Preparation and Properties of an Efficient Purification Material for Personal Protection

At present, the filtration of virus and other small particles in the air by meltblown cloth produced by electret treatment mainly depends on its electrostatic adsorption mechanism. However, because the surface charge of melt blown fabric can not be maintained for a long time, it can not maintain high efficiency filtration for a long time. Therefore, there is no guarantee for the medical staffs to not be infected by COVID-19. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the mechanical filtration efficiency of melt blown fabric in the situation of an electric charge loss. In this paper, nylon 6 (PA6) nanofibers were electrospun on melt blown cloth by electrospinning technology, and a sandwich material with melt blown cloth as surface layer and PA6 nanofibers as middle layer was made by hot- pressing technology;the surface morphology, thermal and mechanical properties of the sandwich material were characterized, and its filtration performance was tested. The experimental results show that the surface integrity of the sandwich material is high, and the diameter of nanofibers can reach about 67 nm;without the electret treatment, the filtration efficiency of the sandwich material for particles in an size of 0.2 μm is more than 95%,while the filtration efficiency of non-woven fabric is zero;the filtration resistance of the material is about 284 Pa, which is suitable for personal protection. © 2023 Chengdu University of Science and Technology. All rights reserved.

Research on the Optimal Energy Saving and Emission Reduction Path for Promoting High-Quality Industrial Development in Hubei Province

In December 2019, a novel coronavirus broke out in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, and, as the center of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic, the economy and production throughout Hubei Province suffered huge temporary impacts. Based on the input–output and industrial pollution emissions data of 33 industrial industries in Hubei from 2010 to 2019, this article uses the non-parametric frontier analysis method to calculate the potential production losses and compliance costs caused by environmental regulations in Hubei's industrial sector by year and industry. Research has found that the environmental technology efficiency of the industrial sector in Hubei is showing a trend of increasing year-on-year, but the overall efficiency level is still not high, and there is great room for improvement. The calculation results with and without environmental regulatory constraints indicate that, generally, production losses and compliance costs may be encountered in the industrial sector in Hubei, and there are significant differences by industry. The potential production losses and compliance costs in pollution-intensive industries are higher than those in clean production industries. On this basis, we propose relevant policy recommendations to improve the technological efficiency of Hubei's industrial environment, in order to promote the high-quality development of Hubei's industry in the post-epidemic era.

How to Reconcile Pandemic Business Interruption Risk With Insurance Coverage

In the face of major risks, the financial capacities of private (re)insurers are rapidly reached. For major risks such as natural catastrophes, a risk transfer can be operated to the financial markets through securitization. A pandemic is a cat. Unfortunately a nat cat securitization strategy cannot be replicated for a pandemic cat. In this paper, we consider the economic losses that firms are bearing during a pandemic like the COVID-19. We focus on their most important issues: Risk correlation, impact of administrative decisions, moral hazard, and financial liquidity. Then we propose a coverage strategy of the pandemic business interruption risk that combines self-insurance, standard – capped – (re)insurance and new double triggered pandemic business interruption bonds. Lastly, we provide a simple illustration with French data related to the losses borne by the catering sector. © 2023 Editions Dalloz Sirey. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 Pandemic, Climate Change, and Conflicts on Agriculture: A Trio of Challenges to Global Food Security

Global food security is a worldwide concern. Food insecurity is a significant threat to poverty and hunger eradication goals. Agriculture is one of the focal points in the global policy agenda. Increases in agricultural productivity through the incorporation of technological advances or expansion of cultivable land areas have been pushed forward. However, production growth has slowed in many parts of the world due to various endemic challenges, such as decreased investment in agricultural research, lack of infrastructure in rural areas, and increasing water scarcity. Climate change adversities in agriculture and food security are increasing. Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected global food supply chains. Economic and social instability from the pandemic contribute to long-term disturbances. Additionally, conflicts such as war directly affect agriculture by environmental degradation, violence, and breaches of national and international trade agreements. A combination of food security and climate change challenges along with increased conflicts among nations and post-COVID-19 social and economic issues bring bigger and more serious threats to agriculture. This necessitates the strategic design of policies through multifaceted fields regarding food systems. In this comprehensive review, we explore how these three challenging factors, COVID-19, climate change, and conflicts, are interrelated, and how they affect food security. We discuss the impact of these issues on the agricultural sector, plus possible ways of preventing or overcoming such adverse effects.

