ABSTRACT
This study investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on firm value and the mediating effect of financial technology (FinTech) applications. Examining the U.S.-listed domestic and foreign firms, we find the negative association between the severity of the virus pandemic and firm value. However, we also show the evidence that FinTech applications alleviate the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on firm value. These findings provide important implications for global regulators, investors, and managers. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
ABSTRACT
Space-time flexibility is defined as the extent to which individuals can participate in activities at different lo-cations and different times. High space-time flexibility of travel enables people more freedom to choose when and where to make trips and assists in achieving both environmental and social sustainability. Applying a quasi -experimental approach - propensity score matching - to data obtained from 624 interviews in Chengdu (China), this paper aims to examine the effects of metro accessibility on space-time flexibility of shopping travel for non -daily goods. The results show that people residing around metro stations (i.e., high calculated accessibility) have a higher level of space-time flexibility of shopping travel than those living elsewhere. Meanwhile, people who perceive easy access to metro services (i.e., high perceived accessibility) are also likely to have a higher level of space-time flexibility. The findings highlight the importance of metro accessibility from the perspective of time geography. In practice, improving calculated and perceived accessibility to metro services may be an effective urban planning strategy to increase residents' space-time flexibility of shopping travel and inform policy rec-ommendations for the design of sustainable cities.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic caused changes in our living styles severely after 2019 and has accelerated the shift towards a more cyber world. The recent online consumer survey showed that changes in online shopping behaviors are likely to have lasting effects. This study examined the different cultural comparisons of the navigation of website menu and product category layers on e-commerce websites. Our findings indicated that the menu of the Western e-commerce website is more layers than the East Asian website did (H1) through usability testing. In addition, participants spent more time on Western e-commerce websites than on East Asian e-commerce websites did (H2). This research provided a prospective insight for cross-border e-commerce that customized the website menu presentation when worldwide consumers visited them cross-culturally. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
The rampageous transmission of SARS-CoV-2 has been devastatingly impacting human life and public health since late 2019. The waves of pandemic events caused by distinct coronaviruses at present and over the past decades have prompted the need to develop broad-spectrum antiviral drugs against them. In this study, our Pentarlandir ultrapure and potent tannic acids (UPPTA) showed activities against two coronaviral strains, SARSCoV-2 and HCoV-OC43, the earliest-known coronaviruses. The mode of inhibition of Pentarlandir UPPTA is likely to act on 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLpro) to prevent viral replication, as supported by results of biochemical analysis, a 3CLpro assay, and a "gain-of-function" 3CLpro overexpressed cell-based method. Even in the 3CLpro overexpressed environment, Pentarlandir UPPTA remained its antiviral characteristic. Utilizing cell-based virucidal and cytotoxicity assays, the 50% effective concentrations (EC50) and 50% cytotoxicity concentration (CC50) of Pentarlandir UPPTA were determined to be similar to 0.5 and 52.5 mu M against SARS-CoV-2, while they were 1.3 and 205.9 mu M against HCoV-OC43, respectively. In the pharmacokinetic studies, Pentarlandir UPPTA was distributable at a high level to the lung tissue with no accumulation in the body, although the distribution was affected by the food effect. With further investigation in toxicology, Pentarlandir UPPTA demonstrated an overall safe toxicology profile. Taking these findings together, Pentarlandir UPPTA is considered to be a safe and efficacious pancoronal antiviral drug candidate that has been advanced to clinical development.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic affected the operation of water utilities across the world. In the context of utilities, new protocols were needed to ensure that employees can work safely, and that water service is not interrupted. This study reports on how the operations of 27 water utilities worldwide were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Interviews were conducted between June and October 2020;respondents represent utilities that varied in population size, location, and customer composition (e.g., residential, industrial, commercial, institutional, and university customers). Survey questions focused on the effects of the pandemic on water system operation, demand, revenues, system vulnerabilities, and the use and development of emergency response plans (ERPs). Responses indicate that significant changes in water system operations were implemented to ensure that water utility employees could continue working while maintaining safe social distancing or alternatively working from home. A total of 23 of 27 utilities reported small changes in demand volumes and patterns, which can lead to some changes in water infrastructure operations and water quality. Utilities experienced a range of impacts on finances, where most utilities discussed small decreases in revenues, with a few reporting more drastic impacts. The pandemic revealed new system vulnerabilities, including supply chain management, capacity of staff to perform certain functions remotely, and finances. Some utilities applied existing guidance developed through ERPs with slight modifications, other utilities developed new ERPs to specifically address unique conditions induced by the pandemic, and a few utilities did not use or reference their existing ERPs to change operations. Many utilities suggested that lessons learned would be used in future ERPs, such as personnel training on pandemic risk management or annual mock exercises for preparing employees to better respond to emergencies.
ABSTRACT
Forum papers are thought-provoking opinion pieces or essays founded in fact, sometimes containing speculation, on a civil engineering topic of general interest and relevance to the readership of the journal. The views expressed in this Forum article do not necessarily reflect the views of ASCE or the Editorial Board of the journal.