The Impacts of Individual Emotional state and Emotional Framing of Phishing Attack on Susceptibility to Phishing: An Emotional Congruence Perspective

People’s overdependency on the Internet has given rise to an increasing number of cybercrimes. To help combat these cybercrimes, it is essential to understand factors that can make people vulnerable and susceptible to such crime. Specifically, we focus on phishing attacks, which are increasing in frequency and can have many negative impacts on their victims. Thus, we seek to answer the question: What are the determinants for susceptibility for phishing attacks? Drawing on emotional congruence theory, our work-in-progress study not only examines the direct impacts of individual emotion, and emotional framing of phishing attack, but also focuses on the interactive impacts of the two factors. We will conduct both online and lab experiments to investigate the above research question. We contribute to the human computer interaction (HCI) literature by offering insights on how message design of phishing attack can interplay with individual emotion to influence an individual’s phishing susceptibility

Review Helpfulness as a Function of discrete negative emotions and image colorfulness

Given that helpful reviews are valuable to both customers and e-commerce platforms, a better understanding of the antecedents for review helpfulness offers clear benefits to review writers and online vendors. This paper proposes two research questions: How will negative discrete emotions expressed through review text (i.e., fear, anger, sadness, and disgust) influence review helpfulness? And how will review textual emotions and image colorfulness of review interactively influence review helpfulness? Using online review of computer related products sold via Amazon in the past five years, we found that anger increase online review helpfulness, while sadness and disgust decrease the helpfulness. We also found the moderating effects of review image colorfulness on the relationship between discrete emotions and online review helpfulness. Our research advances the existing online review literature by proposing the importance of discrete emotions and its interactive effect with review image colorfulness in review helpfulness

