The bidirectionality of buying behavior and risk perception: An exploratory study

The coronavirus pandemic has changed retailers' proceedings, consumers' buying behavior, and the perception of space within the aisles. In a grounded theory-building procedure, the study questions the relationships of consumers' perceived risk, adapted behaviors, and emotional self-regulation. Only a few studies have focused on customer behavior in such disruptive situations. They generally take a unidirectional perspective and explain panic buying and stockpiling by considering buying behavior as only a reaction to panic and uncertainty. We conducted 18 qualitative interviews in Brazil and Germany to gain insight into changes in buying behavior and consumers' feelings on the changed circumstances, which provided a bidirectional perspective on perceived risk, adapted buying behavior, and emotional self-regulation. We attempt to explain changed buying behavior as well as differing behaviors and motives in Brazil and Germany during the crisis. Critical reflection on media reports about panic buying and hoarding as well as on self-observed situations in local stores affords a better assessment of the overall situation and risk. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

DNA origami traps for large viruses

Virus-enveloping macromolecular shells or tilings can prevent viruses from entering cells. Here, we describe the design and assembly of a cone-shaped DNA origami higher-order assembly that can engulf and tile the surface of pleomorphic virus samples larger than 100 nm. We determine the structures of subunits and of complete cone assemblies using cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) and establish stabilization treatments to enable usage in in vivo conditions. We use the cones exemplarily to engulf influenza A virus particles and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), chikungunya, and Zika virus-like particles. Depending on the relative dimensions of cone to virus particles, multiple virus particles may be trapped per single cone, and multiple cones can also tile and adapt to the surface of aspherical virus particles. The cone assemblies form with high yields, require little purification, and are amenable for mass production, which is a key requirement for future real-world uses including as a potential antiviral agent. © 2022 The Authors

The effect of COVID-19 on the economy: Evidence from an early adopter of localized lockdowns

Background Governments worldwide have implemented large-scale non-pharmaceutical interventions, such as social distancing or school closures, to prevent and control the growth of the COVID-19 pandemic. These strategies, implemented with varying stringency, have imposed substantial social and economic costs to society. As some countries begin to reopen and ease mobility restrictions, lockdowns in smaller geographic areas are increasingly considered an attractive policy intervention to mitigate societal costs while controlling epidemic growth. Nevertheless, there is a lack of empirical evidence to support these decisions. Methods Drawing from a rich data set of localized lockdowns in Chile, we used econometric methods to measure the reduction in local economic activity from lockdowns when applied to smaller or larger geographical areas. We measured economic activity by tax collection at the municipality-level. Results Our results show that lockdowns were associated with a 10%-15% drop in local economic activity, which is twice the reduction in local economic activity suffered by municipalities that were not under lockdown. A three-to-four-month lockdown had a similar effect on economic activity than a year of the 2009 great recession. We found costs are proportional to the population under lockdown, without differences when lockdowns were measured at the municipality or city-wide levels. Conclusions Our findings suggest that localized lockdowns have a large effect on local economic activity, but these effects are proportional to the population under lockdown. Our results suggest that epidemiological criteria should guide decisions about the optimal size of lockdown areas since the proportional impact of lockdowns on the economy seems to be unchanged by scale.

Online Shopping Therapy: If You Want to Be Happy, Shop around

This paper examines the relationships between online therapeutic shopping motivation, crisis-coping shopping, and therapeutic shopping purchases in disruptive situations. It explicitly addresses the research question of how online shopping motivation and crisis-coping shopping affect therapeutic shopping purchases. Empirical evidence was obtained in Europe and Latin America. We used partial least squares modeling and multigroup analysis to compare consumers' culture-driven responses to crisis. The effect of crisis-coping shopping is almost three times stronger than the effect of online therapeutic shopping motivation on therapeutic shopping purchases. This study investigates the concepts of hedonic shopping and retail therapy in the online environment and disruptive situations by examining therapeutic shopping purchases. Cultural differences are highlighted in relation to purchases made to regulate mood during a crisis. Finally, this study examines the roles of retail therapeutic motivation and crisis-coping online shopping and discusses the implications for consumers, managers, and future research.