Can Chinese banks expand their loan portfolio while maintaining loan quality and profitability post-global financial crisis?

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the relationships between loan growth, loan losses and net income after the 2008 global financial crisis. This study further conducts a comparative analysis by considering the period of COVID-19. Design/methodology/approachThis study uses panel data models such as one-step system GMM, random effects, fixed effects and OLS, with a data set of 131 Chinese commercial banks from 2009 to 2020. FindingsThe study finds no significant relationship between loan growth and future loan losses. However, after adjusting loan loss by net interest income (NII-adjusted loan loss), the study reveals that loan growth in the subsequent year decreases if NII-adjusted loan loss increases. The study also demonstrates the positive effect of loan growth on net income as newly expanded loans are funded at similar costs but offered at a lower rate compared with existing loans. During COVID-19, loan growth and net income were higher than in previous years. Originality/valueThe findings suggest that Chinese banks can increase lending to support the economy without sacrificing loan quality, emphasizing the importance of maintaining and enhancing credit policies and practices. Chinese banks should also continue to refine their pricing strategies for loans and deposits. The findings also imply that China's policy responses to the impact of COVID-19 could serve as lessons for future policy decisions.

COVID-19 impacts on United States crawfish. (Special Issue: COVID-19 impacts on selected commodities.)

This research determines the impacts of COVID-19 US on crawfish production and consumption for 2020 and 2021 using an Equilibrium Displacement Model. In the US, crawfish is one of the seafood commodities where most production is consumed by domestic consumers (7% of domestic consumption is from imports). Crawfish and rice are complementary. Therefore, the impacts of COVID-19 on crawfish consumption simultaneously influence rice production and crawfish producers and consumers. In the first year of COVID-19 (2020), the reduction in crawfish retail demand caused negative effects on final consumers and producers. However, crawfish consumption recovered significantly in the second year (2021), which could compensate for the loss in 2020. Overall, consumer and producer gains ranged from $549 to $626 million if the COVID-19 pandemic only impacted retail consumption. However, in 2021, the increase in production costs due to higher oil/diesel prices and other input prices caused the farm supply to decrease. As a result, total welfare gains ranged from $200 to $228 million. If the demand in 2021 did not increase, but the crawfish farm supply decreased, consumer and producer losses ranged from $929 to $1045 million. Overall, the total effects of COVID-19 on consumers and producers for 2020 and 2021 depend on its effects in 2021. If the demand in 2021 increased following the decrease in farm supply, consumers and producers would benefit from the shocks of COVID-19 due to higher post-COVID-19 demand.

Public-Private Partnerships with No Contractual Base Case: Adjusting for the Impacts of Covid-19

The purpose of this article is to discuss a method for compensating a private concession-aire for cash flow losses related to Covid-19 suffered in 2020 and 2021. The analysis is based on a public-private partnership (PPP) set up to exploit surface parking lots, signed between a Portuguese municipality and a private corporation. The contract has no financial base case. The article concludes that a base case is not an obstacle to calculate this type of compensation, that the previous performance of the contractor is a reasonable basis to estimate losses and the forecasts extending to 2026 are a good schema with which to estimate the extension of the concession period claimed by the Petitioner. The arbitration court deciding the corporation's claim has valid reasons for an equitable decision. © 2023, Lexxion Verlagsgesellschaft mbH. All rights reserved.

A Case Report on Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback and Postconcussion Syndrome: Healing the Autonomic Nervous System

Postconcussion syndrome is a devastating condition of the mind, body, and even personality. Mounting research demonstrates that heart rate variability biofeedback can help the concussed individual in three critical ways: (a) eliciting high amplitude oscillations in cardiovascular functions and thereby strengthening self-regulatory control mechanisms;(b) restoring autonomic balance;and (c) increasing the afferent impulse stream from the baroreceptors to restore balance between inhibitory and excitatory processes in the brain.

