#Organic vs. Non-Organic Produce Consumption

[3rdeyeinsights]

there's a new trend of people using lemon juice instead of dishsoap

[mariacallous]

Adrien Bilal of Harvard and Diego R. Känzig of Northwestern find that the macroeconomic damages of climate change are larger than previously thought.   Previous estimates—which used country-level temperature changes to estimate local economic damages—failed to capture rises in extreme temperatures, wind, and precipitation that come from global warming. The authors estimate a Social Cost of Carbon of $1,056 per ton of carbon dioxide, which is six times higher than the high end of existing estimates. The authors estimate that a 2°C increase in global mean temperature between 2024 and 2100 will produce a welfare loss equivalent to a 31% permanent decline in consumption. “[T]he losses from living in a world with climate change relative to a world without it are comparable to fighting a major war domestically, forever,” the authors conclude.

[refrigerantgases]

Industrial Refrigeration Basics: Synthetic vs. Natural Refrigerants

Operable refrigerant frameworks have been being used since the 1830s, with ether as the first refrigerant. Throughout the long term, the utilization of refrigerants has developed as innovation has progressed and research has uncovered more about the effects these substances have on the climate.

New limitations keep on being put on the utilization of natural refrigerants, making it more significant than any other time for producers, as well as business and modern proprietors, to keep date with the most recent patterns and changes.

The historical backdrop of modern refrigerant use in the India

In mid 2021, the India Senate and House passed the Advancement and Assembling (Point) Act, classifying the India Natural Security Organization's (EPA) position to implement the Critical New Elective Approach (SNAP) Program that reflects the phasedown of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) endorsed in the Kigali Change to the Montreal Convention. The Point Act's last rule coordinates a phasedown underway and utilization of all HFCs in the India by 85% over the course of the following 15 years.

This follows the EPA's past declaration they would start to progressively get rid of hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) refrigerants beginning in 2010 as a feature of a proceeding with work to save the World's climate. The creation and importation of HCFCs will be totally restricted in the India by 2030.

The national government has stepped in various times to restrict and decrease the utilization of refrigerants. During the 1990s, the India government restricted the utilization of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halons in view of their high ozone consumption potential (ODP) and an Earth-wide temperature boost potential (GWP).

With the quantity of refrigerant choices in motion, organizations and makers are battling to see as additional feasible, manufactured other options.

This is where numerous in our industry end up contrasting normal versus manufactured refrigerant substitutions. In any case, each refrigerant has its advantages and disadvantages and, tragically, there is nobody size-fits-all arrangement.

This is the very thing that you really want to be aware to settle on an informed choice on what's best for your modern refrigeration system(s):

What are manufactured refrigerants?

Engineered refrigerants are human-made substances that acquired notoriety as current refrigeration frameworks came into the spotlight in the twentieth hundred years.

They can be dismal, scentless, non-poisonous, and ordinarily nonflammable. The various sorts are reasonable for a wide assortment of machines and numerous frameworks can be retrofitted to utilize an alternate engineered refrigerant in the event that government or state necessities change.

For quite a long time, manufactured refrigerants overwhelmed the business, however, today most are being gotten rid of purpose by the public authority as a result of their earth hurtful impacts.

While different engineered refrigerants are being created to work on their ODP and GWP, research demonstrates regular refrigerants keep on being the most environment-accommodating choices.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

CFCs were concocted as soon as 1930 as nontoxic, nonflammable options in contrast to the normal refrigerants accessible on the lookout, similar to sulfur dioxide (SO2) and smelling salts (NH3). Their compound creation contains carbon, chloride, and fluorine. CFCs incorporate R11, R12, R113, R114, R115, and R502, however are generally normally perceived as freon.

These were among the most well-known manufactured refrigerant choices for a really long time, however, their creation was restricted with the marking of the Montreal Convention in 1987 because of the adverse consequences of chlorine on the stratospheric ozone layer when delivered into the climate. A few more seasoned frameworks might in any case contain CFCs, however, they could be supplanted with more environment cordial other options.

Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs)

HCFCs are close neighbors to CFCs and were utilized as substitutes when CFCs were initially being eliminated. Their compound creation incorporates hydrogen, chlorine and fluorine. The extra carbon atom in HCFCs makes them less harming to the ozone contrasted with CFCs. In any case, similar to CFCs, they are strong ozone harming substances containing ozone-harming chlorine with a high GWP, and have therefore been prohibited from creation.

Normal HCFCs incorporate R22, R123 and R401a. They are additionally frequently alluded to as freon. The Kigali correction to the Montreal Convention required R22 be progressively eliminated by 2020, and all HCFCs by 2030.

Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)

HFCs, similar to HCFCs, were utilized as elective engineered refrigerants when CFCs were being gotten rid of. They are comprised of hydrogen, carbon and fluorine particles.

Famous HFCs incorporate R134a, R404a, R407C, and R410a.

HFCs have no ODP, since they don't contain chlorine, however are ozone depleting substances with high GWP. The 2016 Kigali Correction to the Montreal Convention started the most common way of deliberately transitioning away from HFC use.

In 2016, the EPA reported that particular refrigerants, including R134a, can't be utilized in that frame of mind after January 1, 2024. R134a will be accessible to support existing frameworks after 2024, however creation will downsize.

In 2020, the EPA authoritatively proposed gradually getting rid of all HFCs, bringing down their reasonable use in both new and existing refrigeration frameworks while additionally cutting creation by 85% over the course of the following 15 years, classified by Congress with the Point Act. This would incorporate the utilization of HFCs for overhauling previous frameworks.

Hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs)

HFOs are thought of as "fourth era" refrigerants made of hydrogen, fluorine, and carbon. They were created to supplant CFCs, HCFCs, and HFCs considered ecologically unsafe by the Montreal Convention. Olefins allude to the twofold connection between two carbon particles that make up the compound. HFOs don't contain the ozone-harming chlorine component and have a generally low GWP number. Following updates to the Montreal Convention, HFOs became one of the famous refrigerant options, close by HFCs before Kigali was sanctioned.

HFOs are by and large viewed as low-pressure and nonflammable refrigerants, yet they really do have a somewhat higher combustibility rating contrasted with past engineered refrigerants.

Refrigerant mixes

As the world has moved to consolidate all the more earth-cognizant arrangements, refrigerant mixes have created at this point another option. These substances are combinations of at least two refrigerants, as HFOs and HFCs. Consolidated, their singular properties are streamlined to make substances that are preferable for the planet over conventionally manufactured refrigerants, yet at the same time offer a portion of their advantages.

Mixes are delegated either azeotropic or zeotropic. Azeotropic mixes are blended by joining refrigerants that have a similar limit. In the interim, zeotropic mixes consolidate refrigerants with various edges of boiling over. This difference in limits creates a potential for the detachment of refrigerants, changing the structure and thermodynamic properties of the mix. This would essentially happen at the evaporator or condenser where the mix sees huge idle burdens, with either fluid parts not vanishing or gas parts not gathering.

Option items are famous HFO-based mixes generally utilized in chillers and business refrigeration gear. This azeotropic mix is being utilized to supplant R134a due to its similar thermodynamic effectiveness, low dangers, zero ODP and low GWP, and similarity with frameworks utilizing R134a.

What are normal refrigerants?

Normal refrigerants have gotten forward momentum as of late as government organizations have urged clients to choose eco-accommodating refrigerant choices. They have practically no ODP and GWP, pursuing them is the more maintainable decision and the most drastically averse to being confined or suspended from here on out.

Besides the fact that regular refrigerants better for are the climate, they are additionally commonly more energy-proficient and savvy. These refrigerant choices have better thermodynamic effectiveness, in this manner overburdening cooling frameworks. Be that as it may, buying hardware for regular refrigerants can be more costly contrasted with frameworks utilizing engineered refrigerants.

Regular refrigerants have their own extraordinary qualities that makers and clients should consider, including higher harmfulness levels, combustibility, and tension territories. Appropriate well-being measures and conventions can be utilized to neutralize these and relieve risk.

Alkali (NH3)

Smelling salts is a normally happening, dreary gas inclined toward beginning around 1859 as a refrigerant by the meat business both for its thermodynamic properties and on the grounds that it very well may be produced using process squander. Ordinarily marked as R717, its thermodynamic effectiveness can diminish energy and functional expenses by up to 10%.

Alkali is a harmless-to-ox ecosystem refrigerant option with zero ODP and GWP appraisals.

While smelling salts present many benefits, their utilization requires elevated security contemplations. Alkali is noxious in high fixations, but since it has a low scent limit and is promptly identified by smell, it is not difficult to distinguish releases even in tiny sums. It is a destructive gas and furthermore combustible at groupings of roughly 15% to 28% by volume in air.

In past blog entries, we exposed a few legends about smelling salts and investigated how to address normal security issues with a smelling salts framework.

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

CO2 makes a decent refrigerant option due to its low ecological effect and thermodynamic properties. It is additionally generally economical however requires high-pressure cooling frameworks explicitly intended for CO2 use.

As a characteristic refrigerant, CO2 is manageable with zero ODP and 1 GWP influence.

It is boring, unscented, nonflammable, and has low harmfulness. Wellbeing measures should be executed with CO2 refrigeration frameworks since it can't be identified through smell.

A typical test in CO2 frameworks is their necessary high working tensions. Advancement go on for financially savvy high-stage CO2 gear that can be utilized on the scale expected by most modern refrigeration norms. (It is at present just utilized in more limited-size transcritical CO2 bundle frameworks.) The refrigerant grade CO2 known as R744

[beanvoyage1]

🌟☕ Exploring the Coffee Universe: Organic vs. Non-Organic! ☕🌟

Coffee lovers, gather 'round for a passionate coffee conversation! Our latest video is a captivating journey into the world of coffee, where we unravel the age-old debate of Organic vs. Non-Organic Coffee. ☕🌱

The Organic Coffee Revolution

In the first part of our video, we delve into the very essence of what makes coffee "organic." It's not just a label; it's a commitment to sustainability and quality. Organic coffee is cultivated without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or GMOs, relying instead on natural methods that nurture the coffee beans and the environment. Discover the rigorous certification process that guarantees the purity of your coffee beans, and you'll see why this choice matters.

Non-Organic Coffee: What's in Your Cup?

But what about non-organic coffee? In the second part, we shed light on the practices of conventional coffee farming. The use of synthetic pesticides and chemicals may boost production, but it raises concerns about both the environment and our health. Dive deep into the economic aspects of non-organic coffee production and consider the impact on coffee-producing communities.

Taste and Quality: A Brew-off

Intrigued by the taste? You're not alone! Our taste test reveals the intriguing flavor profiles of organic and non-organic coffee. Organic coffee often boasts a cleaner, more nuanced taste, as if the beans have absorbed the essence of their natural surroundings. Non-organic coffee, on the other hand, may offer bolder, more robust flavors, but sometimes at the expense of subtlety. We share our personal tasting experiences and explore the role of roasting in shaping the taste of your coffee.

