Indoor Chemical Exposures in Secondary Schools post-COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cohort Study of New Work-Based Learning Teachers

We obtained cross-sectional repeated measures self-report survey data on workplace safety and health and wellness from newer, early-to-mid-career New Jersey (NJ) secondary or high school (HS) teachers supervising work-based learning on- and off-campus in specific career clusters within career-technical-vocational education. This cohort study in the 2021-2024 school years (SYs) is a unique opportunity. It immediately proceeded the 2019-2021 SYs. Due to COVID-19, most 2020 2nd semester (3/18-6/30/2020) and 2020-2021 SY in-person classes went online;extracurricular activities were cancelled or substantially altered for online/virtual substitutes;and, no-to-little in-person HS teaching and off- or on-campus activities. Upon return 8-9/2021, classrooms, labs, shops, etc. were cleaned. Data suggested risks of human exposure to chemical agents from cleaning, disinfecting and sanitation consumer products use, given concerns about viral (and bacterial) loads collecting and potentially remaining on frequently contacted surfaces. We present study design, recruitment data, and selected survey content responses from ongoing research 2021-2024. © 2022 17th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate, INDOOR AIR 2022. All rights reserved.

Monitoring of the Surfactants in Surface Waters in Slovakia and the Possible Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Their Presence

In order to keep the home and occupational environment clean and non-infectious, the consumption of cleaners and disinfectants, including cosmetics, is increasing. Excessive use of these products results in their accumulation in the aquatic environment. Conventional wastewater treatment plants are unable to effectively remove the emergent pollutants, including personal care products. This article is focused on the monitoring of the presence of personal care products in surface waters in two river basins in the Slovak Republic, in terms of the surfactant content. Ecotoxicological evaluation of the selected samples from the monitored river basins was performed by an acute toxicity test using the test organism Daphnia magna. The monitoring results indicate the presence of personal care products in the aquatic environment which poses an ecological and environmental risk. Monitoring in the Hron and Nitra river basins confirmed contamination with the surfactants, to which the measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic contributed. The content of the surfactants in personal care products is significant, and their impact on the aquatic environment is not sufficiently monitored.

Conceptual Framework of Contact-Less Consumer Products Industry During and Post-pandemic Era

The COVID-19 era has reshaped the world regarding the contact-less economy, healthcare systems, remote work environment, people's lifestyle and their daily routines, etc. The consumer products (CP) industry is being impacted due to the behaviours of consumers during self-quarantine. This accelerates adopting digital transformation and upgrading the business models for the contact-less CP industry. Accordingly, this study provides a step toward the contact-less CP industry during and post-pandemic. First, we have proposed a conceptual framework for the contact-less CP industry that aims to bring together the key advanced technologies (e.g., Digital Twin (DT), blockchain, AI, cloud computing, 5G, and robots). The combination of the advanced technologies provides data monitoring, transparency, traceability, automation, and data sharing among consumers and CP partners. The proposed framework will enable a more contact-less personalized interaction that will work towards higher levels of consumer satisfaction while maintaining contact-less economy growth. Then, we have described how the proposed framework can be applied for contact-less delivery services for the CP industry during and post-pandemic. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Dairy trends in 2021: dairy products essential to consumers

This article discussed some of the dairy products that will be out in the market after the Covid-19 pandemic among these products are comfort foods such as cheddar and milk chocolate, dairy products for weight management such as less sugar yoghurt, and low-fat flavoured milk, premium cheeses for at-home entertaining such as gourmet cheese, and lastly the high protein dairy beverage.