The coronavirus pandemic and its impact on water consumption as recorded by the water industry

The coronavirus outbreak has been extremely difficult for water utilities. The COVID-19 epidemic has become a challenge for the water and sewage sectors due to changes in water consumption caused by disrupted business operations, services, and household activities. Higher operating costs followed by lower revenues from the sale of water as well as staff shortages have been the biggest problems of the water and sewage industry. The drop in revenues related to lower water consumption turned out to be considerable for some enterprises, while for others it was dramatic. Some operators con-tinued to supply more water, but large increases were out of the question in their case. The paper presents innovative research on the scale of fluctuations in water demand during the COVID-19 epi-demic on the example of the Krakow Water. At Krakow, the coronavirus epidemic resulted in lower water sales, which upset the last 4 y of company rewards. Water sales monthly volume was ana-lyzed in parts divided by groups of customers. The authors based on real data which came from the billing system, where each customer belongs to a specific group or kind of conducted service or activity. The significant drop in water use was reported in the group "other customers". The reduced sales in that whole group within specific months of the 2020 year, compared to the same month of the 2019 year (before the pandemic) varied from 4.75% to 42.37%. The water sales volume, like before the pandemic is expected to reach about 2025 year.

Providing pandemic business interruption coverage with double trigger cat bonds.

The aim of this paper is to show how qualified investors in cat bonds can offer adequate pandemic business interruption protection in a comprehensive public-private coverage scheme. First, we propose a numerical model to expose how cat bonds can contribute to complement standard re/insurance by improving coverage of cedents even though risks are positively correlated during a pandemic. Second, we introduce double trigger pandemic business interruption cat bonds, which we name PBI bonds, and discuss their precise characteristics to provide efficient coverage. A first trigger should be pulled when the World Health Organization declares a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). The second trigger determines the payout of the bond based on the modelised business interruption losses of an industry in a country. We discuss moral hazard, basis risk, correlation and liquidity issues which are critical in the context of a pandemic. Third, we simulate the life of theoretical PBI bonds in the restaurant industry in France by using data gathered during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Plastic Surgery Residents Across the World: A Country-, Region-, and Income-level Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has upended graduate medical education globally. We investigated the COVID-19 impact on learning inputs and expected learning outputs of plastic surgery residents across the world. METHODS: We administered an online survey capturing training inputs before and during the pandemic and retrieved residents' expected learning outputs compared with residents who completed their training before COVID. The questionnaire reached residents across the world through the mobilization of national and international societies of plastic surgeons. RESULTS: The analysis included 412 plastic surgery residents from 47 countries. The results revealed a 44% decline (ranging from - 79 to 10% across countries) and an 18% decline (ranging from - 76 to across 151% countries) in surgeries and seminars, respectively, per week. Moreover, 74% (ranging from 0 to 100% across countries) and 43% (ranging from 0 to 100% across countries) of residents expected a negative COVID-19 impact on their surgical skill and scientific knowledge, respectively. We found strong correlations only between corresponding input and output: surgeries scrubbed in with surgical skill (ρ = -0.511 with p < 0.001) and seminars attended with scientific knowledge (ρ = - 0.274 with p = 0.006). CONCLUSIONS: Our ranking of countries based on their COVID-19 impacts provides benchmarks for national strategies of learning recovery. Remedial measures that target surgical skill may be more needed than those targeting scientific knowledge. Our finding of limited substitutability of inputs in training suggests that it may be challenging to make up for lost operating room time with more seminars. Our results support the need for flexible training models and competency-based advancement. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE V: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors http://www.springer.com/00266 .

Rights awareness and COVID-19 tourism job losses: perspectives from Malaysia

This qualitative study applies the labour market segmentation theory to examine tourism job losses through the indirect causes of pay cuts, unpaid leave and the take-up of side hustle–accepted by the employees partly from loyalty, camaraderie and empathy. Where the prolonged hardship from these measures leads to resignations, employers gain from the avoidance of termination benefits mandated by a retrenchment exercise. The losses occasioned to the worker include the non-eligibility for state-funded wage subsidy and foregone termination benefits. Through a legal analysis of COVID-19 job losses, the study posits that tourism workers' lack of rights awareness contributed to the voluntary acceptance of these lawful but detrimental strategies. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

The Moderating Role of Good Corporate Governance: The Influence of Capital Structure, Profitability, Dividend Payment and Inflation on The Value of Mining Companies in Indonesia: Acces la Success