Imaging Cerebral Oxygenation Alterations in an Alzheimer Mouse Model

Cette thèse a pour objectif d'explorer l'oxygénation cérébrale en exploitant un système de microscopie à deux photons combiné à un colorant phosphorescent sensible à la pression d’oxygène, le PO2. La combinaison du colorant phosphorescent au système à deux photons permet une mesure de l’oxygène avec une excellente résolution spatiale et temporelle, facilitant la recherche de sur l’oxygénation des tissus, en particulier dans les situations pathologiques. À cette fin, la microscopie laser à deux photons a d'abord été associée au colorant phosphorescent, tandis que d'autres techniques d'imagerie, y compris l'imagerie optique de signaux intrinsèques (ISOI), l'imagerie par résonance magnétique (IRM) et la tomographie par cohérence optique ont pu fournir des informations complémentaires dans les études qui ont été faites. Nos travaux ont visé l’étude de modèles murins de la maladie d’Azheimer (AD) pour explorer les altérations de l’oxygénation cérébrale dans ces modèles. Les résultats accumulés ont fait l’objet de publications qui ont été soumises à trois revues avec comité de lecture. Dans le premier travail, nous avons cherché à examiner 1) si l'oxygénation du cerveau est compromise par l'apparition de la maladie d'Alzheimer et 2) comment l'exercice physique volontaire module l'influence de la maladie d'Alzheimer sur l'oxygénation du cerveau. Bien que les contributions vasculaires à la démence et à la maladie d’Alzheimer soient de plus en plus reconnues, la perturbation potentielle de l'oxygénation du cerveau associée à la maladie et le fait que les stratégies de prévention visant à maintenir l'oxygénation des tissus soient bénéfiques ont des causes qui restent largement inconnues. Nos résultats montrent que la pression partielle d’oxygène du tissu cérébral (PO2) a diminué avec l'apparition de la maladie d'Alzheimer. Cette réduction de la PO2 était associée à la présence de petites zones spatiales presque hypoxiques, à une fraction accrue d'extraction d'oxygène et à une réduction du débit sanguin, observations qui ont toutes été annulées par l'exercice. L'Alzheimer et l'âge ont également accru l'hétérogénéité spatiale de l'oxygénation du tissu cérébral, qui fut par ailleurs normalisée par l'exercice. Une coloration ex vivo du tissu cérébral a également montré moins de dépôts d'amyloïde-β (Aβ) dans le groupe d'exercice. Enfin, nous avons observé des corrélations entre la distance de course volontaire et l'oxygénation des tissus cérébraux / le flux sanguin, suggérant une relation dose-réponse de l'exercice sur le cerveau. Le deuxième article avait pour objectif de caractériser, dans une seconde cohorte de souris, les modifications de l'hémodynamique capillaire avec l’Alzheimer et le rôle modulateur de l’exercice, étant donné le rôle fondamental des capillaires dans le transport de l'oxygène vers les tissus et les bénéfices proposés de l’exercices pour la maladie d’Alzheimer. Nous avons constaté des altérations hémodynamiques et une densité vasculaire plus faible chez la souris Alzheimer, inversées par l'exercice. Nous avons en outre observé que les propriétés des capillaires étaient dépendantes de l'ordre des branches et que la stimulation évoquait des changements atténués par l’Alzheimer mais augmentés par l'exercice. Notre étude fournit de nouvelles informations sur les perturbations de la microcirculation cérébrale avec la maladie et sur le rôle modulateur de l'exercice volontaire sur ces altérations. Le dernier article avait pour objectif d’explorer les modifications de l’oxygénation des tissus évoquées par un stimulus dans le même modèle animal, et d’explorer plus avant les facteurs modulateurs, notamment l’exercice et l’hypertension, responsables de ces modifications. La microscopie à deux photons in vivo a été utilisée pour étudier les modifications locales de l'oxygénation du tissu cérébral avec la maladie et sa modulation par l'exercice et l'hypertension chez la souris transgénique suivant une stimulation des moustaches. Nous avons observé une décroissance plus rapide de la PO2 tissulaire entourant les artérioles et une plus grande hétérogénéité de la PO2 dans le groupe de pathologies doubles (AD et hypertension). Nos résultats ont également montré une valeur de base inférieure de la PO2 dans le groupe AD, exacerbée par l'hypertension artérielle alors qu'elle était inversée par l’exercice. Globalement, ces études suggèrent que l’oxygénation cérébrale compromise est un indicateur de l’apparition de l’Alzheimer, avec l’apparition de mécanismes délétères potentiels associés à l’hypoxie. L'exercice volontaire a amélioré le processus d'oxygénation neurovasculaire, offrant potentiellement un moyen de retarder ces changements dans la maladie, alors que des maladies vasculaires telles que l'hypertension pourraient exacerber la perturbation de l'oxygénation. ----------ABSTRACT This thesis aims to explore the cerebral oxygenation by eploiting two photon microscopywith a phosphorescence PO2 sensitive dye. Combining the phosphorescence dye to the two-photon system enables better spatial and temporal resolution compared to other oxygen measurement methods (e.g., mass spectroscopy and polarography), facilitating the investigation of oxygenation in tissues especially in pathological situations. Toward this end, two-photon laser microscopy was combined with the phosphorescence dye first, while other imaging techniques, including intrinsic signal optical imaging (ISOI), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and optical coherence tomography (OCT) were also used to provide complementary information (e.g., changes of oxygenated hemoglobin, blood perfusion, and blood flow). All imaging methods were used to investigate a mouse model of Azheimer’s disease (AD) to explore the oxygenation alterations in the brain. Results from these studies have been submitted to three peer-reviewed journals. In the first endeavor, we aimed to examine 1) whether brain oxygenation is compromised by the onset of AD and 2) how voluntary exercise modulates the influence of AD on brain oxygenation. While vascular contributions to dementia and AD are increasingly recognized, the potential brain oxygenation disruption associated with AD and whether preventive strategies to maintain tissue oxygenation are beneficial remain largely unknown. Our results show that cerebral tissue oxygen partial pressure (PO2) decreased with the onset of AD. Reduced PO2 was associated with the presence of small near-hypoxic areas, an increased oxygen extraction fraction, and reduced blood flow. The observations were all reverted by exercise. AD and age also increased the spatial heterogeneity of brain tissue oxygenation, which was homogenized by exercise. Immunohistological staining also showed fewer amyloid-β (Aβ) deposits in the exercise group. Finally, we observed correlations between voluntary running distance and cerebral tissue oxygenation/blood flow, suggesting a dose-response relationship of exercise on the brain. The second article aimed to characterize the changes in capillary hemodynamics with AD and the modulating role of exercise, given the fundamental role of capillaries in the oxygen transport to tissue and the propoosed benefits of exercise to AD. We found hemodynamic alterations and lower vascular density with AD, reversed by exercise. We further observed that capillary properties were branch order dependent and that stimulation evoked changes were attenuated with AD but increased by exercise. Our study provides novel insights into cerebral microcirculatory disturbances with AD and the modulating role of voluntary exercise on these alterations. The last paper aimed to explore the stimulus-evoked tissue oxygenation changes in the model of AD and further explore modulating factors, including exercise and hypertension, for these changes. In vivo two-photon phosphorescence lifetime microscopy was used to investigate local changes of brain tissue oxygenation with AD and its modulation by exercise and hypertension in the transgenic AD mice under whisker stimulation. We observed faster decay of tissue PO2 surrounding arterioles and more PO2 heterogeneity in the group of dual pathology (both AD and hypertension). Our results also showed lower baseline tissue PO2 value in the AD group, exacerbated by hypertension but reversed by exercise. Overall, this these studies suggest that compromised brain oxygenation is an indicator of the onset of AD, with the emergence of potential deleterious mechanisms associated with hypoxia. Voluntary exercise enhanced the neurovascular oxygenation process, potentially offering a means to delay these changes in AD, whereas vascular disease such as hypertension could exacerbate the oxygenation disruption in AD

