An Evaluation Model of a Disruptive Technology During Covid-19 Pandemic

Disruptive Technologies have created radical transformations in different industry fields. They also changed principles governing market and competitions. This role was considered an advantage in different organizational aspects including performance, effectiveness and competitiveness. The attendance of these technologies was not bounded by these aspects alone, it has also flourished in crises and specifically Covid-19 pandemic. One of these disruptive technologies that caught interest in this crisis is cloud collaboration platforms (CCPs). CCPs were essential and critical in a key sector during the pandemic, which was education. The pandemic outbreak caused a mandatory conversion towards online education leaded by CCPs. Demonstration of these platforms during the pandemic was accompanied with their evaluation using different criteria. Still, these criteria were neither clearly justified in their reasons of use nor classified according to their importance during the pandemic. In this paper, a model of CCPs evaluation criteria during the pandemic is presented. This model is based on previous research criteria and applies inductive approach through discovering users experience regarding these criteria during the pandemic. Functionality, reliability and usability in addition to their sub-standards were the main criteria that have been assessed and ranked by users. The users who rated the criteria were academics and experts of a university in Jordan and they were engaged in online education using CCPs. Evaluation was conducted using a quantitative approach using an online questionnaire which was distributed to these academics. Findings show that security and understandability are the most significant criteria that we should look after during the pandemic. Fault tolerance, accuracy, suitability and maturity standards have the second priority and finally, compliance, recoverability, learnability and interoperability have the third priority. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Curriculum, instruction, and assessment: A snapshot of world language education in Massachusetts

This large-scale study used a survey to collect data on K-12 world language classrooms in Massachusetts public schools, focusing on core instructional practices, curriculum, and assessment. The study resulted in 383 individual teacher completed responses, representing 188 districts, which was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results indicate encouraging signs in the adoption of core proficiency-based instructional practices, thematic curriculum design, and the use of performance-based assessments. Further support for teachers in how to implement these practices is needed, along with attention to school leaders who may have no background in world language education but are tasked with supporting and evaluating world language teachers. Survey data were collected at the beginning of school closures due to COVID-19, capturing a picture of K-12 world language education and a point of comparison for future research.

A critique on the UK's net zero strategy

Before the Covid-19 pandemic UK passed net-zero emission law legislation to become the first major economy in the world to end its contribution to global warming by 2050. Following the UK's legislation to reach net-zero emissions, a long-term strategy for transition to a net-zero target was published in 2021. The strategy is a technology-led and with a top-down approach. The intention is to reach the target over the next three decades. The document targets seven sectors to reduce emissions and include a wide range of policies and innovations for decarbonization. This paper aims to accomplish a much needed review of the strategy in heat and buildings part and cover the key related areas in future buildings standard, heat pumps and use of hydrogen as elaborated in the strategy. For that purpose, this research reviews key themes in the policy, challenges, recent advancement and future possibilities. It provides an insight on the overall development toward sustainability and decarbonization of built environment in the UK by 2050. A foresight model, Future Wheels is also used to visualize the findings from the review and provide a clear picture of the potential impact of the policy. © 2023

Modern Challenges of Healthcare Construction

Healthcare construction has an important role in shaping the image of a country. The Constitution of the Russian Federation defines the Russian Federation as a welfare state with a system of "occupational and human health protection measures.” In 2019, the human health protection was threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Timur Andrbaev, Construction Director at Moscow International Medical Cluster Foundation, "the pandemic will lead to a greater demand in healthcare construction expertise consistent with the international standards and allowing for rapid re-designing of facilities depending on the tasks and scope of work to be achieved.” The innovative approach to healthcare construction can lead a quality improvement of the life of population, as well as make life easier for patients in palliative care. Innovative healthcare development is led by Japan, America, Great Britain and Germany, followed by China and India with. Russia ranks among the least progressive countries as new health technologies appear in its facilities much less often. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Pandemic reveals new concerns about facial protection products: Design may be the answer to altering behaviors, habits ushered into standard practice

The article examines what medical suppliers and providers learned about facial protection products after the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020-2022. Topics discussed include remarks from Jason Burnham, Senior Director of Facial Protection at Owens & Minor, evidence of pandemic-relaxed behaviors morphing into workflow acceptance, and statement from Gary Harris, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Prestige Ameritech, about emergency use guidelines for personal protective equipment (PPE).

