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Pandemics create survival uncertainty through infection possibilities, food scarcity, and unemployment. Being the largest democracy in the world, we have explored the response of Indian citizens on the COVID-19's lockdown and defined an anxiety response model using PLS based Structural Equation Modeling(SEM). For a comprehensive understanding, we have measured the response at two levels of individual and government. Though the types of anxieties are related, we observed that a specific response is linked with a specific type of anxiety and all responses are not anxiety-driven. We have found that the response mechanism of Health and Food anxieties follow very different paths and that the role of information is not significant in all anxieties. Our results will help policymakers in understanding how to respond to a crisis and optimize policy implementation accordingly. It will further help the scholars understand the difference in the anxieties caused by the pandemic and the layers of responses individuals take in such situations., Author(s): Ashish Vazirani [sup.1] , Titas Bhattacharjee [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.429017.9, 0000 0001 0153 2859, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, , Kharagpur, India Introduction > COVID19 (Corona Virus Disease [...]

Selective photooxidation of aromatic alcohols to corresponding aldehydes is a widely used model reaction for evaluation of performance of heterogeneous photocatalysts. A top example is the photocatalytic production of hydrogen peroxide via reduction of dioxygen with concomitant photooxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde. Herein we demonstrate the ability of benzaldehyde to promote the auto‐photocatalytic oxidation of benzyl alcohol and produce large quantities of H2O2 in solvent‐free (no water) or biphasic (with water) systems even under nominally visible (>420 nm cut‐off filter) light irradiation. These results shed critical light on the plethora of research reports on photocatalytic H2O2 production in which benzyl alcohol was employed as electron donor. Since the autocatalytic pathway based on the photocatalytic activity of benzaldehyde formed during photocatalysis under such conditions cannot be neglected, the interpretations of photocatalytic performance are likely contentious and distorted in such reports. The use of benzyl alcohol as a model electron donor in photocatalytic studies should be therefore definitely discouraged. On the other hand, as we found that benzaldehyde‐mediated photocatalysis of H2O2 production proceeds also using alternative electron donors (e. g. ethanol), our results highlight the possible prospects for a more general use of benzaldehyde and other aromatic aldehydes in visible light‐driven photocatalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study measures an individual's evaluation of the situation of COVID‐19 and the result of such an evaluation on their business venturing decision. We have considered a three‐step model of exposure–evaluation–action using partial least squares (PLS)‐based structural equation modeling with a sample of 497 working‐class members and small business owners. Unlike previous researches on "economic uncertainty," our results show that the systemic economic uncertainty during COVID‐19 inhibited business venturing. This was caused by the negative opportunity cost due to higher sustenance costs during the pandemic. We further found that "entrepreneurial intent" independently did not lead to business venturing, but the act of venturing depended on the recognition of opportunity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]