Those left behind: inequality in consumer culture

Economic growth in Northern Ireland has undoubtedly raised the standard of living for many consumers and contributed to a growing culture of consumption. However, this heroic discourse masks the various social problems associated with economic growth, in particular, the deepening of inequality. This article aims to demonstrate the lived experience of poverty against the backdrop of a society that is increasingly dominated by consumption. Findings suggest that limited financial resources and the resulting consumption constraints are a source of stress and dissatisfaction. Such dissatisfaction stems from feelings of exclusion from the 'normal' consumption patterns that these consumers see around them. It is only by highlighting their stories that we can really understand the full consequences of what it means to live in a consumer culture. The importance of social support to counteract marketplace exclusion is also highlighted, reinforcing the need to consider capital in all its forms and not only from an economic perspective

Mobility on Demand in the United States

The growth of shared mobility services and enabling technologies, such as smartphone apps, is contributing to the commodification and aggregation of transportation services. This chapter reviews terms and definitions related to Mobility on Demand (MOD) and Mobility as a Service (MaaS), the mobility marketplace, stakeholders, and enablers. This chapter also reviews the U.S. Department of Transportation’s MOD Sandbox Program, including common opportunities and challenges, partnerships, and case studies for employing on-demand mobility pilots and programs. The chapter concludes with a discussion of vehicle automation and on-demand mobility including pilot projects and the potential transformative impacts of shared automated vehicles on parking, land use, and the built environment

Economics and Religion

This paper provides an overview of the relationship between economics and religion. It first considers the effects of economic incentives in the religious marketplace on consumers’ demand for "religion." It then shows how this demand affects religious institutions and generates a supply of religious goods and services. Other topics include the structure of this religious marketplace and the related "marketplace for ideas" in a religiously pluralistic society. Empirical evidence is summarized for the effects on selected economic behaviors of religious affiliation and intensity of belief or practice.human capital, religion, economics

Internet of robotic things : converging sensing/actuating, hypoconnectivity, artificial intelligence and IoT Platforms

The Internet of Things (IoT) concept is evolving rapidly and influencing newdevelopments in various application domains, such as the Internet of MobileThings (IoMT), Autonomous Internet of Things (A-IoT), Autonomous Systemof Things (ASoT), Internet of Autonomous Things (IoAT), Internetof Things Clouds (IoT-C) and the Internet of Robotic Things (IoRT) etc.that are progressing/advancing by using IoT technology. The IoT influencerepresents new development and deployment challenges in different areassuch as seamless platform integration, context based cognitive network integration,new mobile sensor/actuator network paradigms, things identification(addressing, naming in IoT) and dynamic things discoverability and manyothers. The IoRT represents new convergence challenges and their need to be addressed, in one side the programmability and the communication ofmultiple heterogeneous mobile/autonomous/robotic things for cooperating,their coordination, configuration, exchange of information, security, safetyand protection. Developments in IoT heterogeneous parallel processing/communication and dynamic systems based on parallelism and concurrencyrequire new ideas for integrating the intelligent “devices”, collaborativerobots (COBOTS), into IoT applications. Dynamic maintainability, selfhealing,self-repair of resources, changing resource state, (re-) configurationand context based IoT systems for service implementation and integrationwith IoT network service composition are of paramount importance whennew “cognitive devices” are becoming active participants in IoT applications.This chapter aims to be an overview of the IoRT concept, technologies,architectures and applications and to provide a comprehensive coverage offuture challenges, developments and applications

The Sharing Economy at the Crossroads. A Conflict Between Social Values and Market Mechanisms

