Weather extremes can cause economic ripples along our supply chains. If they occur at roughly the same time the ripples start interacting and can amplify even if they occur at completely different places around the world, a new study shows. The resulting economic losses are greater than the sum of the initial events, the researchers…

Researchers examined the role and economic impacts of recommender systems, and how they affect consumers’ decisions. These recommender systems are used in retail, entertainment, social networking and more. In a recently published study, two researchers from The University of Texas at Dallas investigated the informative role of these systems and the economic impacts on competing…

A new study finds that work place interruptions are beneficial to a sense of belonging and can counterbalance negatives such as lost productivity. When this happens, don’t sigh at being distracted. A new study finds that these interruptions are beneficial to a sense of belonging and can counterbalance negatives such as lost productivity. According to…

Research has assessed the initial impact of COVID-19 on air transport and found that it is likely to lead to a smaller, consolidated sector in the future. The research — involving a series of in-depth interviews with senior aviation industry executives along with analysis of flight and air freight data — provides an early assessment…

A recent study finds that unhealthy eating behaviors at night can make people less helpful and more withdrawn the next day at work. «For the first time, we have shown that healthy eating immediately affects our workplace behaviors and performance,» says Seonghee «Sophia» Cho, corresponding author of the study and an assistant professor of psychology…

Online food retailers do not consistently display nutrition information on their websites — and U.S. laws are lagging behind in mandating the same labeling required for foods sold in brick-and-mortar stores, according to a new analysis. «Information required to be provided to consumers in conventional grocery stores is not being uniformly provided online — in…

Computer systems that are physically isolated from the outside world (air-gapped) can still be attacked. This is demonstrated by IT security experts. They show that data can be transmitted to light-emitting diodes of regular office devices using a directed laser. With this, attackers can secretly communicate with air-gapped computer systems over distances of several meters.…

Product marketers should be clear in their messaging to avoid customer skepticism that makes them feel duped, according to new research. At issue in a new study was a social-cognitive construct called theory of mind, which considers how well people assess the mental states and apparent goals of others. Turns out, it affects a person’s…

Social media is increasingly used to spread fake news. The same problem can be found on the capital market — criminals spread fake news about companies in order to manipulate share prices. Researchers have developed an approach that can recognize such fake news, even when the news contents are repeatedly adapted. In order to detect…

Being good at math relates to better financial and medical outcomes — unless you don’t have confidence in your own abilities with numbers, new research suggests. In two studies, researchers found that the key to success in personal finances and dealing with a complex disease was a match between a person’s math abilities and how…