Assessing Customer-Based Brand Equity of E-Commerce Platform Based on Promotion Benefits

The prosperity of e-commerce in China leads to large amount of businesses venturing into this marketplace. Sales promotion has been widely used to improve their advantage, while platform-based sales promotion has been confirmed more successful. This research examines the impacts of the benefits of sales promotions based on electronic commerce platforms on customer-based brand equity (platform brand awareness and platform brand association) and how their relationships are moderated by the promotion type (pre- and post-purchase promotion). Based on the two functions of sales promotions (stimulation vs. maintaining), we propose a five-benefit framework including exploration, convenience, savings, social bonds and structural bonds. We suggested that both the two types of sales promotion could provide the five benefits of sales promotions and the positive effects of the benefits on consumer-based brand equity might be significant, while the differences between pre- and post-purchase sales promotions could be also significant

Role of Danmu Function in User Experience and Engagement: A Double-edged Sword

Digital video sites currently seek new ways to build a platform to encourage user engagement and enable users to connect with one another through multiple means and channels. The widespread introduction of danmu technology has aroused concerns of academia. However, comparatively little work has been done to explicate the role of danmu function and research progress has been falling behind practical interest. In this study, we seek to investigate user experience and engagement to understand the double-side effect of danmu technology. Using S-O-R framework, we propose that danmu features, namely proximity and coherence, play essential roles in creating augmentation experience of para-social interaction and degradation experience of goal impediment and information overload. Additionally, we investigate user experience to understand user engagement in the danmu-enabled situation. We suggest that para-social interaction will elicit increased user engagement; yet goal impediment and information overload will lead to less user engagement

The Emerging Role of Ion Channels in the Pathophysiology and Treatments of Asthma

Asthma is one of the most common chronic respiratory diseases in the world. Although treatments and medications that can control the symptoms of asthma are available, no cure has been developed. Ion channels are transmembrane proteins that facilitate the diffusion of ions across membranes. In the airways, ion channels are involved in signalling between cells and regulation of intracellular ion concentration, which may lead to the activation of airway cells, immune cells, and neurons. This review mainly focuses on discoveries made so far in animal models and clinical trials regarding ion channels and asthma and gives some insight into developing treatments targeting ion channels

Towards Pulsed Telecom Laser Ablation Loading for an Ytterbium Ion Trap

Trapped ion system is a promising platform for quantum computing, with long qubit coherence, high gate and measurement fidelities. To harness the full potential of the trapped ion system, it is imperative to employ an efficient ion loading scheme. While the conventional oven loading method has its drawbacks, such as slow loading time, resource wastage, and potential contamination that can compromise system longevity and introduce decoherence, the pulsed laser ablation loading offers a promising alternative. This method enables fast, resource efficient, and controllable generation of a neutral atomic flux. This thesis explores the development of a 1.57 μm pulsed laser ablation (PLA) loading scheme for an Ytterbium ion trap. With endeavors in theoretical simulations and experimental setups designed with a keen emphasis on laser-induced damage thresholds, we successfully generated a neutral flux from the ablation laser, acquired a comprehensive isotope spectrum, and estimated the velocity distribution in the atomic plume. A fiber-coupled ablation delivery module was also designed and proved feasible along with the main ablation experiments. This study establishes a solid groundwork for the future integration of pulsed laser ablation loading into our trap system and provides invaluable empirical insights into the use of high-power infrared (IR) pulsed lasers