The implications of springboard strategies for Chinese firms

Chinese firms’ internationalization during the recent decades has attracted increasing interest from international business researchers. Despite recognition of the important role of the home country of Chinese multinational enterprises (MNEs), there are insufficient studies that pay attention to unfolding their complex internationalization strategies and related outcomes. In particular, how Chinese firms use their domestic market as a preparatory base and a testing ground is an interesting research question which remains unexplored. Building upon the springboard perspective, this thesis investigates the sources of international experience which Chinese MNEs can exploit to confront their deficiency of international knowledge in the process of internationalization. I examine the inward internationalization experience which is the original source of international experience which Chinese firms obtain from their domestic market. Moreover, extending the springboard perspective, I combine the Uppsala model by adding the exporting experience as the complementary source of international experience. Further, the moderating effects of the international experience of members of top management teams have been investigated. Using data on Chinese listed firms from 2009 to 2018, I find that the propensity of Chinese firms conducting OFDI is positively associated with their inward international experience and exporting experience. The exporting experience has a complementary effect on inward internationalization. International experience that members of a top management team hold can enhance the positive effects of exporting experience on the propensity of Chinese firms’ OFDI. Drawing on the compositional springboard view, the thesis further examines the factors affecting cross-border acquisitions by Chinese MNEs. I investigate two factors, compositional springboarding capacity and external support for in-house innovation from the home-country government, as well as their effects under the contingency of home-country regional innovation performance. I find that the number of foreign acquisitions by Chinese MNEs is positively associated with the firms’ compositional springboarding capacity, but negatively associated with innovation funds from the home-country government. Moreover, the impact of external support of in-house innovation from the home country government on foreign acquisitions by Chinese MNEs is contingent on the sub-regional innovation performance. Strong regional innovation performance weakens the negative relationship between external support for in-house innovation and cross-border acquisitions by Chinese MNEs. Finally, this thesis borrows the economic concept of market power which has been widely applied in economic and financial research to test the effects of Chinese firms’ OFDI. The propensity score matching technique and the difference in difference method are applied to capture Chinese MNEs’ market power changing post-OFDI. The results demonstrate that Chinese MNEs’ market power would decline post-OFDI. Further, this decrease can be eased if they are equipped with more technological capabilities and operate in industries with less competitive intensity

Cerebral tissue pO2 response to stimulation is preserved with age in awake mice

Published in final edited form as: Neurosci Lett. 2019 April 23; 699: 160–166. doi:10.1016/j.neulet.2019.02.007.Compromised oxygen supply to cerebral tissue could be an important mechanism contributing to age-related cognition decline. We recently showed in awake mice that resting cerebral tissue pO2 decreases with age, a phenomenon that manifests mainly after middle-age. To extend these findings, here we aimed to study how tissue pO2 response to neuronal stimulation is affected by aging. We used two-photon phosphorescence lifetime microscopy to directly measure the brain tissue pO2 response to whisker stimulation in healthy awake young, middle-aged and old mice. We show that despite a decrease in baseline tissue pO2, the amplitude of the tissue pO2 response to stimulation is well preserved with age. However, the response dynamics are altered towards a slower response with reduced post-stimulus undershoot in older ages, possibly due to stiffer vessel wall among other factors. An estimation of the net oxygen consumption rate using a modified Krogh model suggests that the O2 overshoot during stimulation may be necessary to secure a higher capillary O2 delivery to the tissue proportional to increased CMRO2 to maintain the capillary tissue pO2. It was observed that the coupling between the CMRO2 and capillary O2 delivery is preserved with age.Accepted manuscrip