In the last few years the phenomenon of the Sharing Economy rapidly gained momentum. The reasons for this success are multiple but the most important is the tendency to faster exchanges and economic relationships both on the real and the financial market. This awareness made it essential to start the study from the crisis of the hyper-capitalism and of the concept of ownership which is being replaced with that of a more fluid sharing. in this way, we will analyze the words, the concepts and the values at the basis of the sharing economy which influence the effects this new way of acting and living has on the economies and on the socialization processes of the countries involved. In this perspective, we will also try to consider if and to what extent the sharing economy can have a positive impact on sustainable development.In the last few years the phenomenon of the Sharing Economy rapidly gained momentum. The reasons for this success are multiple but the most important is the tendency to faster exchanges and economic relationships both on the real and the financial market. This awareness made it essential to start the study from the crisis of the hyper-capitalism and of the concept of ownership which is being replaced with that of a more fluid sharing. in this way, we will analyze the words, the concepts and the values at the basis of the sharing economy which influence the effects this new way of acting and living has on the economies and on the socialization processes of the countries involved. In this perspective, we will also try to consider if and to what extent the sharing economy can have a positive impact on sustainable development

Brandright

Trademark law is guilty of overprotection. This overprotection pits both a company’s in-house attorneys against its own marketing professionals and the company itself against its most loyal customers. The result appears illogical, at best, to consumers witnessing the effects of this clash between a company’s marketing needs and perceived legal requirements

Creating I-Communities for the Modern Business

Zadanie pt. „Digitalizacja i udostępnienie w Cyfrowym Repozytorium Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego kolekcji czasopism naukowych wydawanych przez Uniwersytet Łódzki” nr 885/P-DUN/2014 zostało dofinansowane ze środków MNiSW w ramach działalności upowszechniającej nauk

Sharing economy vs sharing cultures? Designing for social, economic and environmental good

This paper explores the story behind a crowdfunding service as an example of sharing technology. Research in a small neighborhood of London showed how locally-developed initiatives can differ in tone, scale, ambition and practice to those getting attention in the so-called sharing economy. In local accounts, we see an emphasis on organizing together to create shared spaces for collaborative use of resources and joint ownership of projects and places. Whereas, many global business models feature significant elements of renting, leasing and hiring and focus only on resource management, sometimes at the expense of community growth. The service we discuss is based in the area we studied and has a collective model of sharing, but hopes to be part of the new global movement. We use this hybridity to problematize issues of culture, place and scalability in developing sharing resources and addressing sustainability concerns. We relate this to the motivation, rhetoric and design choices of other local sharing enterprises and other global sharing economy initiatives, arguing, in conclusion, that there is no sharing economy, but a variety of new cultures being fostered

(WP 2013-09) Virtual Currency and the Financial System: The Case of Bitcoin

Technological development and the increased use of the internet have led to the proliferation of virtual communities. Some of these communities have created and circulated their own currency for exchanging goods and services. Bitcoin is currently the most popular among these virtual or digital currencies and has been in news recently because of the wild fluctuations in its ‘value’ and also significant venture capital investment in entities associated with it.1 Bitcoin is relevant in several areas of the financial system and is therefore of interest to central banks, consumers and investors. Digital currencies are part of a broader group of virtual currencies that include credit card points, air miles, loyalty points and coupons (Chart 1). With the advent of the Internet, mobile devices and detailed consumer information, companies are increasingly using digital currencies as a marketing tool. As a result, there has been a sharp increase in the use of digital currencies, particularly for app-based coins and tokens, mobile coupons, and personal data exchanged for digital content. As these trends evolve, digital currencies have the potential to become more popular and compete with traditional currencies. This paper aims to provide some clarity in particular on Bitcoin, its role and potential future use in the financial system and the risks associated with this form of digital currency.. It will begin by providing a short introduction to the Bitcoin network as well as describe the benefits of allowing the Bitcoin network to develop and innovate. It will highlight concerns for consumers, policymakers and financial regulators. Next it will analyze the role that Bitcoin could play in the financial system. The paper will conclude by providing recommendations to address policymakers’ concerns while allowing for further innovation within the Bitcoin network. An initial comprehensive overview of this kind is absent from the existing literature. This paper intends to fill that gap in the literature