The objectives of this research include: (1) examining and analyzing the effect of capital structure, profitability, dividend payments and inflation on the value of mining companies;(2) examining and analyzing the moderating role of Good Corporate Governance (GCG) on the effect of capital structure, profitability, dividend payment and inflation on the value of mining companies listed on the IDX. The population of this study is all mining sector companies listed on the IDX for the period 2014-2020. The purposive sampling method is used as the sampling technique. The total population is 49 companies and the number of samples that meet the criteria are 44 companies. The research period is 7 years, so the total number of observations is 308 data (pooled data). The Moderated Regression Analysis (MRA) is used as the analysis method. The result is as follow: (1) capital structure has a negative significant effect on firm value;(2) profitability has a positive significant effect on firm value;(3) dividend payment has no significant effect on firm value;(4) inflation has a negative significant effect on firm value;(5) GCG has a moderating effect on the influence of capital structure, profitability and inflation on firm value, with the type of Quasi Moderating, whereas on the influence of dividend payments on firm value, it was the type of Pure Moderating.

Unanticipated consequences: Lack of essential and nonessential patient care, furloughs of health care providers, and institutional financial losses

The COVID-19 pandemic caused large reductions in the use of medical services due to the cancellation of nonessential care and elective surgeries by providers and the avoidance of medical care by patients. As a result, health care providers sustained substantial financial losses. This resulted in layoffs and furloughs for health care personnel, adding economic stressors to health care providers who were already working under difficult conditions. The financing mechanisms for health care and structural features of the health care delivery system contributed to these large unanticipated consequences. Policy initiatives have the potential to reduce these adverse effects. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022. All rights reserved.

The features and prospects of recreational use of thermal mineral springs by resort hotels

The Russian invasion of Ukraine and the COVID-19 pandemic have actualized the need to rethink the recreational use of thermal mineral springs by resort hotels in order to treat the consequences of post-war injuries, psychological rehabilitation and health restoration. Solving these problems requires strengthening the role of recreational enterprises and resort hotels in restoring the health of the population by expanding the directions of their economic activity and forming the investment attractiveness of the national resort and recreational product in world markets. The publication pays special attention to determining the physical and chemical properties of thermal mineral springs, which is an important component in the development of healing methods and the creation of specific health recovery programs. The spatial structure of the distribution of thermal mineral springs by regions of the world is clarified. The main types of establishments with thermal mineral springs, which provide recreational, healing and therapeutic services, are determined. In addition, the amount of financial losses suffered by institutions with thermal mineral springs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic is determined, as well as the dynamics of volume and forecast of growth of the world market of thermal mineral springs, due to the need to recover health, is identified. According to the results of the study, it is found that thermal mineral springs are a unique natural resource. Their recreational use is the main activity of many resort hotels. As a result of the Russian aggression and the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a shift in emphasis in the functioning of resort hotels from relaxation and rest towards treatment and rehabilitation, which will help restore the demand for resort and recreational services in the post-war period. Thus, the increase in demand for the health-recovering, medical and recreational services will make it possible to expand the recreational use of thermal mineral springs, update the menu of services and become more appealing for attracting investment capital.

Intelligent Tourism Platform Model Construction Based on Artificial Intelligence: Taking Wudang Mountain as an example

The COVID-19 pandemic, which began in December 2019, has brought huge changes to people's lives. In terms of tourism, the prevention and control measures taken to stop the spread of the epidemic have led to a decline in the number of global trips, and the development of the tourism economy has entered a trough. The economic losses caused by the tourism industry and its corresponding service industry need to be resolved urgently. At the same time, with the development of artificial intelligence, virtual reality and other technologies, the concept of smart tourism was proposed. Based on this, we put forward a website platform model for tourists to inquire about tourism, which takes Wudang Mountain as an example and uses artificial intelligence as technical support. This platform model can meet the needs of users to carry out cloud tour of scenic spots online and enjoy scenic spots without leaving home. It can also conduct intelligent query of offline scenic spots, including route customization, ticket ordering, scenic spot recommendation and many other contents, to meet the various needs of tourists. In addition, the highlight of the platform model is the guide assistant that can conduct dialogues. Based on artificial intelligence technology, it can solve users' specific problems and give feasible solutions in the process of dialogues with users. © 2023 IEEE.

Bidirectional Associations of Awareness of Age-Related Change and Attitudes Towards Own Aging With Social Media Use.

