Socioeconomic status, reputation, and interpersonal trust in peer-to-peer markets: Evidence from an online experiment

Online peer-to-peer markets decentralize the distribution of resources, creating a trust problem in economic exchange on the internet. Individual characteristics of trustees—as determinants for being trusted—are therefore increasingly important. In light of this societal development, this study investigates the role of socioeconomic status and reputation as drivers of interpersonal trust. Some have argued that lower status trustees are trusted more easily because over the life course, they repeatedly rely on others' resources. Others state that higher status trustees are perceived as being more trustworthy, because they are more vulnerable to social control and loss of reputation. We propose a novel, experimental method for examining interpersonal trust situations that resembles the reality of peer-to-peer market platforms. 626 subjects in an online experiment were asked to place trust in their preferable trustee based on the asking price, and seller characteristics. The results from conditional logistic regression models showed that status increases perceived trustworthiness and positively affects the trust premium for past trustworthy behavior. Strong reputation effects were found, sending out a warning for inequitable emergent inequality of trust through reputation cascading

Communication in Online Social Networks Fosters Cultural Isolation

Online social networks play an increasingly important role in communication between friends, colleagues, business partners, and family members. This development sparked public and scholarly debate about how these new platforms affect dynamics of cultural diversity. Formal models of cultural dissemination are powerful tools to study dynamics of cultural diversity but they are based on assumptions that represent traditional dyadic, face-To-face communication, rather than communication in online social networks. Unlike in models of face-To-face communication, where actors update their cultural traits after being influenced by one of their network contacts, communication in online social networks is often characterized by a one-To-many structure, in that users emit messages directly to a large number of network contacts. Using analytical tools and agent-based simulation, we show that this seemingly subtle difference can have profound implications for emergent dynamics of cultural dissemination. In particular, we show that within the framework of our model online communication fosters cultural diversity to a larger degree than offline communication and it increases chances that individuals and subgroups become culturally isolated from their network contacts

No one can predict the future:More than a semantic dispute

Models are pivotal to battle the current COVID-19 crisis. In their call to action, Squazzoni et al. (2020) convincingly put forward how social simulation researchers could and should respond in the short run by posing three challenges for the community among which is a COVID-19 prediction challenge. Although Squazzoni et al. (2020) stress the importance of transparent communication of model assumptions and conditions, we question the liberal use of the word ‘prediction’ for the outcomes of the broad arsenal of models used to mitigate the COVID-19 crisis by ours and other modelling communities. Four key arguments are provided that advocate using expectations derived from scenarios when explaining our models to a wider, possibly non-academic audience

Socioeconomic status, reputation, and interpersonal trust in peer-to-peer markets: Evidence from an online experiment

Online peer-to-peer markets decentralize the distribution of resources, creating a trust problem in economic exchange on the internet. Individual characteristics of trustees—as determinants for being trusted—are therefore increasingly important. In light of this societal development, this study investigates the role of socioeconomic status and reputation as drivers of interpersonal trust. Some have argued that lower status trustees are trusted more easily because over the life course, they repeatedly rely on others' resources. Others state that higher status trustees are perceived as being more trustworthy, because they are more vulnerable to social control and loss of reputation. We propose a novel, experimental method for examining interpersonal trust situations that resembles the reality of peer-to-peer market platforms. 626 subjects in an online experiment were asked to place trust in their preferable trustee based on the asking price, and seller characteristics. The results from conditional logistic regression models showed that status increases perceived trustworthiness and positively affects the trust premium for past trustworthy behavior. Strong reputation effects were found, sending out a warning for inequitable emergent inequality of trust through reputation cascading

TRAK/Milton motor-adaptor proteins steer mitochondrial trafficking to axons and dendrites

In neurons, the distinct molecular composition of axons and dendrites is established through polarized targeting mechanisms, but it is currently unclear how nonpolarized cargoes, such as mitochondria, become uniformly distributed over these specialized neuronal compartments. Here, we show that TRAK family adaptor proteins, TRAK1 and TRAK2, which link mitochondria to microtubule-based motors, are required for axonal and dendritic mitochondrial motility and utilize different transport machineries to steer mitochondria into axons and dendrites. TRAK1 binds to both kinesin-1 and dynein/dynactin, is prominently localized in axons, and is needed for normal axon outgrowth, whereas TRAK2 predominantly interacts with dynein/dynactin, is more abundantly present in dendrites, and is required for dendritic development. These functional differences follow from their distinct conformations: TRAK2 preferentially adopts a head-to-tail interaction, which interferes with kinesin-1 binding and axonal transport. Our study demonstrates how the molecular interplay between bidirectional adaptor proteins and distinct microtubule-based motors drives polarized mitochondrial transport

Non-invasive sources of cells with primary cilia from pediatric and adult patients

BACKGROUND: Ciliopathies give rise to a multitude of organ-specific pathologies; obtaining relevant primary patient material is useful for both diagnostics and research. However, acquisition of primary ciliated cells from patients, particularly pediatric patients, presents multiple difficulties. Biopsies and blood samples are invasive, and patients (and their parents) may be reluctant to travel to medical centers, especially for research purposes. We sought to develop non-invasive methods of obtaining viable and ciliated primary cells from ciliopathy patients which could be obtained in the home environment. FINDINGS: We introduce two methods for the non-invasive acquisition of primary ciliated cells. In one approach, we collected spontaneously shed deciduous (milk) teeth from children. Fibroblast-like cells were observed after approximately 2 weeks of culture of fragmented teeth. Secondly, urine samples were collected from children or adults. Cellular content was isolated and after approximately 1 week, renal epithelial cells were observed. Both urine and tooth-derived cells ciliate and express ciliary proteins visible with immunofluorescence. Urine-derived renal epithelial cells (URECs) are amenable to 3D culturing, siRNA knockdown, and ex vivo drug testing. CONCLUSIONS: As evidence continues to accumulate showing that the primary cilium has a central role in development and disease, the need for readily available and ciliated patient cells will increase. Here, we introduce two methods for the non-invasive acquisition of cells with primary cilia. We believe that these cells can be used for further ex vivo study of ciliopathies and in the future, for personalized medicine

Non-invasive sources of cells with primary cilia from pediatric and adult patients

BACKGROUND: Ciliopathies give rise to a multitude of organ-specific pathologies; obtaining relevant primary patient material is useful for both diagnostics and research. However, acquisition of primary ciliated cells from patients, particularly pediatric patients, presents multiple difficulties. Biopsies and blood samples are invasive, and patients (and their parents) may be reluctant to travel to medical centers, especially for research purposes. We sought to develop non-invasive methods of obtaining viable and ciliated primary cells from ciliopathy patients which could be obtained in the home environment. FINDINGS: We introduce two methods for the non-invasive acquisition of primary ciliated cells. In one approach, we collected spontaneously shed deciduous (milk) teeth from children. Fibroblast-like cells were observed after approximately 2 weeks of culture of fragmented teeth. Secondly, urine samples were collected from children or adults. Cellular content was isolated and after approximately 1 week, renal epithelial cells were observed. Both urine and tooth-derived cells ciliate and express ciliary proteins visible with immunofluorescence. Urine-derived renal epithelial cells (URECs) are amenable to 3D culturing, siRNA knockdown, and ex vivo drug testing. CONCLUSIONS: As evidence continues to accumulate showing that the primary cilium has a central role in development and disease, the need for readily available and ciliated patient cells will increase. Here, we introduce two methods for the non-invasive acquisition of cells with primary cilia. We believe that these cells can be used for further ex vivo study of ciliopathies and in the future, for personalized medicine