Effective multipurpose sewage sludge and food waste reduction strategies: A focus on recent advances and future perspectives

Energy crisis and increasing rigorous management standards pose significant challenges for solid waste management worldwide. Several emerging diseases such as COVID-19 aggravated the already complex solid waste management crisis, especially sewage sludge and food waste streams, because of the increasingly large production year by year. As mature waste disposal technologies, landfills, incineration, composting, and some other methods are widespread for solid wastes management. This paper reviews recent advances in key sewage sludge disposal technologies. These include incineration, anaerobic digestion, and valuable products oriented-conversion. Food waste disposal technologies comprised of thermal treatment, fermentation, value-added product conversion, and composting have also been described. The hot topic and dominant research foci of each area are summarized, simultaneously compared with conventional technologies in terms of organic matter degradation or conversion performance, energy generation, and renewable resources production. Future perspectives of each technology that include issues not well understood and predicted challenges are discussed with a positive effect on the full-scale implementation of the discussed disposal methods. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd

Metrology in health: challenges and solutions in infusion therapy and diagnostics.

The significance of Metrology in infusion therapy and diagnostics, both critical in health care safety and quality, is discussed in this article. Although infusion therapy is the most used form of drug administration, infusion errors are often made with reported dramatic effects in different applications, especially in neonatology. Adverse incidents, morbidity, and mortality have often been traced back to poor or inaccurate dosing. For critical infusion applications to vulnerable patients, well-controlled medication administration might be accomplished by improved dosing accuracy, traceable measurement of volume, flow, and pressure in existing drug delivery devices and in-line sensors operating at very low flow rates. To this end, the contribution of recently upgraded metrological infrastructures in European Metrology Institutes to a safer infusion therapy in health care is described in detail. Diagnostics, on the other hand is a sector characterized by rapid developments further triggered recently by the necessity for the management and prevention of infectious diseases like COVID-19. In this context, the impact of metrology in future large-scale commercialization of next generation diagnostics (e.g., point-of-care) is highlighted. Moreover, the latest contributions of Metrology in the development of traceable testing methods and protocols to ensure the sensitivity and accuracy of these devices are described.

Timing of submissions to The Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health: Associations with the COVID-19 pandemic and editorial decisions.

AIM: To determine if the timing of manuscript submissions to The Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health (JPCH) changed following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and to determine if the timing of manuscript submissions influenced editorial decisions. METHODS: A retrospective observational study of submissions to JPCH from 1 January 2015 to 1 August 2022 was performed. Regression models were used to explore the change over time. Editorial decisions were examined using a multinomial regression model with the three-category ordinal outcome of reject, revise and accept. All statistical models were fitted using a Bayesian approach and show 95% credible intervals (CI). RESULTS: The analyses included 11 499 manuscript submissions between 2015 and 2022. The mean number of manuscript submissions increased by 17 papers per month (CI 15-19), with a larger 4-month long increase after the COVID-19 pandemic was declared of 86 submissions per month (CI 67-103). There was no clear effect of the pandemic on weekend submissions, mean difference in probability 0.003 (CI -0.021 to 0.026). Throughout the study period, the peak submission time was later in the day and was shifted +37 min later post-March 2020 (CI +22 to +52 min). Throughout the study period, submissions out-of-hours and on weekends were less likely to get an editorial decision of 'accept' or 'revise': odds ratio weekend versus weekday 0.87 (CI 0.78-0.97). CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic had a limited effect on the timing of manuscript submissions to JPCH. However, the timing of manuscript submission impacted the likelihood of a more positive editorial decision. While the time of manuscript submission is only one part of the research process, it is postulated that it may be associated with research quality.

Liber Amicorum Manfred Weiss

Liber Amicorum Manfred Weiss by Marius Olivier, Nicola Smit, and Evance Kalula (Cape Town, South Africa, Juta, 2021, 395 pp.).

