With the evolution of Artificial intelligence (AI), emotional artificial intelligence service agents (AISA) have become common in service industry. However, how artificial empathy of AISA contributes to customer acceptance remains an open question. This study draws on Anthropomorphism Theory and Customer AI Experience Theory to examine whether and how artificial empathy has influence on customer acceptance of AISA. Evidence from three experiments (N=1057) designed by the Experimental vignette method (EVM) shows that: (1) artificial empathy including perspective-taking, empathic concern and emotional contagion has a positive impact on customer acceptance of AISA (study 1); (2) customer AI experience (emotional experience quality, social experience activation and social experience quality) mediates the relationship between artificial empathy and customer acceptance of AISA (study 2); (3) artificial empathy for hedonic (vs. utilitarian) services leads to a stronger effect on customer acceptance of AISA (study 3). This paper enriches our understanding of artificial empathy and provides practical guidance for practitioners strategically managing AISA services in AI-enabled marketing interactions.

Various semi-cokes were obtained from medium–low-temperature pyrolysis of Shenmu long flame coal. The combustion characteristic index and CO2 gasification reactivity of semi-cokes were measured and analyzed using thermogravimetry analysis. The influence of particle size on CO2 gasification reactivities of these semi-cokes was studied. In addition, the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area (SBET), carbon material structure order and carbon crystalline structure were examined by N2 adsorption, Raman spectroscopy and powder X-ray diffraction. All of these properties were used to evaluate the CO2 gasification reactivity of these semi-cokes. The results show that the gasification reactivity of semi-cokes decreases with an increasing crystallinity and structure order. Surface area of the pores is proportional to the reactivity of the semi-coke; the greater the surface area, the faster the gasification reaction rate.

Bacillus thuringiensis, an entomopathogenic bacterium belonging to the B. cereus group, harbors numerous extra-chromosomal DNA molecules whose sizes range from 2 to 250 kb. In this study, we used a plasmid capture system (PCS) to clone three small plasmids from B. thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki K1 using PCS which were not found in B. thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki HD-1, and determined the complete nucleotide sequence of plasmid pK1S-1 (5.5 kb). Of the six putative open reading frames (ORF2-ORF7) in pK1S-1, ORF2 (MobK1) showed approximately 90% aa identity with the Mob-proteins of pGI2 and pTX14-2, which are rolling circle replicating group VII (RCR group VII) plasmids from B. thuringiensis. In addition, a putative origin of transfer (oriT) showed 95.8% identity with those of pGI2 and pTX14-2. ORF3 (RepK1) showed relatively low aa identity (17.8-25.2%) with the Rep protein coded by RCR plasmids, however. The putative double-strand origin of replication (dso) and single-strand origin of replication (sso) of pK1S-1 exhibited approximately 70% and 64% identities with those of pGI2 and pTX14-2. ORF6 and 7 showed greater than 50% similarities with alkaline serine protease, which belongs to the subtilase family. The other 2 ORFs were identified as hypothetical proteins. To determine the replicon of pK1S-1, seven subclones were contructed in the B. t huringiensis ori-negative pHT1K vector and were electroporated into a plasmid cured B. thuringiensis strain. The 1.6 kb region that included the putative ORF3 (Rep1K), dso and ORF4, exhibited replication ability. These findings identified pK1S-1 as a new RCR group VII plasmid, and determined its replication region.

Lanthanum oxide was introduced to molybdenum powder by liquid-liquid doping and liquid-solid doping respectively. Mo alloys were prepared by powder metallurgy technology. The size distribution and feature of dopant particles and the fractographs of Mo alloys were investigated by TEM and SEM respectively. The results indicated that liquid-liquid doping method is favorable for refining and dispersing particles uniformly in matrix. Fracture toughness of Mo alloys prepared by liquid-liquid doping showed better results than that of liquid-solid doping. Furthermore, the influences of the size distribution of on properties of Mo alloys was discussed by dislocation pile-up theory.