What if? Epidemic discourse and serial narration in the alternate history series La Révolution (2020)

The article examines the formal and thematic manifestations of seriality in the Netflix series La Révolution, which justifies the revolutionary outbreak in a counterfactual plot with a viral outbreak that turns the nobles into zombie-like monsters. While, on a macrostructural level, the generic frame of alternate history promotes the serial character through the varying repetition of the historical event, the microstructural level of the narration evokes seriality by exponential contagion and spread of the disease as well as an increasing spiral of violence. First, the focus is on the representation of the aristocrat as a monster in pamphlets and caricatures of the revolutionary era. Subsequent to a contextualization of seriality in the age of streaming platforms, the analysis then discusses the medium-specific implementation of the epidemic discourse based on selected sequences of the series. Finally, it gives a hypothetical outlook on the implied motivations regarding the fictional development of the revolutionary event: through its contrasting exaggeration, the alternate-historical narrative can shed new light on the real historical events.

Imaging and visualizing SARS-CoV-2 in a new era for structural biology

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had a global impact and has put scientific endeavour in the spotlight, perhaps more than any previous viral outbreak. Fortuitously, the pandemic came at a time when decades of research in multiple scientific fields could be rapidly brought to bear, and a new generation of vaccine platforms was on the cusp of clinical maturity. SARS-CoV-2 also emerged at the inflection point of a technological revolution in macromolecular imaging by cryo-electron microscopy, fuelled by a confluence of major technological advances in sample preparation, optics, detectors and image processing software, that complemented pre-existing techniques. Together, these advances enabled us to visualize SARS-CoV-2 and its components more rapidly, in greater detail, and in a wider variety of biologically relevant contexts than would have been possible even a few years earlier. The resulting ultrastructural information on SARS-CoV-2 and how it interacts with the host cell has played a critical role in the much-needed accelerated development of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics. Here, we review key imaging modalities used to visualize SARS-CoV-2 and present select example data, which have provided us with an exceptionally detailed picture of this virus.

Comprehensive analysis of SARS-COV-2 drug targets and pharmacological aspects in treating the COVID-19

: Corona viruses are enveloped, single-stranded RNA (Ribonucleic acid) viruses and they cause pandemic diseases having a devastating effect on both human healthcare and the global economy. To date, six corona viruses have been identified as pathogenic organisms which are significantly responsible for the infection and also cause severe respiratory diseases. Among them, the novel SARS-CoV-2 (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) caused a major outbreak of corona virus diseases 2019 (COVID-19). Coronaviridae family members can affects both humans and animals. In human, corona viruses cause severe acute respiratory syndrome with mild to severe outcomes. Several structural and genomics have been investigated, and the genome encodes about 28 proteins most of them with unknown function though it shares remarkable sequence identity with other proteins. There is no potent and licensed vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 and several trials are underway to investigate the possible therapeutic agents against viral infection. However, some of the antiviral drugs that have been investigated against SARS-CoV-2 are under clinical trials. In the current review we comparatively emphasize the emergence and pathogenicity of the SARS-CoV-2 and their infection and discuss the various putative drug targets of both viral and host receptors for developing effective vaccines and therapeutic combinations to overcome the viral outbreak.

COVID-19: Cosmopolitanism's Criticism and Proposals

Covid-19 merits a scientific examination from cosmopolitanism, a widely acknowledged, global-nuanced thought. During the pandemic, strong stances of nationalism and xenophobia have been taken, leaving little room for global cooperation in countering the virus, and recognition of human rights has ebbed. Since this reality is opposed to its ideational and normative essence, cosmopolitanism offers its criticisms and proposals. By diving into a cosmopolitan way of thinking, this study criticises the rise of 'health nationalism' in state policies as well as the xenophobia manifested through the blaming of people of Asian—particularly Chinese—heritage for the viral outbreak. Regarding its proposals, cosmopolitanism offers two suggestions: 1) international society must opt to endorse global integration through multilateralism, and 2.) countries should avoid exclusionary health programmes and commit to solidarity-based countermeasures. The underlying arguments of this study are backed by the application of library research and qualitative methods.

A Qualitative Study of COVID-19 Distress in University Students

The psychological effect of the pandemic and measures taken in response to control viral spread are not yet well understood in university students; in-depth qualitative analysis can provide nuanced information about the young adult distress experience. Undergraduate students ( N = 624) in an early US outbreak “hotspot” completed an online narrative writing about the impact and distress experienced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected April-May 2020. A random selection of 50 cases were sampled for thematic analysis. Nine themes were identified: viral outbreak distress, fear of virus contraction/transmission, proximity to virus, dissatisfaction with public response, physical distancing distress, social distancing distress, academic and school-related distress, disruptive changes in health behavior and routines, financial strain and unemployment, worsening of pre-existing mental health problems, and social referencing that minimizes distress. Future work is needed to understand the persistence of the distress, in addition to developing methods for assessment, monitoring, and mitigation of the distress.

COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 Variants: Current Challenges and Health Concern

The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in Wuhan, China, was triggered and unfolded quickly throughout the globe by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The new virus, transmitted primarily through inhalation or contact with infected droplets, seems very contagious and pathogenic, with an incubation period varying from 2 to 14 days. The epidemic is an ongoing public health problem that challenges the present global health system. A worldwide social and economic stress has been observed. The transitional source of origin and its transport to humans is unknown, but speedy human transportation has been accepted extensively. The typical clinical symptoms of COVID-19 are almost like colds. With case fatality rates varying from 2 to 3 percent, a small number of patients may experience serious health problems or even die. To date, there is a limited number of antiviral agents or vaccines for the treatment of COVID-19. The occurrence and pathogenicity of COVID-19 infection are outlined and comparatively analyzed, given the outbreak’s urgency. The recent developments in diagnostics, treatment, and marketed vaccine are discussed to deal with this viral outbreak. Now the scientist is concerned about the appearance of several variants over the globe and the efficacy of the vaccine against these variants. There is a need for consistent monitoring of the virus epidemiology and surveillance of the ongoing variant and related disease severity.

A Novel Network Approach to Capture Cognition and Affect: COVID-19 Experiences in Canada and Germany

We tested a novel method for studying human experience (thoughts and affect). We utilized Cognitive-Affective Maps (CAMs)–an approach to visually represent thoughts and their affective connotations as networks of concepts that individuals associate with a given event. Using an innovative software tool, we recruited a comparative sample of (n = 93) Canadians and (n = 100) Germans to draw a CAM of their experience (events, thoughts, feelings) with the Covid-19 pandemic. We treated these CAM networks as a series of directed graphs and examined the extent to which their structural properties (latent and emotional) are predictive for the perceived coronavirus threat (PCT). Across multiple models, we found consistent and significant relationships between these network variables and the PCT in both the Canadian and German sample. Our results provide unique insights into individuals' thinking and perceptions of the viral outbreak. Our results also demonstrate that a network analysis of CAMs' properties is a promising method to study the relationship between human thought and affective connotation. We suggest that CAMs can bridge several gaps between qualitative and quantitative methods. Unlike when using quantitative tools (e.g., questionnaires), participants' answers are not restricted by response items as participants are free to incorporate any thoughts and feelings on the given topic. Furthermore, as compared to traditional qualitative measures, such as structured interviews, the CAM technique may better enable researchers to objectively assess and integrate the substance of a shared experience for large samples of participants.

The Blossoming of Economic Epidemiology

Infectious diseases, ideas, new products, and other infectants spread in epidemic fashion through social contact. The COVID-19 pandemic, the proliferation of fake news, and the rise of antimicrobial resistance have thrust economic epidemiology into the forefront of public policy debate and reinvigorated the field. Focusing for concreteness on disease-causing pathogens, this review provides a taxonomy of economic-epidemic models, emphasizing both the biology/immunology of the disease and the economics of the social context. An economic epidemic is one whose diffusion through the agent population is generated by agents’ endogenous behavior. I highlight properties of the equilibrium epidemic trajectory and discuss ways in which public health authorities can change the game for the better by ( a) imposing restrictions on agent activity to reduce the harm done during a viral outbreak and ( b) enabling diagnostic-informed interventions to slow or even reverse the rise of antibiotic resistance. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Economics, Volume 13 is August 2021. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

Edukasi Dampak Covid-19 Melalui Komik serta Pembagian Masker dan Sembako bagi Masyarakat Terdampak Covid-19 di Kelurahan Panjehang Kota Palangka Raya

Countries in the world face a big challenge in handling the coronavirus outbreak, which is officially identified by WHO as Corona Virus Disease-19 or abbreviated as Covid-19. This pandemic, which started in the city of Wuhan, China, has caused a global shock because, in the last few decades, we have never experienced a viral outbreak with such a rapid and massive rate and transmission rate like this coronavirus, far above its cousins ​​SARS and MERS viruses as well as Ebola, which had been tormented a few years ago, but was quickly resolved. Educational action on the impact of Covid-19 is very much needed to provide understanding to the people of Panjehang Village where the education contains what Covid-19 is, its effects and dangers, and how to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and to continue the distribution of food packages.

Disinformation and Miscommunication in Government Communication in Handling COVID-19 Pandemic

This study explores how the Indonesian government uses websites to respond to public information as the COVID-19 pandemic has developed into a global crisis.The government is expected to act quickly and decisively in responding to the public's communication and information crisis. Communication is becoming the most crucial part, especially when it comes to delivering the facts. The accuracy of the information provided also plays a significant role in shaping public perception of the situation. Data obtained were gathered from the central government and provincial government regions' official report, analyzed using SimilarWeb: Website Traffic. The findings showed that the Indonesian government did not have enough response tools set up in the event of a viral outbreak, was not well prepared in the event of communicating with the international community in the event of such an outbreak, and did not have integrated actions to be made between the central government and the second regional government in managing their response. As for the data provided by the central and regional governments, the data have now gone public, showing how good it is.