A Study of Factors Affecting the Credibility of Sponsored Posts Created by Instagram Influencers

This study examined how source expertise, objective information about product ingredients and benefits, review length, and the use of promotional language influence the perceived credibility of a sponsored review post for skincare products. This study carried out 4 in-depth interviews and online survey to 106 millennials living in the U.S. Results indicated that subjective comments about a reviewer’s personal experiences had a higher level of perceived credibility of a review post than objective information about product ingredients and benefits. With regard to source expertise, a sponsored review post written by an influencer with higher expertise was perceived as more reliable than a review post written by an influencer with lower expertise. This study also found that a lengthy post had a more positive effect on the perceived credibility of a post than a short post. Promotional language had a negative effect on the reliability of a post. A sponsored review post without a promotional message was evaluated more positively in terms trustworthiness than a post including promotional language

Use of antagonist muscle EMG in the assessment of neuromuscular health of the low back

Background: Non-specific low back pain (LBP) has been one of the most frequently occurring musculoskeletal problems. Impairment in the mechanical stability of the lumbar spine has been known to lower the safety margin of the spine musculature and can result in the occurrence of pain symptoms of the low back area. Previously, changes in spinal stability have been identified by investigating recruitment patterns of low back and abdominal muscles in laboratory experiments with controlled postures and physical activities that were hard to conduct in daily life. The main objective of this study was to explore the possibility of developing a reliable spine stability assessment method using surface electromyography (EMG) of the low back and abdominal muscles in common physical activities. Methods: Twenty asymptomatic young participants conducted normal walking, plank, and isometric back extension activities prior to and immediately after maintaining a 10-min static upper body deep flexion on a flat bed. EMG data of the erector spinae, external oblique, and rectus abdominals were collected bilaterally, and their mean normalized amplitude values were compared between before and after the static deep flexion. Changes in the amplitude and co-contraction ratio values were evaluated to understand how muscle recruitment patterns have changed after the static deep flexion. Results: Mean normalized amplitude of antagonist muscles (erector spinae muscles while conducting plank; external oblique and rectus abdominal muscles while conducting isometric back extension) decreased significantly (P < 0.05) after the 10-min static deep flexion. Normalized amplitude of agonist muscles did not vary significantly after deep flexion. Conclusions: Results of this study suggest the possibility of using surface EMG in the evaluation of spinal stability and low back health status in simple exercise postures that can be done in non-laboratory settings. Specifically, amplitude of antagonist muscles was found to be more sensitive than agonist muscles in identifying changes in the spinal stability associated with the 10-min static deep flexion. Further research with various loading conditions and physical activities need to be performed to improve the reliability and utility of the findings of the current study.open0

Systematic analysis of SARS-CoV-2 infection of an ACE2-negative human airway cell

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike (S) variants govern transmissibility, responsiveness to vaccination, and disease severity. In a screen for new models of SARS-CoV-2 infection, we identify human H522 lung adenocarcinoma cells as naturally permissive to SARS-CoV-2 infection despite complete absence of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) expression. Remarkably, H522 infection requires the E484D S variant; viruses expressing wild-type S are not infectious. Anti-S monoclonal antibodies differentially neutralize SARS-CoV-2 E484D S in H522 cells as compared to ACE2-expressing cells. Sera from vaccinated individuals block this alternative entry mechanism, whereas convalescent sera are less effective. Although the H522 receptor remains unknown, depletion of surface heparan sulfates block H522 infection. Temporally resolved transcriptomic and proteomic profiling reveal alterations in cell cycle and the antiviral host cell response, including MDA5-dependent activation of type I interferon signaling. These findings establish an alternative SARS-CoV-2 host cell receptor for the E484D SARS-CoV-2 variant, which may impact tropism of SARS-CoV-2 and consequently human disease pathogenesis

Classification of Closed Conformally Flat Lorentzian 3-Manifolds with Unipotent Holonomy

A conformally flat manifold is a manifold that is locally conformally equivalent to a flat affine space. In this thesis, we classify closed conformally flat Lorentzian manifolds of dimension three whose holonomy group is unipotent. More specifically, we show that such a manifold is finitely covered by either $S^2\times S^1$ or a parabolic torus bundle. Furthermore, we show that such a manifold is Kleinian and is essential if and only if it can be covered by $S^2\times S^1$

The Effect of Broadband Adoption on the Labor-market Inclusion of the Disabled: An Empirical Analysis

Although a significant amount of research has examined the effect of broadband on the rise of employment, the majority of this work has been focused on general population\u27s employment, with little attention paid to the effect of broadband may have on social minority employment, i.e., disabled. Motivated from this research gap, we empirically examine the effect of the broadband use on disabled employment in the United States during 2013–2016 using a county level panel data set. We find evidence that, on average, broadband use increases the disabled employment. Our empirical analysis results also provide evidence supporting the argument that this association is attributable to the role of the broadband in increasing teleworking disabled. This research contributes to the literature addressing the positive effect of Information Systems (IS) on labor market, by addressing how the broadband reshapes the disabled employment

A Depressing Internet Tale: Empirical Analysis of the Internet’s Impact on Suicide

Has widespread diffusion of the internet influenced suicide, and if so, how? To answer this important question, we examined the association between internet access and suicide in the United States between 2009 and 2013. The empirical evidence shows that the association varies depending on the type of internet services accessed, and that the spread of mobile access is positively associated with an increase in suicide. We did not, however, find evidence that fixed internet use has any effect on suicide. We also examined the conditions under which a positive association with mobile internet access is greater. We find that a positive impact of mobile internet on suicide is most evident in communities with low social capital, low ethnic density level, and high urbanization level. By demonstrating that access to the mobile internet is positively associated with suicide, we contribute to the literature addressing the dark side of internet proliferation

Optimization of growth conditions of Lentinus edodes mycelium on corn processing waste using response surface analysis

This research was conducted to evaluate the use of corn processing waste as an alternative growth medium for the cultivation of Lentinus edodes mycelium and to determine the optimum growth conditions under solid-state cultivation. The substrate concentration, pH, and temperature for maximizing the growth rate of L. edodes mycelium, 9.3 +/- 0.6 mm/d, were 44.3 g/l, 4.7, and 24.7 degrees C, respectively. Therefore, the results suggest that corn processing waste can be utilized as a growth substrate for cultivating L. edodes mycelium

Is effect of transcranial direct current stimulation on visuomotor coordination dependent on task difficulty?

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), an emerging technique for non-invasive brain stimulation, is increasingly used to induce changes in cortical excitability and modulate motor behavior, especially for upper limbs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of tDCS of the primary motor cortex on visuomotor coordination based on three levels of task difficulty in healthy subjects. Thirty-eight healthy participants underwent real tDCS or sham tDCS. Using a single-blind, sham-controlled crossover design, tDCS was applied to the primary motor cortex. For real tDCS conditions, tDCS intensity was 1 mA while stimulation was applied for 15 minutes. For the sham tDCS, electrodes were placed in the same position, but the stimulator was turned off after 5 seconds. Visuomotor tracking task, consisting of three levels (levels 1, 2, 3) of difficulty with higher level indicating greater difficulty, was performed before and after tDCS application. At level 2, real tDCS of the primary motor cortex improved the accurate index compared to the sham tDCS. However, at levels 1 and 3, the accurate index was not significantly increased after real tDCS compared to the sham tDCS. These findings suggest that tasks of moderate difficulty may improve visuomotor coordination in healthy subjects when tDCS is applied compared with easier or more difficult tasks