Environmental, social, and governance adoption in the Malaysian wood products and furniture industries: Awareness, adoption, and challenges

As the world intensifies efforts to mitigate the effect of global climate change, an on-line survey was carried out involving 1,081 wood products and furniture manufacturers in Malaysia. The main objective was to evaluate the level of awareness, extent of adoption, and challenges faced by these manufacturers in adopting environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices. The survey found that large-sized companies were more receptive to adopting ESG practices, as opposed to the medium-, small-, and micro-sized companies. Respondents were apparently more responsive to environmental requirements, followed by governance, and finally the social factors. Within the environmental sphere, compliance with using certified and legal wood and wood products, waste management, and conformance to emission standards were well received among respondents. The survey revealed that market forces and legislative requirements were the two most important factors that enticed respondents to comply with the ESG practices;among those respondents who did not comply with ESG requirements, the primary deterrent factors include lack of awareness, no direct benefit from adopting ESG, and the high cost involved. The ESG compliance may transform the wood products and furniture industries into a more sustainable industry, offering equitable wages and green jobs while producing high value-added products.

Auditors' response to regulators during COVID-19: disclosures of key audit matters

PurposeNew Zealand regulatory bodies guided preparers and auditors of financial statements to deal with potential COVID-19 impacts on the financial statements and audit procedures. This study provides evidence of auditors' response to the impact of COVID-19 on the reporting of key audit matters (KAMs) in audit reports of listed companies in New Zealand. The purpose of this paper is to address this issue.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 50 New Zealand listed companies was selected to compare the KAMs in 2019 (pre-COVID-19) and 2020 (during COVID-19). The study uses content analysis to evaluate the KAMs' disclosures and descriptive analysis to examine the differences between 2019 and 2020 in terms of the auditor type, industry sector and accounting standards.FindingsAuditors responded positively to the request from regulators to communicate the impacts of COVID-19. The findings show an increase in the amount and length of KAMs in 2020 compared to 2019, with 82% of companies and 61% of KAMs reporting the impact of COVID-19. The real estate and information technology sectors disclosed more on the impact than other sectors. In analysing the KAMs, accounting standards for inventories, property plant and equipment, impairment of assets, investment property, revenue from contracts with customers and leases were highly affected by COVID-19.Practical implicationsThe findings support regulators to evaluate how well auditors communicated matters relating to COVID-19 in the audit report. Also, the findings will help standard setters to identify key accounting standards affected by COVID-19 of KAMs and provide insights to users on how the KAM reporting enhances communicative value during the pandemic.Originality/valueThe current study captures the impact of COVID-19 on the reporting of KAMs by comparing changes before and during the pandemic.

Are sustainable firms more profitable during COVID-19? Recent global evidence of firms in developed and emerging economies

PurposeThis paper investigates whether sustainability performance (SP) protects financial performance (FP) for firms in both developed and emerging economies during the COVID-19-induced economic downturn.Design/methodology/approachUsing a recent sample of firms in 34 countries between 2003 and 2021, the authors employ ordinary least squares regressions, moderations and the Heckman two-step method to test the hypotheses.FindingsFirms with strong SP have higher FP in developed and emerging economies in the upcoming year. During the COVID-19 crisis in 2020–2021, the impact of sustainability on FP is pronounced in developed but not in emerging economies. Furthermore, cross-listings expose firms in emerging economies to high-standard institutional mechanisms in developed economies. Thus, sustainable firms in emerging economies cross-listed on European stock exchanges are more profitable.Practical implicationsFor regulators and standard setters, the global-level comparative analysis helps them find solutions that may assist firms in improving SP globally (e.g. mandatory reporting) and enduring crises resiliently. For institutional investors, the study reveals the relatively different impact of sustainability risk for firms in developed and emerging economies. For practitioners and private sector firms, this study contributes to the dialogue on what makes firms more resilient in COVID-19. Although COVID-19 might be temporary, the lessons learned could protect firms from future crises.Originality/valueThe authors contribute to the contingency perspective between sustainability and financial performance by providing recent empirical evidence in a global setting during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors demonstrate how different external institutional mechanisms (rule-based governance and relation-based governance) and cross-listing affect the SP-FP relationship during a crisis. The authors extend the knowledge in crisis management literature with a comparative study and fill the research gap on how SP affects FP for firms in emerging economies compared to developed economies.