The Bean Voyage Perspective

At "Bean Voyage," we're more than coffee enthusiasts; we're coffee explorers. Our channel thrives on engaging discussions, and we've received fascinating comments and insights on our previous video about "Different Coffee Brewing Methods." Join our passionate coffee community as we continue to uncover the secrets of the bean!

Making an Informed Choice

As you embark on your own coffee journey, remember that your cup of coffee isn't just a daily ritual; it's an opportunity to make a positive impact on the world. Summarize the key differences between organic and non-organic coffee, advocate for conscious coffee consumption, and explore recommended resources to deepen your knowledge.

Conclusion: Sip and Discuss

So, which coffee journey will you choose next? Organic or non-organic? The choice is yours, and it's all part of the delightful world of coffee. Join us in savoring each sip, discussing the nuances, and making a conscious choice for a more sustainable and flavorful coffee experience.

Watch the full video for an immersive coffee exploration, and be sure to like, share, subscribe, and leave your thoughts in the comments below. Your voice is a crucial part of this coffee conversation!

[yngwrthr]

For the sake of precision, reposting this with a slight modification from yesterday. Looks as if I am a bit OCD trying to uncover how Marx felt in regards to value form:

In order to understand the “full story” of the development of capitalism, we must turn to a consideration of the “value form” of products, which is identical with the “commodity form” of property and which in the same sense contribute to “commodity fetishism”, and results from the historical/ anthropological conditions of simple commodity production and exchange. Marx’s economic construction of “value form” is necessary in order to account for the “social form” of the products of labor in commodity societies that organize need and want however nominally through exchange and exhibit in embryo the system of private property and alienation. The commodity form of property and the value form of products represent only the very beginning foundations or initial conditions for organizing society around accumulation of ever increasing exchange value (capital). That is, commodity production and exchange based on the simple form of value prepare the way for capitalist civilization.

For example, an independent craftsmen in the Middle Ages, who owns his own labor power and the means of production he uses, producing products not for use value but for exchange value, may only be seeking the exchange value which will service and replace his means of production and to keep himself and his family alive etc. If the exchange value received does not exceed what is required to replace means of production and what is necessary to devote to personal consumption, then our commodity producer, while he seeks exchange value, the substitute of equal value, and his products assume the form of value, he is not engaging capital accumulation. This is what contrasts simple commodity production in slavery/ feudalism and the simple form of value to developed capitalist commodity production where value is driven to self-expand the quantity of exchange value as capital.

Thus the course of the development of commodity production and exchange culminated in the emergence of capitalism, which is “mediated” through relations of production between capital and wage labor. Capitalist society begins in part with the generalization of commodity exchange and the further development of the form of value into the era of capitalist vs. wage worker. The value form is basic to these relations, imposed through the generalization of “non-restricted” exchange, and necessary for emergence of capitalism per se; as well as its reproduction.

[sustainability-now]

Sustainability. What It Means and How We Can Help.

The Earth that all living organisms call home, is very resilient. So much so, that it has been able to sustain life for 3.8 Billion years. Living things have had to evolve and create sustainable solutions for a very long time (Miller and Spoolman 2021, 2). So, how is it that we are now in a situation where the climate is changing and species are dying off? Well, to answer this question, we first need to take a look at what the concept of sustainability is, how we are failing at it, and how we can change this. 

Sustainability is, in essence, the extent to which Earth can support life and changes to the environment. The environment is all living and non-living things that surround us (Miller and Spoolman 2021, 2,3). There are three principles to sustainability: solar energy, biodiversity, and chemical cycling. These three ideas are a blueprint to how Earth has sustained life on Earth for so long (Miller and Spoolman 2021,3). I believe that utilizing these principles, sustainable solutions to the degradation of our planet’s natural resources can be found. This has already been done before. An example of this would be the production of solar panels to generate renewable energy. Renewable energy is something that can be greatly improved upon. For example, in New York, natural gas-fired plants made up about half of New York’s electricity generating capacity. In 2019, about one-third of the electricity generated in New York came from nuclear power, while one-fifth came from hydroelectric plants (US Energy Information Administration, 2020). Although a portion of our electricity is generated from renewable sources, most of it isn’t and that is something that can be improved upon.

Admittedly, a lot of these things we as individuals have no control over. Just by going grocery shopping it can be argued that we are adding to the fire. Or by paying an electricity bill to keep the lights on in your home. This was something that I realized after completing the Ecological Footprint Quiz. Although I’d like to think that I live frugally from a consumption standpoint, it is not as frugal as I think it is. After doing the quiz, it was revealed that if everyone on Earth were to live like me, 2.6 Earths would be needed. That is definitely a good way of illustrating how much we truly consume, and may be the eye-opener that many people need. A good way of looking at this mathematically would be by looking at the IPAT model, developed by Paul Ehrlich and John Holdren. According to them, our environmental impact can be calculated by taking the product of the global population, resource consumption per person, and the impact of technology (Miller and Spoolman 2021, 12).

So what are the results of over indulging in the Earth’s natural resources? Climate change, the release of hazardous pollutants, rise in sea level, expanding deserts, and a loss in biodiversity (Miller and Spoolman 2021, 13.) In other words, normal temperatures will increase, coastal cities will flood, and you might have to start buying fresh air. Much of these effects can be attributed to the mass industrialization that occurred globally. More industrialized/developed areas in the world are known to produce a way larger carbon footprint as opposed to lesser developed areas. The US, much of Europe, and Japan are some of the main culprits (Miller and Spoolman 2021,12). Areas with a large population density are seen to be at an ecological deficit. Similarly, there is a direct relationship between the GDP per capita of a nation and the nation’s CO2 emissions. Essentially, the wealthier, more developed nations consume the most and thus have a greater effect on our environment.

Moving on in the future, there is definitely a choice that needs to be made, collectively. A choice to either right our wrongs or continue to profit on the degradation of the planet. A change is necessary and it involves all of us. Implementing more renewable energy sources, preserving natural capital, and the use of full-cost pricing, are all things that can help us become more sustainable (Miller and Spoolman 2021, 21). With that being said, this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the process of recovering from this damage.  There are many questions people have that have been left unanswered. How long will it take before the climate change we are experiencing is irreversible? How can we introduce sustainable solutions without it affecting our day to day lives? Is it even possible? What are some arguments can people have to possibly argue against environmentalism?

Word Count : 767

Works Cited: 

Miller, G. Tyler, and Scott Spoolman. Living in the Environment. 20th ed. Cengage Learning, 2021.

“U.S. Energy Information Administration - Independent Statistics and Analysis.” New York - State Energy Profile Analysis - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).  https://www.eia.gov/state/analysis.php?sid=NY#22.

“Co₂ Emissions per Capita vs Gdp per Capita.” Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/co2-emissions-vs-gdp?yScale=log.

[cabiba]

https://kortina.nyc/essays/kinky-labor-supply-and-the-attention-tax/

Kinky (S1) vs classical (S0) labor supply curve.

Over the past few decades, labor force participation has sharply dropped for men ages 20-34. Theories about the root cause range from indolence, to a lack of skills and training, to offshoring, to (perhaps most interestingly) the increasing attractiveness and availability of leisure and media entertainment. In this essay, we propose that the drop in labor participation rate of young men is a result of a combination of factors: (i) a decrease in cost of access to media entertainment leisure, (ii) increases in both the availability and (iii) quality media entertainment leisure, and (iv) a decrease in the marginal signalling utility of (conspicuous) consumption goods for all but the highest earners.

At the macro level, this results in sub-optimal production, as firms are unable to satisfy their demand for labor via the usual mechanism of increasing wages. If you believe that economic productivity and growth are good, this presents a challenge when attempting to design stimulus policy, because subsidies or increases to the minimum wage would yield the same non-result as firms increasing wages. We discuss the potential efficacy of the somewhat radical idea of a tax on human attention or time spent consuming entertainment media as a way to stimulate productivity.

#Declining Labor Participation in Younger Demographics

The overall labor force participation rate in the United States has been declining for the past several decades. The most obvious potential explanation would be an aging population (retirees comprising an increasing percentage of the overall population), but you can see this is not the root cause when you break out the labor force participation rate by age and sex:

Labor Participation Rate via Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Labor participation has been dropping much faster for young men than any other groups. (Interestingly, labor participation has been increasing most rapidly for older demographics, presumably because they must continue working later in life in order to support basic needs and healthcare costs).

In Leisure Luxuries and the Labor Supply of Young Men, Mark Aguiar and Erik Hurst note that:

Despite stagnant wages, declining employment rates, and an increased propensity to live with their parents, younger men report increased happiness during the 2000s. This contrasts sharply with older men, whose satisfaction fell along with their relative earnings. We see the life satisfaction results as indirect evidence that younger men experienced relatively little decline in the consumption and greatly valued their improved leisure options.

Much of young men’s time which in past decades was spent working is now spent playing video games, according to Aguiar and Hurst. Given that reported happiness moved in the opposite direction from wages and employment rate, it would seem there is some preference for this specific type of leisure over the purchasing power sacrificed in the form of foregone wages. But given that leisure activities have always been an alternative to work, we should ask what about video games specifically makes them more compelling than historical leisure activities.

Update: this paper from Gray Kimbrough arguing against the interpretation from Aguiar and Hurst is also worth a read.

#

Decreasing Cost, Increasing Availability, and Increasing Quality of Media Entertainment

Video games are just one example of media entertainment content that has become more a more attractive leisure choice as a result of advances in internet and mobile device technology.

For most of history, media consumption was bounded, like other forms of consumption, by cost – if you wanted more books, movies, music, console video games, etc, you needed money to buy them. Notable exceptions to this pattern were radio and cable television, where you could access programming at all hours of the day for a low fixed cost (or in some cases for free) – but in these cases, limits on the syndication of premium content entailed that not every hour of watching was equally enjoyable, and there were generally still diminishing (enjoyment) returns on each additional hour spent watching.

The digitization of content enabled infinite storage of evergreen content in the cloud and effectively zero marginal distribution cost of content through copying. Enabling on-demand access to all of the content that has ever been produced entailed a huge increase in the supply of good content. This essentially made all of history a viable competitor to people producing new content. Similarly, social media–produced for free, by amateurs–provided another huge influx of new content and more competition for attention.

This increased supply and competition put pressure on professionals creating new content to make it better and cheaper. On top of that, taking a page from the cable TV playbook, internet media distributors gave away content for free, and used advertising subsidies to pay for the small amount of content that was still being professionally produced.

All of these changes benefited the consumer by making more and better content available for free. Today, you can pretty much always spend yet another hour consuming some new and interesting content freely available on the internet, so once you have paid the (quite cheap) cost of access to your ISP or mobile data provider, you no longer require additional wages to pay for additional consumption of media as a leisure activity.