Crescent Moon School: the poets, poetry, and poetics of a modern conservative intellectual group in Republican China

The Crescent Moon School (新月派Xinyue pai) is a Chinese intellectual group that was active from 1923 to 1934. Its members include Xu Zhimo 徐志摩(1897-1931), Hu Shi 胡适 (1891-1962), Liang Shiqiu 梁实秋(1903-1987), Wen Yiduo 闻一多(1899-1946), Luo Longji 罗隆基(1896-1965), and many other Anglo-American educated scholars in the Republican era. Although the group was engaged in various activities, poetry was their primary concern and their most notable practice. This thesis intends to solve two problems: 1) what common values or core spirit guided the various cultural practices of the group? 2) what are the poetic features and underlying poetics of the group as a whole? To answer the two questions, this thesis firstly examines the core spirit of the group by reviewing their activities and historical development. It argues that underlying the various activities and facts, there was a core spirit shared by the group. This core spirit, which I refer to as the “modern conservative spirit”, reflected a unique understanding of modernity that was different from that of the May Fourth discourse. They understood modernity not as a negation of tradition, but as a critical synthesis and mutual conformity between the old and the new, the local and the global. I show how the Crescent Moon intellectuals acquired this core spirit, and how it was displayed in their various activities. Secondly, this thesis provides detailed textual analysis of several Crescent Moon poems and reconstructs their poetics. It argues that their poetics demonstrated three faces, i.e. a romantic temperament, a classic ideal, and a modern consciousness. The three faces coexisted throughout the poetic practice of the group, although a certain face might have dominated in a certain period. I demonstrate how the three faces were unified under the guidance of the modern conservative spirit, and I argue that the simultaneousness of the three faces embodied the modern conservative intellectuals’ pursuit of literary modernity. By discussing the core spirit and poetics of the Crescent Moon School, this thesis concludes that the group was a missing link in Republican modern conservative trend, linking the late 1910s and early 1920s neotraditionalist thinkers with the mid-1930s Beijing School writers. The modern conservative intellectuals represented a dissenting voice in the Republican era, but they were also committed pursuers of modernity and cosmopolitanism

An Investigation of Misinformation Susceptibility of Older Adults: A Persuasive Perspective

One group in our society that is particularly vulnerable to misinformation is older adults. While older adults have been recognized as being of high risk for misinformation, this demographic has been under-researched in the dark side of IT literature. This research-in-progress study seeks to understand how individual, medium, and message characteristics influence individuals’ susceptibility toward misinformation and how these factors influence misinformation susceptibility differently across younger and older adults. A lab experiment is also proposed to verify the proposed relationships. This proposed research will provide much needed understanding on how older adults are impacted by the IT threat of misinformation and how to design support to encourage resilience to misinformation that results in improved well-being and mobility for older adults

Enhancing Student Experience in Online Learning: A Social Capital Perspective

Due to the shifting trend from face-to-face learning to online learning in higher education and challenges encountered by students in the pandemic era, it is imperative to understand how to enhance student experiences in online learning settings. The objective of this work-in-progress research is to uncover how social capital gained through online interaction impacts a student’s utilitarian and hedonic learning experience. This paper develops a research model to meet this objective and outlines a proposed methodology to validate the proposed model. We expect that this study would contribute to the online learning literature by investigating this novel context, extending social interactions to social capital, and differentiating between utilitarian and hedonic student experiences. This study also has potential to provide implications for online learning designers and instructors in higher education

Older Adults’ Consumption of Fake News – An Interoceptive Perspective

In an era dominated by social media, the spread of fake news and disinformation presents a distinct peril for those aged 50 and above, who are active and more likely to share it on platforms like Twitter and Facebook. This misinformation could jeopardize the mental and physical well-being of those older adults who are most likely to share health-related fake news. While cognitive decline has traditionally been blamed for older adults\u27 vulnerability to fake news, recent research underscores the role of accumulated knowledge, suggesting cognitive deficits alone cannot fully explain their susceptibility. This research investigates how emotional appeals contained in fake news influence older adults through socio-emotional processing, particularly as older individuals increasingly rely on surface-level analytical reasoning. As such, we may be in a better position to understand how these factors ultimately affect older adults consumption behavior of health-related information