Evaluation of the Safety and Efficacy of Hand Sanitizer Products Marketed to Children Available during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Hand sanitizer use in the United States (U.S.) increased after the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released temporary manufacturer guidance, changing impurity level limits for alcohol-based hand sanitizers (ABHSs). Since the guidance took effect, the FDA has recommended against using these hand sanitizers due to concerns over safety, efficacy, and/or risk of incidental ingestion. To address current gaps in exposure characterization, this study describes a survey of ABHSs marketed to children available in the U.S., as defined by several inclusion criteria. A subset of ABHSs (n = 31) were evaluated for ethanol and organic impurities using a modified FDA method. Products with detectable impurity levels were compared to the FDA's established interim limits. Seven children's products had impurity levels exceeding the FDA's recommended interim limits, including benzene (up to 9.14 ppm), acetaldehyde (up to 134.12 ppm), and acetal (up to 75.60 ppm). The total measured alcohol content ranged from 52% to 98% in all hand sanitizers tested, ranging from 39% below, and up to 31% above, the labeled concentration. Future studies should confirm impurity contamination sources. A risk assessment could determine whether dermal application or incidental ingestion of impurity-containing hand sanitizers pose any consumer risk.

Exposure Prioritization (Ex Priori): A Screening-Level High-Throughput Chemical Prioritization Tool.

To estimate potential chemical risk, tools are needed to prioritize potential exposures for chemicals with minimal data. Consumer product exposures are a key pathway, and variability in consumer use patterns is an important factor. We designed Ex Priori, a flexible dashboard-type screening-level exposure model, to rapidly visualize exposure rankings from consumer product use. Ex Priori is Excel-based. Currently, it is parameterized for seven routes of exposure for 1108 chemicals present in 228 consumer product types. It includes toxicokinetics considerations to estimate body burden. It includes a simple framework for rapid modeling of broad changes in consumer use patterns by product category. Ex Priori rapidly models changes in consumer user patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic and instantly shows resulting changes in chemical exposure rankings by body burden. Sensitivity analysis indicates that the model is sensitive to the air emissions rate of chemicals from products. Ex Priori's simple dashboard facilitates dynamic exploration of the effects of varying consumer product use patterns on prioritization of chemicals based on potential exposures. Ex Priori can be a useful modeling and visualization tool to both novice and experienced exposure modelers and complement more computationally intensive population-based exposure models.

Special Issue: Sport and COVID-19: impact and challenges for the future: volume 2. (Special Issue: Sport and COVID-19: impact and challenges for the future: volume 2.)

This second volume of the 'Sport and COVID-19' special edition expands upon the themes of the first. Topics covered by the six papers include: corporate social irresponsibility's impact on a sporting goods brand;virtual sport behaviour of event participants;sport media coverage during the pandemic;and sport brand involvement and fan well-being during the pandemic.

Pharmaceuticals as Emerging Pollutants in the Reclaimed Wastewater Used in Irrigation and Their Effects on Plants, Soils, and Groundwater

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) were investigated in five wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), groundwater, irrigated soils, and plants in Amman and Al-Balqa governorates in Jordan. PPCPs were extracted from water samples by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS/MS). Carbamazepine, ciprofloxacin, ceftiofur, diclofenac, erythromycin, lincomycin, ofloxacin, pyrimthamine, spiramycin, sulfamethoxazole, sulfapyridine, testosterone, trimethoprim, and thiamphenicol were detected in all raw wastewaters in μg/L, whereas 45 PPCPs were below the detection limits (<0.02 μg/L) in all samples. Na`ur and Abu Nuseir WWTPs showed high PPCPs removal efficiencies in comparison with AL-Baqa`a, Salt, and Fuhais-Mahis WWTPs. Boqorreya spring showed signs of contamination by Salt WWTP effluents as a result of mixing. Irrigation with effluents showed higher carbamazepine concentrations in soils at the top soil layers (0 to 20 cm) in all farms than its concentrations at the root zone (20 to 40 cm) by using drip irrigation system with various plants. In plants, carbamazepine concentration was only detected in high concentration level in mint leaves. In the same farm, diclofenac concentration was detected only in olives and not in twigs and leaves, indicating a high rate of plant uptake especially during the olive’s growth period. Furthermore, plant fruits, leaves, and stems left on the farm after harvesting are generally consumed by cattle, which means entering the food chain of humans.