Simple fabrication of an electrospun polystyrene microfiber filter that meets N95 filtering facepiece respirator filtration and breathability standards

During the global spread of COVID‐19, high demand and limited availability of melt‐blown filtration material led to a manufacturing backlog of N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators (FFRs). This shortfall prompted the search for alternative filter materials that could be quickly mass produced while meeting N95 FFR filtration and breathability performance standards. Here, an unsupported, nonwoven layer of uncharged polystyrene (PS) microfibers was produced via electrospinning that achieves N95 performance standards based on physical parameters (e.g., filter thickness) alone. PS microfibers 3–6 μm in diameter and deposited in an ~5 mm thick filter layer are favorable for use in FFRs, achieving high filtration efficiencies (≥97.5%) and low pressure drops (≤15 mm H2O). The PS microfiber filter demonstrates durability upon disinfection with hydroxyl radicals (•OH), maintaining high filtration efficiencies and low pressure drops over six rounds of disinfection. Additionally, the PS microfibers exhibit antibacterial activity (1‐log removal of E. coli) and can be modified readily through integration of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) during electrospinning to enhance their activity (≥3‐log removal at 25 wt% AgNP integration). Because of their tunable performance, potential reusability with disinfection, and antimicrobial properties, these electrospun PS microfibers may represent a suitable, alternative filter material for use in N95 FFRs.

Ethics and law for school psychologists., 8th ed

Ethics and Law for School Psychologists was written to provide up-to-date information on ethical principles and standards and law pertinent to the delivery of school psychological services. The goal of this book is to bring together various ethical and legal guidelines pertinent to the delivery of school psychological services. The book focuses on ethical-legal issues of interest to current and future school-based practitioners. There have been a number of changes in ethical guidelines and law since the seventh edition. The National Association of School Psychologists revised its professional standards, including the Principles for Professional Ethics, in 2020, and the American Psychological Association revised its ethics code, Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, in 2016. The eighth edition gives new attention to the ethical obligation to promote social justice. The problem-solving model is replaced by the DECIDE ethical-legal decision-making model developed by Diamond et al. (2021) that emphasizes socially just practice. Overall, the book has been updated to stress consideration of racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and other background factors important to understanding the context and/or the individuals involved in ethically challenging situations, and practitioners are now more explicitly urged to examine their own biases and how those biases might affect their perception of a situation and professional judgment. Chapter 8 now includes information about working with students who have undocumented family members and the educational rights of homeless schoolchildren. Chapter 12 (new) provides an expanded focus on advocacy. The Covid-19 pandemic along with the nationwide shortage of school psychologists have led to increased interest in distance assessment and intervention. As a result, multiple sections of the book are further updated to address ethical and legal concerns associated with distance delivery of school psychological services, including sections on distance assessment (Chapter 6), teleconsultation (Chapter 8), and telesupervision (Chapter 11). (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Global assessment of the COVID-19 impact on IFRS 9 loan loss provisions

PurposeThis article aims to analyze the impact of COVID-19 measures by governments and central banks on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) 9 loan loss provisions (LLPs). Changes in the total amount of LLPs, distribution of outstanding loan balance among IFRS 9 stages and credit risk parameters used for calculation are investigated for each world region where banks report under IFRS.Design/methodology/approachData for a global selection of 105 banks reporting under IFRS were collected from 2019 to 2020 annual reports, financial statements, and Pillar III reports. These data provide the basis to empirically analyze the impact of COVID-19 on LLPs.FindingsIn most world regions Stage 2 balances increase while Stage 3 balances remain comparatively stable. The credit risk parameters used for computing LLPs remained stable in 2020. However, in China, the impact of COVID-19 on banks was not detected. Mean Stage 1 balances for Chinese banks increased slightly during the pandemic. Aside from the COVID-19 impact, we find that LLPs, credit risk parameters, and loss absorption capacities are significantly lower for banks in Canada, Oceania and Western Europe compared to those in the rest of the world.Originality/valueThere exists previous research examining the COVID-19 impact on financial stability, implementation of emergency rules and country-wide analyses to anticipate default rates depending on recovery scenarios. However, this is the first global study on the immediate impact of COVID-19 on LLPs. It reveals the significant differences between world regions and provides implications about their resilience against future credit shocks.