#

Decreasing Signalling Utility of Conspicuous Consumption Goods

Before we accept that young men are simply foregoing working in favor of spending more time playing video games or consuming other forms of media entertainment content, we should ask what else they might spend foregone earnings on and why they are not working to fund that spend.

In general there are three types of goods: goods that meet your basic needs, leisure goods (including media goods), and conspicuous consumption goods (those that signal genetic fitness, social status, belonging, etc.). If young men playing video games are not foregoing their basic needs (an assumption we’ll make here), and the cost of media entertainment goods has dramatically fallen, then they must be trading off consumption goods. Next, we argue that this group has decreased consumption because the signaling utility of these goods has decreased.

#

What is conspicuous consumption and what does it take to get it?

Historically, the primary purpose of working was to generate enough income to satisfy basic needs. Once those needs were met, an individual had a tradeoff to make between spending their remaining time on work or leisure.

Observing the behavior of the nouveau riche in a post-industrialization society in the late 1800s, Thorstein Veblen introduced the theory of conspicuous consumption - the purchase of goods and services for the sake of signalling social status (vs. the intrinsic function provided by goods that meet basic needs or those that enable leisure).

As living standards improved in the 20th century and individuals had more discretionary income, this behavior expanded to men, women, and children across all economic classes who began to spend more money on goods and services as a sort of social fashion. Implicit in spending more time on work is a preference for conspicuous consumption over leisure.

If you have the money, how do you decide what to consume? Benjamin Schwarz suggested in his review of Elizabeth Currid-Halkett’s The Sum of Small Things: A Theory of the Aspirational Class that:

This process depends on the great extent to which the elite’s consumption is at once devoted to and relies on “cultural capital”—that is, the adoption of values, tastes, and norms through social inculcation and formal education. That cup of Intelligentsia coffee may “only” cost five dollars, but learning about it in the first place depends on prizing the judgment of certain cultural tastemakers (again, say, the New York Times and those right-thinking podcasts), and on possessing a worldview that attaches a particular value and virtue to a particular container of hot liquid. Acquiring that cultural capital is, itself, a rarefied and usually expensive endeavor, because it involves a lengthy and complex process of what the sociologists call cultural and social formation: The peculiar cachet that the educated class attaches to that cup of coffee is far more likely to elude the daughter of an insurance adjuster brought up in Lansing, Kansas (a middle-class suburb of Kansas City), who attended the local high school and Kansas State, than it is the daughter of a screenwriter raised in uber-achieving north-of-Montana-Avenue Santa Monica, who attended the Harvard-Westlake School and Yale. Thus, buying that cup of coffee—or that organic cotton t-shirt, or that subscription to Harper’s—signifies a class identity that the purchase, in turn, reinforces.”

The increased cost in time to acquire the knowledge of what to consume is yet another way that conspicuous consumption is becoming prohibitively more expensive.

The catch with all of this is that the psychological utility sought from conspicuous consumption is relative, not absolute. Sarah Perry sums this up nicely in her book, Every Cradle is a Grave:

More than anything, however, a human utility function is a function of social belonging. That’s the ultimate point not only of income, but of intelligence, beauty, and many other material and non-material goods: they may be traded for social belonging… We want income because we want to be able to get the attention of others. We want a safe social place, primarily—and, of course, we want a better social place than the one we currently occupy.

The implication of this relative sizing up is that there is an ever-rising bar to maintain or improve your social position relative to the people and communities from which you seek affiliation or belonging. This was never easy given the money and time required, but at least it was possible when you sought that social belonging from people and communities that were more geographically constrained.

#

How does scale of distribution impact conspicuous consumption?

Consumers are no longer signaling on a local scale, but rather on an internet scale. On the one hand, this amplifies signal, because you can reach likeminded people who aren’t part of your local community, but on the other hand:

The consequent noise of everyone else doing the same thing crowds that signal out.

The people you may be trying to reach may be more preoccupied than ever before given the media dynamics described above playing out.

Together, these changes increase competition for the attention of the people whose attention you’re vying for…

And stoke an arms race in money and time in pursuit of relative conspicuous consumption.

As an example, consider how this increased competition plays out in online dating platforms. On Tinder, the top 20% of men are competing for the top 78% of women. Why? It’s a matter of the breadth of selection. Offline, due to the constraints of physical space and time, any given woman would have a finite set of potential partners to choose from. Online, the selection is much more vast and most women only “like” the most attractive men. The Gini coefficient for the “Tinder economy” is 0.58, which means that it has higher inequality than 95% the world’s national economies – in other words, it’s pretty grim if you’re a man in the bottom 80%.

Update: we got lots of responses about the sample size / validity of this Tinder study, so it’s worth checking out, but also worth noting the argument we present does not hinge upon this study.

We believe that this effect can be extrapolated into most contexts where digital distribution is used for signalling purposes. Yes, you could work more in order to buy more consumption goods, services, and activities and spend more of your free time posting about it online in order to break through, but it’s a grind given the ever-escalating, relative nature of the competition.

Unless the lottery or a new work opportunity vaults you into the top 20% of income earners or you’re fine spending the majority of your time crafting your online image like the Maya Millenials out there, you have little chance of breaking through. And if there is no meaningful signalling utility from the consumption goods, services, and activities you could buy with increased income, why work more than you need to meet your basic needs and fund leisure? Paul Nystrom dubbed consumerism as a “philosophy of futility,” and with the Internet stoking conspicuous consumption into overdrive, more people may be starting to sense that.

#

What are the implications of worker preference for leisure over wages?

A common response to a high unemployment rate, low labor force participation, and low economic productivity is the proposal of increasing wages / the minimum wage. This proposal stems from the idea in classical economics that there is a smooth, upward sloping labor supply curve, where each increase in wages yields a corresponding increase in labor supply (because the higher wages entice more people to work or people to work more hours):

Classic labour supply and demand equilibrium

The shape of this curve is a function of the marginal utility of higher income to each worker, which looks like the following:

Marginal utility of higher income, classical.

The assumption here is that each additional dollar of income is increasingly useful to a worker, because it enables the purchase of more basic goods, leisure goods, and consumption goods.

Just as there is a ceiling to the amount of income which can be spent on basic goods (food, shelter, etc), we posit that, given our above discussion, there are now natural ceilings on the amount of income which most workers will spend on leisure goods and conspicuous consumption goods.

First, the ceiling on income useful for purchasing leisure goods is the monthly cost of an ISP or cellular data plan (along with the cost of the hardware used to access the internet).

Second, the ceiling on income useful for conspicuous consumption is effectively zero – until you reach the ‘power threshold’ where you can spend enough to distinguish yourself as part of the top 20% of spenders, which is incredibly high. Every extra dollar of income you earn below this power threshold is effectively useless for the sake of conspicuous consumption, because on a relative basis it’s not enough to out-signal the ‘best.’

We propose, therefore, that the utility of marginal income actually looks like this:

The solid line depicts zero marginal utility of increased income once you have met basic needs and subscription cost of infinite media entertainment, up to the point where you break back into the top 20%.

And, as a result, there is a ‘kinky labor supply curve:’

Firms unable to meet demand for labor due to ceiling on wage elasticity.

The classical labor supply curve would intersect the labor demand curve at (E0), and although the kinky labor supply curve intersects the labor demand curve at (E2), firms can decrease wages from here without decreasing productive output, all the way down to the actual equilibrium point at (E1). This suboptimal equilibrium entails that:

There is lower employment, which is a deadweight loss to the economy (lower overall economic output). There is actually greater demand for labor than can be met, but there’s no way to realize it because marginal increases in wages yield no increase in supply of labor past the equilibrium point (E1).

Wages are lower, which is an effective economic transfer from labor to firms. Firms would actually be willing to pay higher wages to the workers they employ, but because this would not yield more hours of labor, firms do not increase wages, so every hour of labor performed by a worker is paid at a lower wage rate than workers would earn at the classical equilibrium point.

A compounding factor worth noting here is the gig economy and the increase in availability of on-demand work, which helps workers realize a much more continuous distribution of preferences for allocating time across work and leisure (vs their ability to historically do so, which would have been more discrete / discontinuous). The gig economy makes labor supply more elastic at the lower, leftmost portion of the labor supply curve and removes what you might think of as a floor on labor supply that was imposed by the standard forty hour work week. (h/t Sam Lessin for calling our attention to the gig economy as another pressure on labor supply.)

#The Kinky Labor Supply Curve Results in Lower Overall Economic Output

Because the demand for labor exceeds what workers are willing to supply, production and overall economic output are lower when workers prefer media entertainment leisure over wages.

You might argue this is a good thing. People actually prefer to spend their time consuming media over working, and we have achieved the luxury of enabling them to act on this preference. And, when people primarily consume digital media goods, the result is the production and consumption of less physical trash.

On the other hand, you might argue that lower economic output is a bad thing. Historically, economic growth has raised standards of living, increased lifespan, and has generally enabled more stable societies that are more insulated from the volatility of nature (eg, locusts eating an entire season of crops).

If you’re in the camp that thinks lower economic output is bad, the natural follow-up question is what kind of policy changes might counteract this phenomenon.

#Policies for the Leisure State

If firms are unable to generate increases in labor supply by increasing wages, government transfers to workers would be be an equally ineffective solution when workers value leisure time over increased purchasing power. This entails that the possible solution space is probably limited to taxes (and probably does not include, for example, things like wage subsidies or an increased minimum wage).

One potential solution would be to tax the unproductive leisure activities which people prefer over work. This is perhaps not as crazy as it seems, because (i) the true cost of these activities is already distorted from a consumer perspective by the advertisers who subsidize media consumption,and (ii) we already tax income and productivity – if time and money are fungible, you might just pull the idea of income tax ‘above’ the decision of how to spend time, and say that each person is responsible for investing some amount of sweat (in the form of time or money) into the public good.

Of course it would be impossible to gain political support for such a radical idea, especially when people today enjoy leisure time for free. No one would support a policy that required them to buy this time back from the state in the form of a tax.

Since media companies are capitalizing and profiting on a huge amount of attention that might otherwise be spent productively, however, taxing them for the share of the citizenry’s time that they consume could be more sensible and more practical than taxing citizens themselves.

One view of the status quo is that media companies are aggregating human attention and selling it at a discount–far below minimum wage–to advertisers in a massive arbitrage on human capital. So, the state could set the price of an hour of human attention at the minimum wage rate, and charge media companies 12% (the federal income tax rate on minimum wage) of that wage rate for each hour of human attention they consume.

Media companies would respond in one of two ways, because they no doubt earn nowhere close to the amount of profit they would need to pay this tax. They could charge more to advertisers, ending the current price arbitrage on human attention. Or, they could pass the cost on to consumers directly, charging per unit of consumption instead of offering infinite consumption for a fixed price.

#Why limit the attention tax to media companies vs all providers of leisure goods?

It seems a bit odd to single out consumption of digital media as a uniquely taxable leisure activity – why not tax all leisure activities?