No long-term consequences for social irresponsibility? Adidas' rent incident during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. (Special Issue: Sport and COVID-19: impact and challenges for the future: volume 2.)

Research question: How does corporate social irresponsibility affect a brand during a worldwide health crisis? This study investigates how Adidas' announcement to withhold rent payments in Germany and the ensuing public criticism impacted its brand metrics. Research methods: Nationally representative survey data on sentiment, reputation, purchase intent, and behavior for five major sporting goods manufacturers spanning 1,096 continuous days is combined with Google Trends and stock price data to estimate the causal impact of Adidas' social irresponsibility using a series of Bayesian structural time-series models. Results and findings: Adidas took a significant initial hit in sentiment and reputation immediately and months after the scandal. However, purchase intentions, consumer behavior, and stock prices indicate that the company continued to be a preferred brand.

Design and Manufacturability of Medical Ventilators from the Perspective of a Global Automotive Footprint

During the past year, the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic caused disruptions in business, engineering, manufacturing, and numerous other modern-day economies. The Manufacturing Institute estimates approximately 2.4 million jobs in the global manufacturing industry will remain unfilled by 2028 if urgent actions are not taken in the halls of academia to educate greater numbers of manufacturing engineers. To this end, we have developed and implemented a split-level (i.e., undergraduate/graduate) course during the fall 2020 semester in the mechanical engineering department. The course is titled Global Manufacturing and is hinged on formal paradigms that comprise various types of manufacturing systems. The course is centered on realistic contractual conditions and project deliverables (i.e., medical ventilators) to a medical supplier, whereas the team is assumed to emulate a global automotive manufacturer. The projects are organized into student teams for realistic implementation and to meet a societal need. The course underpins students with exposure to concepts of acquiring intellectual property, from the design of an embedded system including the human machine interface (HMI), to testing and validation. An in-depth study of assembly lines, lean manufacturing, determination of production capacity, sequential operations, and economic calculations are presented. Students are presented with urgent societal needs and learn to address design requirements and imperatives in a timely and cost-effective manner. This paper reports the experiences of students making engineering, business, manufacturing, and supplier related decisions to deliver the medical ventilators for patient use. The assessment consists of sequential activities that are commonly utilized in innovation, production, and launch processes for a new consumer product. The course instructor formulates student teams such that individual skills, interests, and competencies are balanced. The educational objectives from prerequisite and co-requisite manufacturing courses are utilized. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2021

Off the Shelf: Rapid Deployment of an Emergency Department Telemedicine Platform Using Readily Available Consumer Products.

BACKGROUND: For 20 years, telemedicine has been waiting in the wings for its time in the spotlight. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, with its emphasis on personal protective equipment (PPE) and reducing high-risk contacts, was the catalyst needed to bring telemedicine into mainstream consciousness and acceptance. OBJECTIVES: We first review some of the key factors that precipitated this abrupt alteration of the perception of telemedicine. We then detail the creation of a department-wide telemedicine network using off-the-shelf consumer products. Our goal was to very rapidly install a system that was familiar to end-users for the purpose of reducing high-risk contacts and conserving PPE. Sourcing from the consumer realm proved to be advantageous over enterprise-level equipment when these goals were desired. DISCUSSION: After a rollout of 1.5 weeks from zero to fully operational, we showed an immediate decrease in high-risk contacts and PPE use. All 80 rooms plus all triage areas in our department were outfitted with Apple iPads running Zoom. User adoption was high and telemedicine use increased from ∼17 to ∼90 instances a day, a 429% increase. We saw a decrease in high-risk contacts of about 75%, with a concomitant cost savings in PPE. CONCLUSIONS: We propose that the use of consumer products sourced from local vendors is a viable solution for telemedicine systems focusing on speed, reducing costs, and ease of deployment. Future work will focus on studying its performance characteristics vs. other systems in an evolving landscape.