The changes in the effects of social media use of Cypriots due to COVID-19 pandemic

Social media is the leading medium which is used for communication during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research conducted aims to fill the gap of literature related to social media use during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research aims at uncovering the influences of social media use in several dimensions during lockdown(s). The study aims to answer the research question of: Are the influences of social media use different from normal times? The online questionnaire has been completed by six hundred and sixty-eight users within the period of lockdown. The author prepared the questionnaire, which is composed of 22 positive statements in order to evaluate the effects of social media use during the COVID-19 pandemic. A 5 point Likert scale was used, where reliability and validity were calculated by the Cronbach's alpha value, which was 0.751. Findings highlight that users have more information about COVID-19, and they follow recent information via social media, which shows the shift towards digital medium. Findings also indicate that users are aware of fake news, and they follow official sources. Social media is powerful to affect decision-makers, and respondents' social media use did not create any panic or anxiety amongst them. This research indicates that respondents' social media use during COVID-19 is different from normal times as a common purpose triggers this, survival. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, most of social media shares were like a dream or a strong desire that may cause anxiety in others. During the pandemic, people are in lockdown and share similar feelings and follow similar behavioural patterns. As there is a common purpose and struggle via users, psychological well-being is not affected negatively.     

Social TV viewing during the COVID-19 lockdown: The mediating role of social presence

The COVID-19 lockdown has transformed the way of life for many people. One key change is media intake, as many individuals reported an increase in media consumption during the COVID-19 lockdown. Specifically, social media and television usage increased. In this regard, the present study examines social TV viewing, the simultaneous use of watching TV while communicating with others about the TV content on various communication technologies, during the COVID-19 lockdown. An online survey was conducted to collect data from college students in the United States during the COVID-19 lockdown. Primary results indicate that different motives predict different uses of communication platforms for social TV engagement, such as public platforms, text-based private platforms, and video-based private platforms. Specifically, the social motive significantly predicts social TV engagement on most of the platforms. Further, the study finds that social presence of virtual co-viewers mediates the relationship between social TV engagement and social TV enjoyment. Overall, the study's findings provide a meaningful understanding of social TV viewing when physical social gatherings are restricted.     

Applied Artificial Intelligence and user satisfaction: Smartwatch usage for healthcare in Bangladesh during COVID-19

The evolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has revolutionized many aspects of human life, including healthcare. Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, AI-enabled smartwatches are being used to help users to self-monitor and self-manage their health. Using a framework based on Stimulus-Organism-Response (S–O-R) theory, this present study aimed to explore the use of AI-enabled smartwatches for health purposes, in particular the effects of product quality, service quality, perceived convenience, and perceived ease of use on user experience, trust and user satisfaction. Based on a purposive survey sample of 486 smartphone users in Bangladesh, data collected was analyzed using SPSS software for elementary analyses and PLS-SEM for hypotheses testing. The findings showed that the predictors, namely product quality, service quality, perceived convenience, and perceived ease of use, significantly affected user experience and trust. Similarly, user experience and trust were influential on user satisfaction and played partial mediating roles between predictors and user satisfaction. Besides, gender and age moderate the relationships of experience and trust with customer satisfaction. These findings support the S–O-R theoretical framework and have practical implications for brand and marketing managers of smartwatches in developing product features and understanding users' attitudes and behaviours.     

Three-dimensional printing in the fight against novel virus COVID-19: Technology helping society during an infectious disease pandemic

Indeed, the scientific milestones set by the ever-emerging three-dimensional printing (3DP) technologies are tremendous. Till now, the innovative 3DP technologies have benefitted the aerospace, automobile, textile, pharmaceutical, and biomedical sectors by developing pre-requisite designed and customized performance standards of the end-user products. As the scientific world, at this moment, is expediting efforts to fight against the highly damaging novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the 3DP technologies are facilitating creative solutions in terms of personal protective equipment (PPE), medical equipment (such as ventilators and other respiratory devices), and other health and welfare tools to aid the personal hygiene as well as safe environment for humans by restricting the communication of risks. Various sources (including journal articles, news articles, white papers of the government and other non-profit organizations, commercial enterprises, as well as academic institutions have been reviewed for the collection of the information relevant to COVID-19 and 3DP. This communication presents the recent applications of the 3DP technologies aiding in developing innovative products designed to save the lives of millions of people around the world. Moreover, the potential of 3DP technologies in developing test swabs and controlled medicines has been highlighted. The literature reviewed in the present study indicated that the fused filament fabrication (FFF) is one of the most preferred technologies and contribute about 62% in the overall production of the protective gears developed through overall class of 3DP.     

Socio-economic determinants of mobility responses during the first wave of COVID-19 in Italy: from provinces to neighbourhoods

After more than 1 year into the COVID-19 pandemic, governments worldwide still face the challenge of adopting non-pharmaceutical interventions to mitigate the risks posed by the emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 variants and the lack of a worldwide equitable vaccine allocation. Thus, it becomes crucial to identify the drivers of mobility responses to mitigation efforts during different restriction regimes, for planning interventions that are both economically and socially sustainable while effective in controlling an outbreak. Here, using anonymous and privacy-enhanced cell phone data from Italy, we investigate the determinants of spatial variations of reductions in mobility and co-location in response to the adoption and the lift of restrictions, considering both provinces and city neighbourhoods. In large urban areas, our analysis uncovers the desertification of historic city centres, which persisted after the end of the lockdown. Such centre-periphery gradient was mainly associated with differences in educational attainment. At the province level, the local structure of the labour market mainly explained the variations in mobility responses, together with other demographic factors, such as the population’s age and sex composition. In the future, targeted interventions should take into account how the ability to comply with restrictions varies across geographical areas and socio-demographic groups.