What’s attractive about restricting the tax to digital media companies is that (i) they are profiting on the captured attention already and (ii) consumption of digital media is highly measurable. One of the challenges of the attention tax is measurement, and probably one of the reasons we have never considered such a tax viable in the past is the challenge of enforceability – it would be impossible for the state to measure the difference at a per citizen level of a productive unpaid hour (eg, care for a child or elderly person) from a leisure hour (spent reading a physical book).

While today it would still be difficult for the state to account for every hour of each citizen’s time, it would be quite feasible to measure each person’s hours of attention that were definitely spent consuming digital media entertainment. Taxing only these hours would be both practical and meaningful in terms of total percentage of time measured and enforceable in practice.

#Takeaways

While it is fun to explore alternative mechanisms for motivating the labor force if labor supply no longer responds to increases in wages, it is far more likely that lost worker productivity will be made up for with technology (eg, automation via robotics, software, artificial intelligence) that makes remaining workers more productive. While this would lead to a host of other problems (eg, inequality) and almost certainly lead to a welfare state, it is probably more straightforward to implement the necessary technological advances than the attention tax. Furthermore, a welfare state where most people could devote most of their time to the pursuit of leisure seems to be more consistent with preferences revealed by recent trends in labor participation and alternative uses of time.

This essay was co-authored by Andrew Kortina and Namrata Patel.

[flexiblepack7]

6 Innovative, Sustainable, Food Packaging Design Ideas to Inspire Your Brand

When you’re continuously looking for ways to be more sustainable, it’s easy to lose your creative edge. It’s like writer’s block, but for sustainability innovation. It’s what has kept so many vehicles running on gasoline and shaped our cities into concrete structures, deserts of plant life. However, this blog post is here to help. Here are six innovative, sustainable food packaging designs to inspire your brand. These are ideas that embody our philosophy: be bold, stand apart, and lead the pack!

1| Design Aspects

When considering how you’ll design your product sustainability, it takes some thought. For example, how will the following items be manifested?

·         Labels

·         Finishing Options

·         Sleeves

·         Pouches

·         Tear-open technology

·         Resealable technology

·         Biodegradability

·         Shelf life stability

·         And more

The need to pin down each of these individual items is the same whether a business is in cosmetics, wine, cannabis, or food.

2| Biodegradable Packaging

According to a market analysis published by the Organic Trade Association, organic sales topped over $40 billion in the United States in 2018. More importantly, that number has been steadily rising for over a decade.

Consumers are starting to pay more attention to the products they purchase daily. There is more awareness when making a decision to buy food wrapped in non-biodegradable plastic and the lasting effects it has on our environment long after we've consumed it. As they think about the pile of garbage they’ve created as a result of the food they eat, they may start searching for more biodegradable food packaging options. The market is moving towards researching and producing  biodegradable films and coatings, which are testing the tensile strength to contain most types of food.

3| Sustainable Materials

Biodegradable food packaging is just one way to ensure a business is using sustainable materials. The source of the material, labor that goes into its production, and the environmental cost of production are all valuable reasons to work with sustainable materials.

Whether a business is using shrink sleeves or trendy little pouches, customers want them to be sourced with sustainable materials. Certain food products, could be wrapped with films formed by protein-polysaccharide powders converted into a film. In that case, the consumer can eat the package along with the food.

4| Specific Finishing Options

Business leaders are often surprised to see the vast list of finishes that are available, even for relatively small products. That’s because finish options sell products. Choices include: 

·         Matte

·         Glossy

·         Sparkling

·         Eye-catching shapes

·         Stylish sleeves

·         And more

It’s becoming increasingly popular for products to showcase what’s inside the package with glossy, see-through windows that make the contents glow. In turn, this creates a more natural feeling for the consumer. 

It would be hard to sell an organic product in anything other than a attractively sustainable and eco-friendly container with out contradicting your brand and product. That’s why your labels, pouches or sleeves need specific finishing options that fit your brand and product message.

The more a product can stand out on the shelf, the more likely it is to sell. A sharp, matte finish with glossy window displaying beautiful, edible products is a great way to catch the eye over competitors.

5| Ready-to-eat 

Sometimes, the best package is the product without a package. This is especially true for customers on-the-go who don’t want to be wasteful. Not only does ready-to-eat food look great on the shelf (imagine a shiny, red apple for sale vs. a small bag of fruit in plastic), but there’s a depth of brand space to be filled in this niche, as well. Can you quickly name the top three ready-to-eat food brands? That’s brand real estate for sale.

6| Socially Considerate Design Processes

If you’ve got an awesome product, but you’re not an expert in design, that’s okay! In fact, many companies turn to design studios like Flexible Pack. Our teams of experts know how to ensure that your package design meet socially-acceptable standards while also consulting you on attractive colors that match your branding, materials, and package shapes that entice customers to buy.

Visit our Design Studio

How Will Your Brand Innovate and Inspire?

There are plenty of sound ways to improve the look and outcome of a brand. Making sure products look and feel good in your customers’ hands is one way, giving them the option to buy from a company with sustainable and innovative design practices is another.

It is becoming increasingly more important for people to begin to tie their food consumption to their sustainability practices. Sustainability-thinking customers don’t want to purchase an organic fruit just to have to remove a one-time use wrapper.

In today’s climate, consumers want the healthiest food in the most sustainable way possible. That’s what makes sustainable food packaging designs so valuable to brands that want to lead the pack.

Read more here about Custom Flexible Packaging.

[ellentng8214744]

The Outdoors Vs. The Indoors: Where To Grow Your Cannabis Vegetables?

I'd like to go explore the Rijks Museum. Natural museum the lot of works of well-known Dutch painters while Rembrandt. I'd be particularly enthusiastic about his "The Nightwatch". This painting already been talked about for years, yet there is no-one to tell what Rembrandt meant when he painted this task. The painting is a national icon to the Dutch as well as a true national treasure. The Rijks Museum is also home to probably one of the most intricate and intensive doll houses ever constructed. In the victorian era commissioned the wealthy lady to thought of a hobby, quite a expensive hobby as she invested many guilders onto it and had each and every one item made to scale. Iii. 1 gram of protein per day per pound of obesity. Eggs, chicken, beef, turkey, cottage cheese, nuts, isolate shakes etc. are commonly excellent sources of Cannabis Study lean necessary. Your protein should be divided up into amounts that are fairly evenly spaced over everything of your evryday meals make sure that maximum consumption. Although major paint are no stranger to producing more environmentally friendly paints, a competent majority professionals can still contain hazardous substances. VOC's (Volatile Organic Compounds) behave like a category of chemicals that evaporate quickly and leave an undesirable odor, such as toluene, xylene and formaldehyde, and are main pieces of modern day paint. Subjected to testing toxic to humans, particularly children or the elderly, as well as toxic into the environment. If essentially cannot find a cannbis docotr in person then may get try working with a video conference with a Cannabis doctor of medicine. Video meetings with doctors can be a common practice for those who are disabled to the particular where they can't leave their homes. There is often a hefty fee having these services so watch out. Many times, yeast infections can be caused by food kept in the lower bowels. This environment is merely begging to obtain a yeast infection to get bigger. To get rid of that scenario, desire to to carry on more fiber. Remain eating more green leafy vegetables like spinach, kale, and salads. Also, try eating oatmeal or supplement with shakes with flaxseed or Tranquil Fuse CBD Oil Tranquil Fuse CBD Oil Reviews Benefits added while in. Generally speaking, if you smoke or use any tobacco any kind of form, insurers consider that you a tobacco pc user. This can double your run you. No kidding. If you smoke cigars, pipes, use a nicotine patch, nicotine gum or every other such thing, let your agent know. There are some insurers who'll consider you "non-tobacco" your sincerity do not use cigarettes and which may save you thousands of dollars on the life of the policy. Melt the soap in a double boiler maybe in a microwave. Using a microwave will be faster,but the double boiler gives you more associated with the temperature range. If you are doing larger quantities the double boiler may well be more convenient. The soap capabilities a melting reason for 60 C, overheating it will result all of the soap losing its clarity and this gets hot enough will smell bad. With the legal actions already started, Hartwell and her well wishers, followers and devoted staff work tirelessly figure out to it that the all signatures are gathered and every voice gets validated on her behalf journey to Recall Def.A. Dumanis, who if not stopped will furthermore make sure her reign lives on through groomed future Deb.A.'s and sheriffs, then she uses trip towards Mayor because more important offices.

[daisyachain]

hold up i’m having a coherent thought.

the development of technology and sharing networks over the 2000s-2010s has allowed media markets to spread across a spectrum from amateur-for-free and professional-commercial rather than sitting on a few discrete points.

in ye olde days you had options including:

independent work done for free but distributed through paid mail networks to cover the cost of distribution. limited to print forms due to the cost of other types of production (e.g. zines)

independent or collaborative work done without official pay but financed through some under-the-counter scheme or other, distributed physically in-person or by mail (e.g. bootleg films)

semi-independent or collaborative corporate work done with no up-front pay and sold legally to a firm to distribute (e.g. scripts or treatments, novels. limited to print forms due to the cost of other types of production)

collaborative corporate work financed by a firm or sponsor (e.g. most audio and video productions)

most of the non-financed options required a lot of time, money, and effort to distribute beyond a very narrow audience. Without access to radio/television/newspaper ad space ($$$), the best you could do was tape a poster up to a lamppost asking if anyone wanted to look at your unedited novella

in these new days, you have options including

independent or collaborative work done and distributed for free with no expectation or method of payment (e.g. anything posted to a no-advertising site like a*o3)

independent or collaborative work done and distributed for free with no expectation for payment, but with a method and hope for payment (e.g. anything posted with a link to ko-fi)

independent or collaborative work done and distributed for free with expectation/incentives for payment (e.g. anything with additional patreon content)

collaborative corporate work done and distributed for free with expectation/incentives for payment (e.g. anything with additional patreon content)

collaborative corporate work financed by a firm/sponsor distributed commercially for free with expectation/incentives for payment (e.g. some things with patreon or other ‘paid’ add-ons available)

independent or collaborative work sold commercially (e.g. some indie games)

collaborative corporate work financed by a firm or sponsor and sold commercially (e.g. most mainstream media)

pretty much all work is distributed via a combination of hosting and social media websites on the internet. the majority of distribution through conventional streams (DVDs, CDs, print books) is work financed by a firm with some capital and sold to make money.

the variety of working models and distribution channels opened up by the internet is vast. there is still somewhat of a divide between what i’m going to call internet native content and mainstream content. internet native content is largely independent, produced by digital natives (mostly under-40 or under-30), and financially untenable without the internet. mainstream content is largely corporate/commercial, produced by established firms whose employees may or may not be tapped into digital culture.

