualizes promotional spectacles while undervaluing women who create them. Challenging industrial ideologies that view booth babe labor as outside of the tech industry, I engage first in a discourse analysis of job calls for tradeshow modeling gigs, gray literature that evidences not only their industrial presence but also the values that tech companies place on their work. I then turn to their labor conditions, as conveyed through ethnographic interviews with tradeshow models, before drawing connections between booth babe work and other forms of post-Fordist labor. Finally, I propose that the utility of booth babes to the tech industry stems from their enactment of “promosexuality,” a set of corporate erotics oriented toward capitalist promotion.     

An Analysis on What Role Population Factors Play for Water Resource Pressure in Beijing

How much water resource pressure is jointly determined by demand and water supply conditions? How much role and influence does the demographic factor play? What is the relationship between the demographic factor and the other driving factors? An in-depth study has a very important significance because the above issues directly related to the future policy formulation with population, economic and resources. Based upon analysis of water resource pressure changing trend in Beijing,the driving factors of the usage of water resources from 2001 to 2010 were analyzed using the LMDI decomposition method. Furthermore, the status and role of demographic factors (including population size,household size and so on) and other various driving factors were studied. The results are shown below: The water resource pressure is not only high, but also continually rising year by year; the greatest growth driving factor of the water usage is GDP per capita growth; the demographic factor (including population size,the amount of family and household size and so on) has some influences on the changes of water usage, but it is not the main factor. Improvement for the utilization of water resources in the productive sector and proper guidance for a rational consumption view are very important to alleviate the water pressure and improve the population carrying capacity.     

Is the Easy Life Always the Happiest? Examining the Association of Convenience and Well-Being in Taiwan

Social scientists have under-examined neighborhood stores and other “resources” and their relationships to community welfare and personal happiness. Because the presence of neighborhood conveniences may signify that a neighborhood caters to residents’ needs and smoothes out the hassles of their daily lives, it could be hypothesized that commercial amenities and services enhance individuals’ satisfaction with their neighborhoods, with their health, and even with their lives as a whole. This study used a national probability sample from Taiwan, a densely populated society in East Asia, to test if service-oriented commercial and religious enterprises in neighborhoods are associated with positive estimations of well-being by those who occupy these spaces. We empirically examine whether proximity to main roads, night markets and temples or proximity to smoky food stands and other shops that produce pungent products affects well-being. Our findings from multivariate analyses suggest that if nearby conveniences are conceived as annoyances, they tend to lower satisfaction with neighborhood, but they do not lower life satisfaction in general. In contrast, air quality, along with “peace and quietness” is reported by respondents to be key in enhancing general well-being. We discuss the policy implications in the concluding session.     

The Relationships between Activity and Quality of Life for Older Men and Women at Different Ages in Taiwan

This study investigated the relationships between types of activity and quality of life (QOL) for older men and women at different ages. Based on cross-sectional data that included 220 community-dwelling elderly persons aged 65 and older in southern Taiwan, the results showed that the participation rates in many activities declined with age for both genders. Social activity and solitary leisure activity were significantly associated with QOL for old-old men, but not for young-old men. Only social activity was significantly associated with QOL for young-old women, but there was no significant association between any activity and QOL for old-old women.     

Economic Migration and Urban Citizenship in China: The Role of Points Systems

The conversion of a hukou (household registration) from one locale to another in China requires official approval, a process subject to conditions set out in numerous regulations. This article examines the role of points systems for selecting economic migrants eligible for an urban hukou in several provinces. Using the points systems, city governments prioritize human resources and capital, which they consider to be the key to economic prosperity, over social objectives. Meanwhile the majority of migrants, who participate in urban employment without official registration, are treated as necessary contributors to the economy but not as qualified beneficiaries of it. It remains to be seen, with a wider application of points systems in more Chinese cities, whether the hukou system will evolve to make urban citizenship less exclusive and more equitable. The article provides detailed examples, at the province and city level, of rating schemes for qualifying for an urban hukou.     

中国人口学科国际化水平及其影响因素

国际化是学科成熟与发展的一个重要指标。但是作为世界人口第一大国,中国人口学科的国际化并没有发展到一个相对应的水平。在界定了学科国际化概念的基础上,借助问卷调查数据来分析中国人口学科国际化的现状,探讨中国人口科学继续与国际学界融合所面临的困难及其主要原因。结果表明,中国人口学的国际化明显处于不断萎缩的态势,其直接动因和深层次缘由分别是整个人口学界的国际化意识与能力的减弱,以及人口学科文化与制度本身存在的缺陷。加强国际化的学科文化建设与建立相配套的学科制度是提高中国人口学科国际化水平的重要途径。     

血亲网络对近代东北移民经济差异的影响:1845～1934年

文章利用20世纪30年代东北地区农村调查数据,讨论了作为移民网络重要组成部分的血亲网络对移民间经济福利水平差异及社会流动性的影响。通过构建计量模型进行分析,结果显示:血亲网络对移民提高自身经济福利水平具有显著的正向影响,是导致移民间经济福利水平差异的重要因素;移民在血亲网络的作用下可以实现自身的向上社会流动。文章不仅分析了血亲关系在近代东北移民活动中对提升移民经济福利所起到的重要作用,还揭示了血亲网络在移民群体中所体现的经济功能。     

Girl adoption in China—A less-known side of son preference

In 1987, 4 per cent of girls were adopted within China. Why? Unlike infanticide, abandonment rids parents of daughters while preserving the supply of potential brides. In fact, an erstwhile tradition common in Fujian and Jiangxi provinces had parents of sons adopting an infant girl to serve as a future daughter-in-law and household help. Analysing a nationally representative 1992 survey of children, we found that: (1) girl adoptions were concentrated in the above-mentioned provinces; (2) girls were predominantly adopted by families with sons; (3) adopted girls faced substantial disadvantage as measured by school attendance at ages 8–13. In the 1990s, as the sex ratio at birth climbed, were girls aborted rather than abandoned? Observing that in the 2000 census too many girls appear in families with older sons, we estimated that at least 1/25 girls were abandoned in the 1990s, a proportion that in Fujian and Jiangxi may have peaked at 1/10 in 1994.     

Female labour force participation and second birth rates in South Korea

In recent decades, while female labour force participation rates in South Korea have increased, the country’s total fertility rates have declined dramatically. This study explores the association between women’s labour force participation and second birth rates in South Korea over the period 1980–2006. An event-history analysis is applied to longitudinal data from waves 1–10 of the Korea Labour and Income Panel Study. The study shows that post-birth labour force participation significantly reduced women’s propensity for having a second child, whereas non-employment after first birth was associated with an increased propensity. Women with highly educated husbands had a higher likelihood of enlarging the family. Further, the second birth trend in Korea fluctuated in tandem with the country’s institutional and socio-economic development. The childbearing propensity of homemakers was especially sensitive to the business cycle.