Qualitative market research and product development: representations of food and marketing challenges

A new method for analysing social representations from sentences in natural language is presented. The basic nuclei of the social representation of "eating" are extracted from two corpuses, one coming from a large set of definitions from a dictionary, the other from free associations of 2000 French adult subjects. The method shows that "eating", as a mental model, is the connection of "libido", "intake", "foodstuffs", "meal", "filling up" and "living". Further analysis on free associations on "eating well" yields some pragmatic scripts, showing how consumers assemble the basic nuclei into action rules. Results uncover an archaeology of social knowledge, showing some psychological and cultural bases on which lie the contemporary representations of eating. As important marketing issues in the food business today are concerned with the psychological determinants of food behaviour, our method may bring some new tools for market research, and open new data fields to systematic investigation. A paper from an international symposium 'Enjeux actuels du marketing dans l'alimentation et la restauration' held in Montreal, Canada, May 24th to 27th, 1994

" Des compétences à l'activité de travail des cuisiniers dans la restauration collective et la restauration commerciale. Une économie de l'homme et de son produit "

Cette communication esquisse dans leurs grandes lignes les principaux éléments qui concourent à définir l'activité de travail des cuisiniers dans une société de restauration collective et une chaîne de cafétéria. Au terme d'une formation généralement poursuivie jusqu'à l'obtention d'un CAP ou d'un BEP, les cuisiniers sont amenés à exercer leur activité professionnelle soit dans la restauration commerciale dite traditionnelle dominée par l'artisanat, soit dans la restauration commerciale de chaîne qui se décline en restauration rapide, restauration à thème et cafétérias, soit encore dans la restauration collective sous-traitée, ou bien sous l'égide des collectivités publiques. Ces différents segments de marché, entachés d'un prestige variable, sont associés à des configurations du marché du travail spécifiques. Associées a priori à des modes de production industriels décriés par le groupe professionnel, les cafétérias issues d'une restauration populaire de masse qui a émergée dans les années 70, et plus encore les sociétés de restauration collective, sur lesquelles pèse le stigmate d'une restauration sociale parcimonieuse, sont peu estimées par les cuisiniers mais leur offrent des perspectives de " refuge " par des conditions d'emploi relativement plus favorables lorsqu'ils aspirent à une stabilité personnelle ou familiale

The astrometric recognition of the solar Clementine gnomon (1702)

The Clementine gnomon has been built in 1702 to measure the Earth's obliquity variation. For this reason the pinhole was located in the walls of Diocletian's times (305 a. D.) in order to remain stable along the centuries, but its original form and position have been modified. We used an astrometric method to recover the original position of the pinhole: reshaping the pinhole to a circle of 1.5 cm of diameter, the positions of the Northern and Southern limbs have been compared with the ephemerides. A sistematic shift of 4.5 mm Southward of the whole solar image shows that the original pinhole was 4.5 mm North of the actual position, as the images in the Bianchini's book (1703) suggest. The oval shape of the actual pinhole is also wrong. Using a circle the larger solar spots are clearly visible. Some reference stars of the catalogue of Philippe de la Hire (1702), used originally for measuring the ecliptic latitude of the Sun, are written next to the meridian line, but after the last restauration (2000), four of them are wrongly located. Finally the deviation from the true North, of the meridian line's azimuth confirms the value recovered in 1750. This, with the local deviations of a true line, will remain as systematic error, like for all these historical instruments.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures. Proceedings of the Third Galileo - Xu Guangqi meeting, October 11-15, 2011 National Astronomical Observatories - Beijing (China) The Sun, the Stars, the Universe, and General Relativit

THE PROFIT TARGET IN A RESTAURATION UNIT

The hospitality industry represents one of the most dynamic sectors of the contemporary society, with an emphasised role in the process of globalization. Currently, the hospitality industry does not only face the challenges of the economic crisis but the changes in the market, the consumers' behaviour and the technological trends, too. That is why, in this time, it is extremely important to apply the management accounting and the cost calculation in any entity in the hospitality industry in order to cope with the market challenges. The main services are performed through the hospitality industry: the accommodation and the restauration. These services satisfy the vital needs of the tourists, but this industry must meet other needs or requests such as the acknowledgement of the social status, the desire to know other cultures or traditions, to spend free time in a pleasant manner etc. Our intention and goal in the current article is to approach an image of the CVP analysis in the decision making process with an emphasis on the restauration in the hospitality industry. In order to cope with this critical time, the competition and to achieve the profits estimated, the managers in the hospitality industry can apply the CVP analysis, one of the simplest and most useful analytical instruments. The paper will tackle with the problem of the break even point in a restaurant, one of the main indicators of the CVP model and also the possibility of the decision making process orientation.Prag de rentabilitate, Industria ospitalităţii, Restaurant, Profit ţintit

Defensive realism and the Concert of Europe

Why do great powers expand? Offensive realist John Mearsheimer claims that states wage an eternal struggle for power, and that those strong enough to seek regional hegemony nearly always do. Mearsheimer's evidence, however, displays a selection bias. Examining four crises between 1814 and 1840, I show that the balance of power restrained Russia, Prussia and France. Yet all three also exercised self-restraint; Russia, in particular, passed up chances to bid for hegemony in 1815 and to topple Ottoman Turkey in 1829. Defensive realism gives a better account of the Concert of Europe, because it combines structural realism with non-realist theories of state preferences

La restauration patrimoniale de la vieille ville de Québec : le rôle des petits propriétaires

La restauration privée joue un rôle important dans la rénovation du centre-ville de Québec. L'enquête conduite par les auteurs auprès d'un échantillon de petits propriétaires montre que l'arrondissement historique évolue vers une restauration de prestige, tandis que les quartiers qui lui sont adjacents pratiquent une restauration spontanée plus proche des possibilités et des besoins du ménage ordinaire.Historical preservation conducted by individuals is an important point of the urban renewal process in the old city of Québec. Having interviewed a sample of the different actors involved in restoration, the authors show that the historical district is evolving towards a "prestige" type of restauration whereas neighbouring areas are more likely to practice "spontaneous" restoration, doser to the capacities and needs of ordinary people

Female wage profiles: An additive mixed model approach to employment breaks due to childcare

The paper investigates female wage profiles in West-Germany between 1984 and 2008 using data from the German Socio Economic Panel. The empirical study focuses on the short-run wageloss due to childcare and the long-run wage-profile in post-birth employment, respectivly. This is compared with wage profiles from females who are not mothers. As statistical analysis tool Additive Mixed Models are employed and estimated seperatetly for different levels of educational achievements. The models are dynamic in that main covariate effects are allowed to vary smoothly with working experience. The intention of the paper is to demonstrate with state of the art statistical models how wages are affected by labour market experience, employment interruptions and other covariates. The educational level of the mother and the time off the job influence the amount of wageloss and the wage profile afterwards. Labour market experience, as one major determinant of human capital, influences wages heavily and follows a dynamic patter. --Additive Mixed Models,Dynamic Effects,Maternity Leave,Panel Data,Employment Interruption,Wage Profiles,Female Labour Supply