sometimes these areas overlap where firms hire/commission creators known for their independent work. mainstream firms are increasingly tilting their distribution towards the digital, muddying the water further. for the purposes of this irrelevant, nonsensical, and overlong post, anything produced commercially by a firm with capital is mainstream content, and anything produced independently by individuals or a small organization is internet native content.

there’s a sizeable and vocal chunk of the internet dedicated to media consumption and criticism, especially as relates to how fictional stories replicate and perpetuate real-life biases and oppression. given how serious and unavoidable the issue is in real life, it only makes sense that people want to be able to escape into content (fiction AND non-fiction) that eliminate, counteract, or criticize those forms of oppression.

given the ease of sharing information around on social media, there are some concepts/ideas/thoughts that act as baseline ‘rules’ for keeping your work clean. obviously there are a load of assholes who ignore these and take any explanation in bad faith, but these ‘rules’ are still extremely accessible by anyone plugged into internet culture (as boomer a phrase as that is). if you ask a 15-year-old on tumblr they can tell you to a) research the culture of any character who doesn’t share your background before writing, b) split screentime and focus evenly between men and women, c) look into the background and assumptions behind your tropes to see how they fit into historical structures of oppression.

this means that there’s an expectation among people i’ll call digital natives (who can access this endless stream of grassroots critical theory) that anyone older or less familiar with technology and fan culture won’t have access to this information. never mind that critical race theory, the concept of ‘fridging’, and trans people have existed for decades at least.

because of this, mainstream content is judged to be written, produced, edited, and executed by a group of people whose idea of revolutionary tv is a woman talking and a black character living past the first season. on the other hand, internet native content is made by people who know all the latest discourse and discussion. mainstream media gets a passing grade if it even expresses awareness that there exist people other than whites; internet native media is expected to follow the various rules.

this makes some sense. it’s a reasonable assumption that mainstream creators don’t and can’t know the rules, while internet native creators automatically do. the chance that a 56-year-old man who got his position at ABC because his father’s brother-in-law went to college with a guy who was an exec even thinks about social justice is marginally higher than zero.

however. all that is to say that these expectations don’t reflect the financial situation of mainstream vs digital native productions. mainstream content generally has enough financing to pull together a team of professionals paid up-front at market rate to create content. internet native content is generally made by a team of amateur friends and/or acquaintances for free or for well below minimum wage. a lot of fans expect a deeper level of rigour and research from people working on one ham sandwich per week than from the glitziest hbo production. even better, said fans will personally call out a minor slight from a solo endeavour and demand a retraction while at the same time they put up a mild and indirect complaint about some shit a film pulled.

that’s not to say that lack of resources are an excuse for writing total bullshit. what that is to say is that fan expectations don’t necessarily reflect project constraints. it’s going to hurt when your favourite webcomic or youtube series gets rid of the only woman in its cast, and it’s a tropey move that should be criticized as tired or misogynist storytelling. it’s also par for the course on the field of storytelling. there are ten thousand novels, a hundred comic issues, and ten network tv shows that are doing the exact same thing as we speak. if you’re going to take sloppy research from star wars fanfic as a personal offence, you may as well direct your energy into publically criticizing lucasfilm for the extreme racism their production crew show time and again. it’s frustrating to see the same people ripping apart indie content that is tasteless at worst and saying nothing about more real and more destructive stuff in mainstream content

[tark-msi]

Is Marketing Inherently Manipulative?

A business organization functions in a fairly dynamic, complex and unpredictable Environment where the needs, tastes and preferences of the customer vary frequently owing to the nature of industry in which the organization operates. Indubitably, marketing of its goods and services is the quintessential part of the organizational activity so that it is able to sell more and encounter greater profits. A business may adopt different techniques of marketing to align customer interest with Business interest in order to maximize revenues. It should be kept in mind that these techniques used by businesses should be under the scope of legal compliance and must not invite any litigation from 3rd parties. However, at times it might be just subjective in nature since consumers react differently to same promotional activities. Marketing Ethics: Persuasion vs. Manipulation

The Germane question revolves around distinction between persuasion and manipulation.  The following factors assist you in making a relevant distinction between the two- Intention  Intention is a prima-facie in the judgement of the situation or a person.  If a marketer attempts to engage in a practice that is not in the best interest of another, they are deemed to engage in manipulation.   Withholding Truth Manipulation involves distorting or withholding of truth. Often, this is seen through exaggerating the usage of a product/service. Nowadays retailers, wholesalers, agents etc on a daily basis manipulate the public through overstating the utility of a product/service. Anything other than honest representation is blatant manipulation. Coercion Coercion is the expulsion of free choice. It engenders the ultimatum – do it or else.  In contrast, persuasion involves influence, but never force.  As communication scholar Dr. Richard Perloff writes, “a defining characteristic of persuasion is free choice”. The individual must at all times have the option to accept or reject a proposal. Therefore, an invitation that one is unable to say no to is bound to be persuasive in nature, but is deemed coercive and hence manipulative

The manipulative advertising inside the spectrum of the persuasive advertising – The persuasive advertising turns into a manipulative one depending upon the range of persuasion in advertising. It varies from most rational (factual information) to least (Force).                                                

It is clear from the above table that Manipulation begins from deceitful Advertising which uses untrue, non-material, misleading statements while promoting a product/service and hence is also labelled as false Advertising. Next on the list are fallacious arguments or bad arguments and last of all is Emotive persuasion which plays with consumer’s temperament promising astonishing result. Examples would include Advertising of Diet pills, exercise equipments, traditionally made products, Green Products etc

Breaking down the situation: -

One of the key job aspects of a marketer is to persuade people to buy the product/service of a particular brand. Often, this persuasion becomes manipulation. All real world scenarios can roughly be categorized into the following situations-

Bridging the gap – Here the marketer just bridges the gap between buyer and seller. Example– X is looking to buy a television and Y is looking to sell one. So, the marketer just bridges the gap between X & Y

Making Product Choice for the consumer – Here the marketer makes the choice for the consumer by persuading him with product features and benefits. Example- X is confused whether he should buy a Sony or LG TV. And the marketer persuades him to buy a Sony one explaining its features, product life cycle etc

Making Seller Choice for the consumer – Here the marketer persuades the consumer to buy from a specified seller by disclosing all material facts. Example – X can buy TV from Y or Z. Y sells first copy & thus cheaper products while Z sells original but costlier products. If marketer discloses these facts, and is still able to persuade X to buy from Y, he would be considered an efficient marketer.

Unknown wants – Here the consumer doesn’t know what he wants. And the marketer introduces the product to the market and generates demand for it. Ex- X has no idea what to buy. Marketer introduces a new Sony television to X and persuade him to finally buy it.

This is the heart of modern consumerism and essence of modern marketing i.e. pushing consumers for products that didn’t know existed. The classic example of this would be I phone launched by Apple Inc.

Changing Decisions- Here the consumer wants to buy something else but marketer either makes him believe that some other product would suit him well or aggressively pushes them to make impulsive purchase. Ex- X wants to buy a LG TV. Marketer familiarises him with Sony TV and he buys it. But if Marketer exaggerates features of Sony TV over LG when there is no real difference between the two, it would be considered unfair.

In the above five scenarios, the job of marketer ranges drastically from just bridging the gap to         completely wiping out the minds of consumers which enumerates the fact that marketing ethics spirals fast from simple to complex and the intent of the marketer is the key factor in examining the situation. There is a very thin line between Persuading and Manipulation which depends on a lot of subjective factors not only from marketer point of view but also the impact the marketing has on buyers.

A pragmatic Approach against Manipulative Marketing –

Consciousness in consumption asks for conscious advertising. Consciousness in consumption and business are indispensable parts of a manipulative-free marketing. The conscious consumer has a complex mix of responsible behaviours in terms of macro-economic concerns. The conscious consumption, ethical in nature, leads to consumerism activism practiced through positive buying. The consciousness authorizes the business to adapt to its environment promoting its interest and goals in a fair and non-manipulative way. Customer is the king-pin of business and affects it directly. The company has to well know in advance and understand the conscious consumers, if it wants to succeed in making conscious advertising. The better they comprehend the intentions, the methods and the messages of deceptive and misleading advertising, the consumers easier can distinguish between truth and fallacies or lies. When the companies make uncorroborated claims, they risk breeding cynicism and distrust. The dynamics of the realities about the conscious consumers should have a staunch impact on the commercial advertising. The companies have to learn the lessons emerging from the values of conscious consumers and their evolution in the future and create advertising messages accordingly. More ethical behaviour, more proactive self-regulation, better marketing cooperation are few key determinants in regard to it. Harmonising of operations or marketing cooperation between the companies and the consumers. An enhanced cooperation in advertising between the two subjects becomes possible when the company, the marketer includes the consumers in its marketing solutions. The consumers should become partners of the marketers, in order to contribute to the creation of value for them and to make a non-manipulative persuasive advertising.Management practice for marketers: Changing perceptionsTraditional Marketing only focused on directing the flow of goods/services from producers to consumers i.e. product oriented approach unlike modern marketing which focuses on value creation for its customers i.e. customer oriented approach.To break the prevalent stigma that businesses are deceitful, marketing should seek to be a social influence, specifically the kind that does not use deception or abuse to achieve its aims. Given increasing awareness of marketing tricks among consumers, marketers need to approach customers with sustainability in mind. Marketers should strive to create sustained value, owing to long term and short term implications on the product/service and ultimately on their brand. This enunciates the deep study of consumer behaviour, the creation of experiences not just products and services, developing healthy customer- relationships and being considerate of the impact of all practices on society more broadly. Only then, will we be able to counter the perception that marketing is manipulative. Conclusion -This finally answers the question tagging all along – Marketing is not inherently manipulative. Efficient Marketing involves all that is required to persuade the consumer to buy a specified good/service without using any form of manipulation or force. There is a fine line between persuasion and manipulation upon which the whole thing rests, which pertains to the morality of marketer. Therefore assuming a fair share of the marketers of this blue planet are not ignoble, marketing is adding to sustainability paradigm, value creation, positive social influencing, customer relationship  and everything that is related to it  but manipulation! Everything comes with its own merit and demerits. If you breed an orchard of apples, some are bound to go bad. It might so happen that more than half goes bad. But that shouldn’t deter you to stop eating apples altogether, rather this should empower within you the spark of breeding more good apples than bad.  In a similar fashion, manipulation in marketing is a defect that needs to be rectified by punishing the gluttonous corporate who is willing to go at any lengths to soar up their profits. Breaking the stereotype that ‘Marketing is Manipulative’ is the need of the hour by being conscious consumers practicing conscious consumption. The only question we need to honestly answer is ‘Do we care enough to do it?’ - Ankur Tulsyan

[econ303-blog1]

Breaking Down Consumer Preferences

Consumer preferences are subjective tastes, dictated by levels of satisfaction obtained from among bundles of goods. These levels of satisfaction are often measured in terms of utility. A rational individual is assumed to exhibit monotonicity in preferences ie., they will always prefer bundles consisting more goods or at least, more of one good and no less of the other since more is always preferred to less. An individual will choose basket A if it gives him more satisfaction than basket B.