OBJECTIVES: We test whether higher awareness of age-related gains (AARC-gains), lower awareness of age-related losses (AARC-losses), and more positive attitudes towards own aging (ATOA) are cross-sectionally related to more frequent social media use. We also investigate the strength and direction of the associations of AARC-gains, AARC-losses, and ATOA with social media use over one-year, from before to after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: We used cross-sectional data of 8320 individuals (mean age= 65.95 years; SD= 7.01) and longitudinal data of a subsample of 4454 individuals participating to the UK PROTECT study in 2019 and 2020. We used ordered regression models, linear regression models, and tests of interaction. Models were adjusted for age, sex, education, and employment. RESULTS: Higher AARC-gains and more positive ATOA, but not AARC-losses, were cross-sectionally associated with more frequent social media use. Social media use become more frequent at follow-up. In the longitudinal models controlling for baseline levels of the outcome variable, more frequent baseline social media use predicted increases in AARC-gains, whereas baseline AARC-gains did not significantly predict frequency of social media use at follow-up. Baseline frequency of social media use did not significantly predict AARC-losses, nor ATOA at follow-up, whereas lower levels of AARC-losses and more positive ATOA predicted more frequent social media use at follow-up. DISCUSSION: Although effect sizes were small, decreasing negative views on aging may help increase engagement of middle-aged and older people with social media. At the same time, fostering social media use could promote positive self-perceptions of aging.

Experimental Studies of Hydraulic Losses and Carbon Dioxide Concentration in the Space Under the Face Mask Protecting Against COVID-19

Masks are the primary tool used to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the current pandemic. Tests were carried out to determine the total pressure drop through the materials from which the masks are made and the correlation of these results with the concentration of carbon dioxide in the inner space of the mask. The results showed that a parameter representing hydraulic losses of the mask material has a significant influence on the concentration of carbon dioxide in the inner space of the mask. Masks with higher hydraulic resistances accumulated a higher concentration of carbon dioxide, and generated greater fluctuations of carbon dioxide as a function of time, which may be caused by compensation of the respiratory system. For example, in a two-layer mask (mask no. 3) the hydraulic resistance values are about three times higher than in a single-layer mask (mask no. 1). The study also noticed that the inscriptions and prints placed on the masks increase the hydraulic resistance of the material from which the masks are made, which may also contribute to the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the space between the mask and the face. To reduce the accumulation of carbon dioxide within the inner space of the mask, the results of this work suggest searching for mask materials with the lowest possible hydraulic resistance.

Performance increases in mathematics during COVID-19 pandemic distance learning in Austria: Evidence from an intelligent tutoring system for mathematics.

BACKGROUND: In 2020, school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic forced students all over the world to promptly alter their learning routines from in-person to distance learning. However, so far, only a limited number of studies from a few countries investigated whether school closures affected students' performance within intelligent tutoring system-such as intelligent tutoring systems. METHOD: In this study, we investigated the effect of school closures in Austria by evaluating data (n = 168 students) derived from an intelligent tutoring system for learning mathematics, which students used before and during the first period of school closures. RESULTS: We found that students' performance increased in mathematics in the intelligent tutoring system during the period of school closures compared to the same period in previous years. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that intelligent tutoring systems were a valuable tool for continuing education and maintaining student learning during school closures in Austria.

Gone with the pandemic: How did Covid-19 affect the academic performance of Colombian students?

The Covid-19 pandemic is an unprecedented shock that has tested the responsiveness of education systems around the world. The international literature that has studied the Covid-19 pandemic and school performance is still limited. Colombia presents an interesting scenario for the analysis due to the prolonged school closures and long lockdowns it experienced in 2020, and the availability of a rich dataset on the results of a high school exit examination (Saber11) that was administered even during the pandemic. Using this data, we estimate whether the COVID-19 pandemic is associated to lower levels of performance amongst graduating high school students using a school and time fixed effects model, finding a negative relation. Due to the significant reduction in the number of students taking the national standardized high school exit exam in 2020, we use inverse probability weighting (IPW) regressions to control for possible selection bias. The results of these regressions show that the Covid-19 pandemic has a negative and statistically significant relation with the scores obtained by students on the Saber11 exam. These results are relevant because they provide evidence to motivate the design of public policies that mitigate the side effects of the pandemic on educational outcomes.