Governing digital crisis responses: platform standards and the dilemma of COVID-19 contact tracing

In response to the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic, various developers turned to smartphone-based contact tracing to address the challenges of manual tracing. Due to the presence of network effects, i.e., the effectiveness of contact tracing applications increases with the number of users, information technology standards were critical to the technology's success. The standardization efforts in Europe led to a variety of trade-offs concerning the choice of an appropriate technological architecture due to the contradictory tensions resulting from the dualism between the need for contact tracing data to contain the pandemic and the need for data minimization to preserve user privacy. Drawing predominantly on the software platform and standards literature, we conduct an interpretive case study to examine the emergence and consequences of this multi-layered decision situation. Our findings reveal how Google and Apple were able to limit the individual leeway of external developers, thereby effectively resolving the European standards war. Furthermore, we identify and discuss the various short-term and long-term trade-offs associated with the standardization of contact tracing applications and translate our findings into recommendations for policy makers with respect to future crisis situations. Specifically, we propose a strategy grounded in our data that enables responsible actors to make goal-oriented and rapid decisions under time constraints.

We need mutual aid too: group work instructors helping each other navigate online teaching

The introduction of COVID-19 disrupted almost every facet of global societies, including institutions of higher education. With limited time to prepare for the emergent shift to virtual instruction, few educators had the time or emotional energy to invest in course redesign to meet established standards of quality online education. Strained by lack of guidance from their institutions and limited confidence in teaching social group work virtually, twelve group work educators initially participated in a weekly mutual aid group of peer members sponsored by the International Association for Social Work with Groups. This paper describes the evolution of a peer-facilitated, international, mutual aid group for group work educators making the transition to an online format – its conception, formation, purpose, structure, facilitation, and process. The authors address the personal experiences of all members, and place the group into a theoretical context.

Improving water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), with a focus on hand hygiene, globally for community mitigation of COVID-19

Continuity of key water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure and WASH practices—for example, hand hygiene—are among several critical community preventive and mitigation measures to reduce transmission of infectious diseases, including COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases. WASH guidance for COVID-19 prevention may combine existing WASH standards and new COVID-19 guidance. Many existing WASH tools can also be modified for targeted WASH assessments during the COVID-19 pandemic. We partnered with local organizations to develop and deploy tools to assess WASH conditions and practices and subsequently implement, monitor, and evaluate WASH interventions to mitigate COVID-19 in low- and middle-income countries in Latin America and the Caribbean and Africa, focusing on healthcare, community institution, and household settings and hand hygiene specifically. Employing mixed-methods assessments, we observed gaps in access to hand hygiene materials specifically despite most of those settings having access to improved, often onsite, water supplies. Across countries, adherence to hand hygiene among healthcare providers was about twice as high after patient contact compared to before patient contact. Poor or non-existent management of handwashing stations and alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR) was common, especially in community institutions. Markets and points of entry (internal or external border crossings) represent congregation spaces, critical for COVID-19 mitigation, where globally-recognized WASH standards are needed. Development, evaluation, deployment, and refinement of new and existing standards can help ensure WASH aspects of community mitigation efforts that remain accessible and functional to enable inclusive preventive behaviors.

Impact of lockdown Covid-19 pandemic on himalayan environment

The COVID-19 Pandemic have caused severe impact on lives in various ways, but our environment has experienced a positive outcome due to the lockdown which was imposed all over world including Himalayan region of India. The worldwide spread of COVID 19 has reduced movement of vehicles, industries and all tourism activities. Due to shutdown of all the commercial activities and traffic has helped the environment to reclaim naturally. The Himalayas is one of the world's most fragile and sensitive hotspots to global climate change, with impacts manifesting at a particularly rapid rate. The Himalayan glaciers are the water towers of Asia, and the source of many of the world's great rivers. In this research paper, an attempt has been made to describe the improvement in physiochemical characteristics of surface water, all parameters were compared with BIS standard of drinking water quality during pre lockdown and lockdown period. The ambient air quality have also been significantly improved and noise level were also found under permissible limit of Ambient air quality Standard.