The driving force behind having to make choices – work vs leisure, cooking at home vs eating at a restaurant, public vs private transportation, buying vs renting an apartment or in the case of businesses – what to produce, how to produce, for whom to produce is – scarcity of resources in the face of unlimited wants. This, of course, involves opportunity costs i.e., forgoing the benefits of the next best alternative. Therefore, the opportunity cost of a consumption bundle also plays a crucial role in determining consumer choices.

Fast food is cheaper and less healthy than organic food. Somebody who is health-conscious and able to spend more on organic food will most probably opt for organic food but somebody who cannot afford organic produce or does not prioritize his health might opt for fast food. When an individual chooses organic food, his opportunity cost involves health risks and hospital bills and in the second instance when the individual chooses fast food, his opportunity cost is a healthier lifestyle and added expenses.

Consumer preference theory makes three primary assumptions with regards to consumption bundles – 

Completeness assumes that the consumer is perfectly capable of making a decision and understand its consequences.

Reflexivity assumes that any bundle is at least as good as itself.

Transitivity assumes consistency in consumer preferences. For instance, if one prefers bundle A to B and B to C, it is implied that A is preferred to C.

Utility can be measured using two approaches – either cardinal or ordinal (assuming that satisfaction can be measured). The cardinal approach seeks to quantify utility obtained from different consumption bundles allowing for easy comparison. For example, an individual obtains 7 utils from consuming a chocolate, 3 from an apple and so on.

On the other hand, the ordinal approach is a relative measure whereby consumption bundles are ranked according to tastes and preferences. Regardless of the approach, the law of Diminishing Marginal Utility is always at play (as long as normal goods are concerned). It states that with everything else held constant, utility obtained from a particular good or bundle diminishes as consumption increases of the same increases.

These preferences are mapped out in the form of indifference curves. An indifference curve represents all the bundles that avail the same level of satisfaction to the consumer, thus making them indifferent. Bundles that lie below the curve avail lower levels of satisfaction and the ones above it avail higher levels of satisfaction but are subject to budget constraints and hence, non-optimal.

For example, an individual seeking to rent an apartment must allocate some of their income to do so. If set too low, they under-utilize their resources and if set too high, they leave little to meet other expenses. A suitable apartment would be one that not only fits the budget but also gives them satisfaction through several factors such as a good neighborhood, amenities, proximity to work and so on, thereby maximizing their utility.

Therefore, in order to arrive at the optimal consumption bundle, we need to merge budget lines with indifference curves to map out the best choice – the one that checks both affordability and satisfaction.

In the real world however, it is not so simple. It is hard to overlook the fact that the assumption of rationality oversimplifies consumer decisions but it is equally hard to do without it. As behavioral economics rightly points out, people are not a hundred percent rational; they are heavily influenced by cognitive limitations and societal conditioning leading them to produce less than optimal results and making it trickier to predict consumer behavior. Despite the obvious disadvantages, one cannot deny that consumer choice theory forms the basis for economics and is key in driving everything from business decisions to government policies.

[doctorsense7-blog]

What Does CBD Feel Like?

Cannabis is no longer limited to tapestry-laden basements or shag-carpeted VW buses. It's quickly becoming a respectable industry with scientists recognizing verifiable health benefits of this unique chemical compound known as CBD.

With so much hype sweeping across North America, you may well be wondering, “Well, so how exactly does CBD make you feel?” We realize why you may be cautious about a compound based on the cannabis plant. All things considered, we're not all teenagers anymore. Some people might not wish to feel high.

Fortunately, cannabidiol (CBD) is really a compound in hemp and marijuana plants that, on its own, does not make you are feeling high. Instead, CBD is just a non-intoxicating cannabis compound that offers anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving and anti-anxiety effects, in addition to other beneficial properties.

If you're interested but wary of trying CBD oil, let's replace your fears with details about how CBD feels. This way you may make a well-informed decision.

Does CBD Oil Make You Feel High? Let's make this superior: hemp-derived CBD oil will not make you are feeling high or produce an intoxicating effect. Actually, it's among over 100 non-psychoactive (or non-intoxicating) chemical compounds found in cannabis. Instead to getting you stoned, CBD feels relaxing and calming without producing any mind-altering effects.

You might be surprised to find out that the human body produces cannabinoids on its own. The human body has an endocannabinoid system in charge of creating and receiving cannabinoids. This system uses two receptors: the CB1 and CB2 receptors.

The psychoactive ingredient in cannabis is tetrahydrocannabinol, more commonly called THC. This intoxicating compound alters normal brain communication by affecting neurotransmitters directly. This influence affects the pleasure, memory, concentration, movement, sensory and time perception centers of the brain by attaching to the CB1 receptor.

Cannabidiol, or CBD, on the other hand, doesn't act in your receptors in the same way. Evidence indicates that CBD does not attach directly to these receptors at all. Instead, it works through the endocannabinoid system indirectly to relax the body and reduce pain and inflammation.

To put it differently, CBD doesn't affect the mind just how THC does. It does not make you feel high, disoriented or forgetful.

Benefits of CBD Oil

CBD oil has many benefits, minus the negative side effects of the THC high.

CBD is useful for:

treatment reducing anxiety and depression relieving nausea and vomiting fighting acne reducing spasticity in people who have multiple sclerosis treating epilepsy lowering blood pressure reducing inflammation If you have problems with a number of of these diagnoses, talk to your doctor to see if CBD oil is right for you.

How Does CBD Make You Feel? It Depends on the Product Type Ultimately, just how CBD can make you feel depends upon the type of extraction you choose. You can even obtain CBD with minimal THC, other cannabis compounds, or completely isolated from other cannabinoids. CBD oils

Each kind of CBD has pros and cons. We'll go over your choices below.

Hemp-Derived vs. Marijuana-Derived CBD The 2 classifications for the plant that creates CBD are hemp and marijuana.

Hemp

Hemp is normally grown industrially for its fiber. It's a hardy plant that can be used to make rope, paper and even clothing. Hemp contains CBD, but U.S. law requires so it contains no more than 0.3% THC. Hemp-derived CBD is legal in all 50 states. Remember that products branded as “hemp oil” are not the same as CBD oil, and typically don't contain any CBD at all.

Marijuana

Marijuana, on the other hand, is grown primarily for the intoxicating ingredient, THC. Though some strains contain CBD, they normally have a higher THC content as well. Therefore, unlike hemp-derived CBD oil products, marijuana-derived CBD oil products could make you feel intoxicated.

Marijuana-derived CBD oil remains illegal at the federal level. In many states with medical or recreational cannabis legalization, you can legally purchase CBD with an increase of than 0.3% THC if you have a medical marijuana card or you're 21+, respectively.

The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) posseses an excellent map of state laws regarding the legalization of marijuana.

Full Spectrum vs. Broad Spectrum Both full spectrum and broad spectrum CBD are produced from the hemp plant. The main difference between both of these forms of CBD could be the THC content.

Full Spectrum

Full spectrum CBD contains a range of cannabinoids, terpenes and, legally speaking, may have as much as 0.3% THC. Broad spectrum starts as a full spectrum extract, but undergoes a supplementary process to remove the intoxicating compound.

So why would you would like that negligible number of THC? After all, 0.3% is inadequate to get you high.

Experts now believe that CBD is most effective when combined with hemp's other natural compounds: terpenes, flavonoids and other compounds. A 2005 study revealed that patients experienced more rest from pain and anxiety from full spectrum CBD than isolated CBD.

Called the “entourage effect,” it is believed that the full spectral range of cannabinoids found in the hemp plant encourage the required results a lot better than CBD alone.

Sarah Polansky, founder and developer of the CBD oil brand Prismatic Plants, takes a strong stance and only full spectrum CBD oil.

“Always, always, always [choose] full spectrum extracts when buying health-positive CBD product,” she advised. “Beyond just cannabinoids, full spectrum means that the a huge selection of other beneficial compounds in cannabis like terpenes and phenolics haven't been removed.”

Broad Spectrum

However, some people don't want any THC inside their CBD oil at all. That's where broad spectrum CBD comes in.

Broad spectrum CBD contains terpenes, flavonoids, and other non-intoxicating compounds from the cannabis plant. With broad spectrum CBD, you are able to go through the entourage effect without the danger of consuming THC.

CBD Isolate CBD isolate starts as a CBD oil and is refined right into a fine, white powder. Other the terpenes, flavonoids and other cannabinoids are removed.

CBD isolate is decreasing in popularity as the advantages of the entourage effect are further supported with scientific evidence. It's still employed by people who would like to be certain they're getting nothing but CBD.

Forms of CBD No matter which type of CBD you select, there is a product to match your needs.

Oil

The most typical form, of course, is CBD oil or tincture. CBD oil is available in an amber or blue glass bottle with a dropper. Take anywhere from a couple of drops to a dropperful and place the oil under your tongue. Leave it there for 30 to 90 seconds. You should feel its effects within minutes.

Topical

CBD may also be used topically. You will find CBD-infused lotions, creams and soaps.

Beverages

You can even find CBD-infused beverages. However, adding CBD to a drink is much less simple as placing CBD oil in water. It must undergo a special infusing process to become effective. Ensure your CBD beverage is from a business that has perfected the art.

What Are the Negative Side Effects of CBD? Much like any supplement, CBD is not without its side effects. According to the Mayo Clinic, some users may experience:

dry mouth diarrhea reduced appetite drowsiness and fatigue In regard to drowsiness and fatigue, Polansky noted that “CBD is not just a sedative, however it does create a sense of relaxation by counteracting the quantity of stress-hormones our anatomies produce (like cortisol), which gives us that feeling of go-go-go — also called the fight-or-flight response.”

She added that, as time passes, our anatomies adjust to this feeling. Rather than feeling fatigued, you could experience a sense of balance.

CBD can also talk with other medications you're taking, such as for example blood thinners, calcium channel blockers, steroids, antihistamines, benzodiazepines, antiarrhythmics, antibiotics, antidepressants, anti-epileptics, beta blockers, NSAIDs and more.

CBD is processed by the same enzymes in the liver as the drugs listed above. For exactly the same reason, excessive consumption of alcohol must certanly be avoided when utilizing CBD.

If you're taking medication, consult along with your doctor before trying CBD.

Impurities and Dosage Irregularities in CBD Products Another cause for concern may be the unreliability of the purity and dosage of CBD in products. A recently available study of 84 CBD products bought online revealed that greater than a quarter of the products contained less CBD than labeled. Additionally, THC was within 18 products.

Some CBD producers go above and beyond to prove their purity by testing every batch. You'll find data concerning the percentage of CBD, THC and other cannabis-derived compounds on the websites. Always make sure you fully research your producer.

Is CBD Safe? Yes. While more research is needed to understand the entire aftereffects of CBD, it's widely regarded as safe to consume. Polansky advocates for the safety of CBD.