The bidirectionality of buying behavior and risk perception: an exploratory study

The coronavirus pandemic has changed retailers’ proceedings, consumers’ buying behavior, and the perception of space within the aisles. In a grounded theory–building procedure, the study questions the relationships of consumers’ perceived risk, adapted behaviors, and emotional self-regulation. Only a few studies have focused on customer behavior in such disruptive situations. They generally take a unidirectional perspective and explain panic buying and stockpiling by considering buying behavior as only a reaction to panic and uncertainty. We conducted 18 qualitative interviews in Brazil and Germany to gain insight into changes in buying behavior and consumers’ feelings on the changed circumstances, which provided a bidirectional perspective on perceived risk, adapted buying behavior, and emotional self-regulation. We attempt to explain changed buying behavior as well as differing behaviors and motives in Brazil and Germany during the crisis. Critical reflection on media reports about panic buying and hoarding as well as on self-observed situations in local stores affords a better assessment of the overall situation and risk. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Current status of the facility instruments at the large binocular telescope observatory

Presented here is a review of the status of facility instruments at the Large Binocular Telescope Observatory (LBTO). These include: the prime-focus optical Large Binocular Cameras (LBCs);optical Multi-Object Double Spectrograph (MODS) for imaging and spectroscopy;and the two LBT Utility Camera in the Infrared (LUCIs) for imaging and spectroscopy, which include the commissioning of the Single conjugated adaptive Optics Upgrade for LBT (SOUL). Recently, the Potsdam Echelle Polarietric and Spectroscopic Instrument (PEPSI), a fiber-fed high resollution optical echelle spectrograph with polarimetry capabilities, has transitioned from a Principal Investigator (PI) instrument to a facility instrument. We discuss the”binocular lifestyle” including the unique challenges of using LBT in three ways: Duplex mode, with identical configurations on both sides (effectively an 11.8 meter mirror);Fraternal Twin (same instruments with different configurations) or Mixed mode, (different instruments on each side) which gives observers two 8.4 meter telescopes to use;or 22.65 meters in interferometry (LBTI) mode. We also review recent changes in nighttime operations at the observatory in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and plans for the implementation of the Health and Instrument Performance plan for the Observatory (HIPO), a program to proactively monitor the health and stability of the facility instruments. © 2020 SPIE

A Nanoscaffolded Spike-RBD Vaccine Provides Protection against SARS-CoV-2 with Minimal Anti-Scaffold Response

The response of the adaptive immune system is augmented by multimeric presentation of a specific antigen, resembling viral particles. Several vaccines have been designed based on natural or designed protein scaffolds, which exhibited a potent adaptive immune response to antigens;however, antibodies are also generated against the scaffold, which may impair subsequent vaccination. In order to compare polypeptide scaffolds of different size and oligomerization state with respect to their efficiency, including anti-scaffold immunity, we compared several strategies of presentation of the RBD domain of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, an antigen aiming to generate neutralizing antibodies. A comparison of several genetic fusions of RBD to different nanoscaffolding domains (foldon, ferritin, lumazine synthase, and beta-annulus peptide) delivered as DNA plasmids demonstrated a strongly augmented immune response, with high titers of neutralizing antibodies and a robust T-cell response in mice. Antibody titers and virus neutralization were most potently enhanced by fusion to the small beta-annulus peptide scaffold, which itself triggered a minimal response in contrast to larger scaffolds. The beta-annulus fused RBD protein increased residence in lymph nodes and triggered the most potent viral neutralization in immunization by a recombinant protein. Results of the study support the use of a nanoscaffolding platform using the beta-annulus peptide for vaccine design.