“We've yet to have years of conclusive human studies to point out to be able to answer this question with absolute certainty, but the prominent studies done to date really show no negative unwanted effects for CBD (especially full spectrum CBD),” she argued.

Compared to THC, and even many over-the-counter medicines, CBD has far fewer side effects. While each individual's needs are unique, CBD is an incredibly safe option.

Feel Good With CBD CBD relaxes your system by reducing cortisol levels, pain and inflammation, all without making you are feeling high.

If you're new to CBD, Polansky recommended beginning with a low dose of 5 drops of 10 mg/ml CBD oil. Place the drops under your tongue for 1 minute, then wait 30 minutes to see the manner in which you feel. Repeat as needed.

This regimen enables you to gradually build as much as 30 drops (1 ml), which is a common dose.

[badgeshovel1-blog]

What Does CBD Feel Like?

Cannabis is no further restricted to tapestry-laden basements or shag-carpeted VW buses. It's quickly being a respectable industry with scientists recognizing verifiable health advantages of this excellent chemical compound known as CBD.

With so much hype sweeping across North America, maybe you are wondering, “Well, how does CBD make you feel?” We understand why you might be cautious in regards to a compound derived from the cannabis plant. After all, we're not totally all teenagers anymore. Some of us mightn't want to feel high.

Fortunately, cannabidiol (CBD) is really a compound in hemp and marijuana plants that, alone, does not make you're feeling high. Instead, CBD is a non-intoxicating cannabis compound that provides anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving and anti-anxiety effects, along with other beneficial properties.

If you're interested but wary of trying CBD oil, let's replace your fears with factual statements about how CBD feels. Like that you possibly can make a well-informed decision.

Does CBD Oil Make You Feel High? Let's get this to crystal clear: hemp-derived CBD oil will not make you're feeling high or produce an intoxicating effect. In reality, it's certainly one of over 100 non-psychoactive (or non-intoxicating) chemical compounds within cannabis. Instead to getting you stoned, CBD feels relaxing and calming without producing any mind-altering effects.

You may well be surprised to learn that your system produces cannabinoids on its own. The human body has an endocannabinoid system accountable for creating and receiving cannabinoids. This method uses two receptors: the CB1 and CB2 receptors.

The psychoactive ingredient in cannabis is tetrahydrocannabinol, more commonly called THC. This intoxicating compound alters normal brain communication by affecting neurotransmitters directly. etc This influence affects the pleasure, memory, concentration, movement, sensory and time perception centers of the mind by attaching to the CB1 receptor.

Cannabidiol, or CBD, on the other hand, does not act on your receptors in exactly the same way. Evidence indicates that CBD does not attach straight to these receptors at all. Instead, it works through the endocannabinoid system indirectly to relax your body and reduce pain and inflammation.

Put simply, CBD doesn't affect the brain the way THC does. It does not make you're feeling high, disoriented or forgetful.

Benefits of CBD Oil

CBD oil has many benefits, without the negative side ramifications of the THC high.

CBD is useful for:

pain relief reducing anxiety and depression relieving nausea and vomiting fighting acne reducing spasticity in people with multiple sclerosis treating epilepsy lowering blood pressure reducing inflammation If you suffer from more than one of the diagnoses, speak to your doctor to see if CBD oil is right for you.

How Does CBD Make You Feel? It Depends on the Product Type Ultimately, the way CBD will make you feel is dependent upon the sort of extraction you choose. You may also obtain CBD with minimal THC, other cannabis compounds, or completely isolated from other cannabinoids.

Each form of CBD has pros and cons. We'll review your options below.

Hemp-Derived vs. Marijuana-Derived CBD The two classifications for the plant that produces CBD are hemp and marijuana.

Hemp

Hemp is normally grown industrially because of its fiber. It's a hardy plant that may be used to make rope, paper and even clothing. Hemp contains CBD, but U.S. law requires so it contains no more than 0.3% THC. Hemp-derived CBD is legal in most 50 states. Remember that products branded as “hemp oil” are different as CBD oil, and typically don't contain any CBD at all.

Marijuana

Marijuana, on another hand, is grown primarily for the intoxicating ingredient, THC. Although some strains contain CBD, they normally have a top THC content as well. Therefore, unlike hemp-derived CBD oil products, marijuana-derived CBD oil products could make you're feeling intoxicated.

Marijuana-derived CBD oil remains illegal at the federal level. In many states with medical or recreational cannabis legalization, you are able to legally purchase CBD with an increase of than 0.3% THC when you yourself have a medical marijuana card or you're 21+, respectively.

The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) has an excellent map of state laws concerning the legalization of marijuana.

Full Spectrum vs. Broad Spectrum Both full spectrum and broad spectrum CBD are produced from the hemp plant. The key difference between these two kinds of CBD may be the THC content.

Full Spectrum

Full spectrum CBD contains a selection of cannabinoids, terpenes and, legally speaking, might have up to 0.3% THC. Broad spectrum starts as the full spectrum extract, but undergoes an additional process to eliminate the intoxicating compound.

So just why would you need that negligible level of THC? In the end, 0.3% is not enough to have you high.

Experts now believe that CBD is best suited when along with hemp's other natural compounds: terpenes, flavonoids and other compounds. A 2005 study revealed that patients experienced more rest from pain and anxiety from full spectrum CBD than isolated CBD.

Called the “entourage effect,” it's thought that the total spectrum of cannabinoids within the hemp plant encourage the required results much better than CBD alone.

Sarah Polansky, founder and developer of the CBD oil brand Prismatic Plants, takes a strong stance in favor of full spectrum CBD oil.

“Always, always, always [choose] full spectrum extracts when looking for a health-positive CBD product,” she advised. “Beyond just cannabinoids, full spectrum means that the hundreds of other beneficial compounds in cannabis like terpenes and phenolics haven't been removed.”

Broad Spectrum

However, some individuals don't want any THC inside their CBD oil at all. That's where broad spectrum CBD comes in.

Broad spectrum CBD contains terpenes, flavonoids, and other non-intoxicating compounds from the cannabis plant. With broad spectrum CBD, you can experience the entourage effect without the chance of consuming THC.

CBD Isolate CBD isolate starts as a CBD oil and is refined in to a fine, white powder. Other the terpenes, flavonoids and other cannabinoids are removed.

CBD isolate is decreasing in popularity as the advantages of the entourage effect are further supported with scientific evidence. It's still utilized by people who want to be sure they're getting nothing but CBD.

Forms of CBD No matter which type of CBD you decide on, there's a product to suit your needs.

Oil

The most typical form, needless to say, is CBD oil or tincture. CBD oil is available in an amber or blue glass bottle with a dropper. Take anywhere from a couple of drops to a dropperful and place the oil under your tongue. Leave it there for 30 to 90 seconds. You should feel its effects within minutes.

Topical

CBD can also be used topically. You can find CBD-infused lotions, creams and soaps.

Beverages

You can also find CBD-infused beverages. However, adding CBD to a drink is never as simple as placing CBD oil in water. It must undergo a special infusing process to become effective. Ensure your CBD beverage is from a business that has perfected the art.

What Are the Negative Side Effects of CBD? Just like any supplement, CBD is not without its side effects. Based on the Mayo Clinic, some users may experience:

dry mouth diarrhea reduced appetite drowsiness and fatigue In regard to drowsiness and fatigue, Polansky noted that “CBD is not really a sedative, however it will produce a sense of relaxation by counteracting the total amount of stress-hormones our anatomies produce (like cortisol), which gives us that feeling of go-go-go — also known as the fight-or-flight response.”

She added that, with time, our anatomies adjust to this feeling. As opposed to feeling fatigued, you could experience an expression of balance.

CBD can also interact with other medications you're taking, such as for example blood thinners, calcium channel blockers, steroids, antihistamines, benzodiazepines, antiarrhythmics, antibiotics, antidepressants, anti-epileptics, beta blockers, NSAIDs and more.

CBD is processed by the exact same enzymes in the liver whilst the drugs listed above. For the exact same reason, excessive consumption of alcohol should be avoided when utilizing CBD.

If you're taking medication, consult with your doctor before trying CBD.

Impurities and Dosage Irregularities in CBD Products Another reason for concern may be the unreliability of the purity and dosage of CBD in products. A recent study of 84 CBD products bought online showed that more than a quarter of the merchandise contained less CBD than labeled. In addition, THC was present in 18 products.

Some CBD producers go above and beyond to prove their purity by testing every batch. You'll find data regarding the percentage of CBD, THC and other cannabis-derived compounds on their websites. Always make sure to fully research your producer.

Is CBD Safe? Yes. While more research is required to understand the total effects of CBD, it's widely regarded as safe to consume. Polansky advocates for the safety of CBD.

“We've yet to own years of conclusive human studies to indicate in order to answer this question with absolute certainty, however the prominent studies done currently really show no negative side effects for CBD (especially full spectrum CBD),” she argued.

In comparison to THC, and even many over-the-counter medicines, CBD has far fewer side effects. While each individual's needs are unique, CBD is an incredibly safe option.

Feel Good With CBD CBD relaxes your body by reducing cortisol levels, pain and inflammation, all without making you're feeling high.

If you're a new comer to CBD, Polansky recommended beginning with a low dose of 5 drops of 10 mg/ml CBD oil. Place the drops under your tongue for 1 minute, then wait 30 minutes to see the way you feel. Repeat as needed.

This regimen enables you to gradually build around 30 drops (1 ml), which is really a common dose.

[script-a-world]

Hey I have a question about creating countries that are made up of islands, but not have seafood as a staple and vegetarianism is the norm among religious adherents and even among common people vegetarianism isn't unheard of. How can that make sense?

Tex: I don’t know how far back you want to look in order to find an island culture that doesn’t eat seafood or any other type of meat, but for the sake of context I’ll be throwing some darts around the map and see what island cultures typically eat.

I’ll start with Pacific Islanders and list a few of the cultures from the Pacific Ocean:

Polynesian region, composed of peoples such as the Samoans, Māori, Tahitians, Native Hawaiians, and Tongans

Micronesian region, composed of peoples such as the Carolinians, Chamorros, Chuukese, and Nauruans

Melanesian region, composed of peoples such as the Papuans, Moluccans, the Austronesian descendants in Vanuatu, and at a stretch the Torres Strait Islanders of Australia

These groups are roughly divided into two ethnolinguistic groups: the Austronesian peoples who speak Oceanic languages, and the Papuan peoples who speak the Papuan languages. For the most part, both groups are from Southeast Asia (the Papuan first wave was from the Malay Archipelago), and their linguistic origins reflect that.

It should be noted that none of these people ultimately originated from these island regions - they all came from part of a continent that was close to the Pacific Ocean. Ye olde ages ago did their ancestors decide to strike out and immigrate to new areas, and their diet adapted accordingly. Religions that ban the eating of things like shellfish and animals are a comparatively recent phenomenon, because it meant abstaining from an easily-accessible food source.

I’m going to momentarily branch off and list some island cultures of the Atlantic Ocean so my examples are a little more balanced:

Northern: Faroe Islands (Danish, sort of), Iceland, Baffin Island (Canada)

Eastern: Azores (Portugal), Canary Islands (Spain), Madeira (Portugal), São Tomé and Príncipe (Gulf of Guinea)

Western: Barbados of the Lesser Antilles, Prince Edward Island (Canada, a traditional island of the Miꞌkmaq), and Cuba (native lands of the Guanahatabey, Taíno, and Ciboney)

Antarctic region: Tierra del Fuego (Chile, native land to the Yaghan),

Many of these islands were close to nearby continents, and often traded with each other for resources, so there is cultural precedent of eating things other than marine life. A couple examples would be the Taíno, and the Kalinago peoples, both of whom originate from South America. The Yaghan “traveled by canoes between islands to collect food: the men hunted sea lions, while the women dove to collect shellfish”, so still ate some form of meat.

For a couple of Atlantic island examples that did not have indigenous people: the sailors who visited Ascension Island hunted the local birds and turtles for food, and those whole lived on Saint Helena imported livestock, fruit trees, and vegetables for the purpose of colonization.

Many, if not all, of these Atlantic islanders also ate meat of some sort, be it livestock from a continent, birds, fish, or shellfish. Historically speaking, meat of any sort was a cheaply-obtained food in terms of net caloric gain compared to net calories spent obtaining said food.

While the over-consumption of anything is bad, and red meats in particular are often touted as lending an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases - which a 2016 meta-analysis noted frequently occurred with a lifestyle risk factor (Citation 1) -  red meat in moderation is fairly healthy (Citation 2, Citation 3). There is evidence that diet affects the activation of different alleles (phys.org), which is indicative of a population’s change toward agriculture (Citation 4), though in particular an overconsumption of carbohydrates can result in metabolic inflammation and obesity (ScienceDaily).

Humans are omnivorous by default, and require 20 amino acids in order to be healthy. The nine that the human body cannot produce must be consumed from an outside source - MedicalNewsToday does an excellent job of breaking this down and informing readers of viable sources of each of these essential amino acids. Unfortunately for those who might have abstained from meat before the invention of supplements, the healthiest diet for them was made with the addition of dairy products (Citation 5, eggs (The Incredible Egg, Citation 6), and fish (Seafood Health Facts 1, Seafood Health Facts 2, Citation 7)

As I don’t know the level of technology your countries, I cannot make the assumption that non-meat amino acids can be created and distributed to your populace in a relatively inexpensive manner. The nutrient density of meat vs non-meat foods is debatable (Citation 8), so I would hesitate to forgo meat entirely in a culture without some reason as to why an otherwise viable source of nutrition cannot be used.

Human nutrition is plainly a complex topic with many sub-specialities, and would take any one of us a very long time to adequately explain even a portion of it, especially in conjunction with anthropological factors such as geographic origin and developed cultural norms. I’ve added some more things to peruse in the Further Reading section below, but please be aware that all of this only starts to scratch the surface of what you’ve asked. If you would like to return with more precise questions, we’d be more than happy to try answering them.

Citations

PDF - Song M, Fung TT, Hu FB, et al. Association of Animal and Plant Protein Intake With All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality. JAMA Intern Med. 2016;176(10):1453–1463. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.4182

PDF - McAfee, Alison J., et al. "Red meat consumption: An overview of the risks and benefits." Meat science 84.1 (2010): 1-13.

PDF - Wyness, Laura. "The role of red meat in the diet: nutrition and health benefits." Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 75.3 (2016): 227-232.

PDF - Ye, Kaixiong, et al. "Dietary adaptation of FADS genes in Europe varied across time and geography." Nature ecology & evolution 1.7 (2017): 0167.

PDF - Rafiq, Saima et al. “Chemical Composition, Nitrogen Fractions and Amino Acids Profile of Milk from Different Animal Species.” Asian-Australasian journal of animal sciences vol. 29,7 (2015): 1022-8. doi:10.5713/ajas.15.0452

PDF - Hoffman, Jay R., and Michael J. Falvo. "Protein–which is best?." Journal of sports science & medicine 3.3 (2004): 118.

PDF - Ralston, Nicholas VC. "Selenium health benefit values as seafood safety criteria." EcoHealth 5.4 (2008): 442-455.

PDF - Bohrer, Benjamin M. "Nutrient density and nutritional value of meat products and non-meat foods high in protein." Trends in food science & technology 65 (2017): 103-112.

Further Reading:

Greater Antilles - Wikipedia

Gulf and sea island of the Atlantic Ocean - Wikipedia

List of Caribbean islands - Wikipedia

Amino acid synthesis - Wikipedia

“Microbial production of amino acids and derived chemicals: synthetic biology approaches to strain development.” - PubMed

Lobster history as prison food - Wikipedia

Religious restrictions on the consumption of pork - Wikipedia

Taeniasis/cysticercosis - World Health Organization

“How Dietary Supplements Work” - How Stuff Works

“Risks and side effects of dietary supplements” - American Cancer Society

PDF - ADVERSE EFFECTS OF NUTRACEUTICALS AND DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS by MJJ Ronis et al.

Dietary Supplements - National Institutes of Health (NIH)

“Evolution of tryptophan and its foremost metabolites’ concentrations in milk and fermented dairy products” by Antonella Bertazzo et al.

PDF - Associations of Maternal Vitamin B12 Concentration in Pregnancy With the Risks of Preterm Birth and Low Birth Weight: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Individual Participant Data by Tormod Rogne et al.

Saphira: A less historical approach would be to analyze why the Vegetarianism is highlighted by Religious pursuit. I would even gamble that the culture was originally focused on seafood, until something changed. Did a new predator enter the seas, making it hard to feed the people? Did they overfish? Who knows.

But something saved them from starvation when the waters rose empty. Things grew on land. Either it was a gift from the Divines that they worship, or a Prophet, or perhaps there’s even a stranger lore more Maoi styled: And so the [Divine] in all their wisdom told [ancient hero] to take the last fish of the sea, and plant it on the highest hill. [Ancient hero] fed their family from the catch, but did not eat the last fish. Hungry and tired, they climbed to the highest peak and planted the fish in the Earth- and the [Divine] blessed his faith and good will. From the fish sprouted the first [main plant food], in such abundance, that [Ancient Hero] ate their fill, and brought down the plenty for the first farmers.Contrived? Yes. Tried and true? You betcha. Consider how the habits and the rituals they serve today serve as tethers, or tangible connections to their heritage, history and culture.

Constablewrites: Writing With Color covered the role of cows in Hinduism here, which might be helpful for framing your thinking. But when religion is negatively impacting the survival of the community, it’s generally more likely that religion sprouts a loophole than that the whole tribe piously starves to death. (See also the Catholic church designating beaver as a fish for purposes of Lent.)

[thelastrose98]

Things I’ve learned so far about ENVS in college

Note: I am a white (questioning/gender non conforming) cafab lesbian with Jewish heritage experiencing ADHD, anxiety and PTSD. I have access to this knowledge because of my parents middle class standing and my ability to attend a college where I can be allowed to explore these topics of conversation.

My experiences are not universal and therefore my viewpoint is not the only one that exists. I encourage you (the reader) to do your own research if you have the time wether that means talking to local groups around you or being able to take a class of you have the financial means.

Do not look over the voices/ testimonials of PoC in favor of what I am telling you.

I am using this as a tool to spark deeper conversation common in white environmentalism and putting it here as a reminder to not take everything at face value- when you are striving to make a more moral consumer choice. I do not know everything and am always learning- some things I’ve heard/ weighing consequences of are the following:

Vegan does not equal completely cruelty free (see: farm workers rights, exploitation of colonized countries for labor and natural reseources)

Vegan is not always sustainable (see: plastics in vegan leather vs natural materials and post consumer waste)

Green washed consumerism is not always better than “wasteful” consumption and is not the same as changing your consumer behavior

“Organically Certified” grown food is not always healthier, remember to check where the certifications are coming from, what are the impacts on both the environment AND the people who produced it!!

Don’t judge someone for not choosing “more ethical” consumer practices- you do not know if it is inaccessible to them due to financial circumstances (We CAN actively try to shift the culture to change towards more wide access to more ethically produced/ healthier/ better quality materials AND the treatment of the people responsible for making them)

Having access to more “fruits and vegetables” does not mean that someone has *access* to prepared nutritious food. Your 24 hours are not the same as everyone else, not everyone can afford to spend the time to make a healthy and nutritious meal from scratch all the time.

Food security also acknowledges the importance of culturally appropriate food to allow for the preservation of cultural communities, particularly communities of color who- due to the effects/actions of environmental rascism are targeted by the creation of “food deserts”.

Access to culturally appropriate food creates community through shared skill/taste/heritage and the ability to connect with others. Erasure of culturally significant foods and their availability is an impact of white colonialism and is a method of breaking down cultural identity.

Principles of Environmental Rascism should be fundamentally be apart of conversations around conservation projects (who do they really serve?), development vs gentrification, discussions of “wilderness” in white environmentalism and conservation efforts, land stewardship and sustainable use of locally accessible natural resources. Don’t be afraid to question why things are a certain way!

What is E.R? Disproportionate displacement of the negative effects of production on communities predominantly made of people of color is slow violence contributing to inter generational effects of rascism imposed by systemic structures built to keep white people in power.

The solution? It’s complicated but at the moment the forefront of Environmental Justice movements are led by PoC particularly I’ve noticed an encouraging growth of women of color their importance in environmental spaces- empowered by community, creating policy that dismantles systemic harms and aims to give communities and individual people of color the power to navigate spaces predimately held to serve the interests of rich white people. Advocating for better education on big complex issues that have more factors than commonly present at face value for people who are not impacted by them. Accept that you as a person will always be learning, you will never know everything, having compassion for your fellow humans and LISTEN. Try not to react defensively when told you are passively contributing to these issues, make an effort to USE YOUR VOICE amongst other people who don’t understand their impacts and STEP BACK for historically disenfranchised groups of people to be given a chance to advocate for themselves (this doesn’t mean that you can’t be an active ally, but realize it’s not your place to take up space in a social justice movement and be wary of becoming complicit in the “white savior” complex).

I wrote this post so other white people might be able to start questioning things we take for granted as “enough” when it comes to social justice in environmental movements and hopefully let some non ENVS/ESCI majors into the discussion happening right now in conversations towards improving/ redefining a better vision of the future of environmentalism.

Please add more- I didn’t get to elaborate on everything as this is a tumblr textpost and I just had the urge to get this down- (thank you hyperfocus)

I am open to criticism as I know that I cannot possibly understand everything and want to learn more so that I can be apart of active social change that provides the foundation and context for my degree (Environmental Science)