Simple Life Research Articles

Alternative Hedonism: Its Relation to Tattoo Coverage and Community Type

Alternative hedonism is an unconventional form of consumerism that offers a middle-ground consumption practice between sustainability and hedonism. Based on a review of the literature, we identified three major themes of alternative hedonism: seeking pleasure from consuming differently, civic responsibility, and voluntary simplicity. This study is designed to determine whether tattoo coverage (none, light, or heavy) and community type (urban, suburban, or rural) have main and interaction effects on alternative hedonism practices such as community engagement, green consumption, shopping small, and holistic wellness. We collected data via online survey from 168 lightly tattooed, 213 heavily tattooed, and 185 non-tattooed individuals. We discuss implications of our findings for both scholars and practitioners.

The consumption behaviour of beginner voluntary simplifiers: an exploratory study

Voluntary simplicity is a lifestyle characterised by consumption reduction, sustainability, and a focus on intrinsic values. There is a dearth of studies of this consumption profile, and in particu...

The optics of dispossession: urban precarity as political art

How are conditions of urban dispossession sustained and perpetuated by the way peoples on the margins of the world economy are imagined and brought to public visibility? With a focus on the works of European artists, this article explores the image-making projects whereby ghettos, shanty communities and favelas are represented as iconic lifeworlds of the poor. Competing representations of urban poverty are manufactured for public attention by aesthetic, symbolic and affective means, ranging from a romance of despair or humanitarian compassion to a nostalgic longing for premodern signs of a deprived but simpler life. In contrast to the racialised human form, which is central to iconographies of the North American Black ghetto, the shanty-town inhabitants and city builders of the Global South are typically rendered visually absent: a tropology of people’s disempowerment and dispossession. Although often encoded by a critique of intensifying inequalities, the globalised traffic in urban poverty-art relies on an image-making process that is grounded in a detachment from social life. The representations of urban dispossession tend to produce a repertoire of free-floating emblems and signs that can be variously deployed, assembled, appropriated and discarded. Such visual templates are globally consumed as works of art that can alter urban imaginaries, encourage tourism and local economic development as much as neoliberal subjectification. After analysing a range of such artistic endeavours, this article concludes by focusing attention on how an image-maker’s commitment to humanising optics of urban dispossession can transform non-representational art to become a practice of truth.

The consumption behaviour of beginner voluntary simplifiers: an exploratory study

The consumption behaviour of beginner voluntary simplifiers: an exploratory study

Effects of home-confinement during the Covid-19 outbreak on quality of life enjoyment and satisfaction and lifestyle behaviours

Introduction: Home-confinement during the COVID-19 outbreak may affect lifestyle behaviours. The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of COVID-19 induced home-confinement on lifestyle behaviours and quality of life enjoyment and satisfaction. Materials and methods: Participants health-related quality of life and lifestyle behaviours were assessed using the Health-related Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction-Short Form (HLESQ-SF) questionnaire and the Simple Lifestyle Indicator Questionnaire adapted and modified (SLIQ), respectively. Total raw scores and the % maximum of the HLESQ-SF and lifestyle behaviours, specifically, diet, exercise/activity, alcohol, smoking, and stress, with respect to before and during confinement conditions were calculated. Results: The data showed that rate of overall life satisfaction and contentment, total raw score, % maximum, and exercise/ activity raw score were higher before confinement than during confinement (all, p<0.01). Diet, alcohol, and stress raw scores were higher during confinement than before confinement (all, p<0.05). Conclusion: Home-confinement has a negative effect on physical health, work, social relationships, lifestyle behaviours, and overall quality of life enjoyment and satisfaction.

An Study on Poverty Alleviation by Tourism in the Border Area Between China and Myanmar

At present, China is engaged in the battle of poverty alleviation. The poverty problem in the China-Myanmar border area is an important issue affecting the construction of a moderately prosperous society in China’s Yunnan Province and even the whole country. The border area between China and Myanmar is rich in tourism resources and a large number of ethnic minorities live there. The ethnic minority customs are gorgeous. The border area between China and Myanmar has beautiful scenery and rich tropical customs. The tourism poverty alleviation strategy can be implemented and tourism development projects can be established according to local conditions. The development of border tourism between China and Myanmar can not only attract tourists to appreciate the beautiful tropical and subtropical landscapes and feel the simple lifestyle of ethnic minorities, but also promote the development of local economy. The development of border tourism can also strengthen people-to-people exchanges, enhance the communication between the two countries, and help to carry out international trade and seek economic cooperation.

Lifestyle behaviors and their influence on work-related musculoskeletal discomfort: A web-based survey during coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic

Background: Healthy lifestyle choices have a great impact on individuals' health. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created an unprecedented work from home (WFH) situation. This recent trend has led to computer users in WFH having limited access to health-care options, ergonomic workstations and social participation like a visit to a gym or walking in the park, or any other meaningful engagements which people adopt to improve their health and well-being. Objectives: This study aimed to identify the health and lifestyle behaviors and work-related discomfort reported by employees in WFH situations due to COVID-19 lockdown through a self-reported survey and to study if there is an association between reported discomfort and lifestyle behaviors. Study Design: This was a cross-sectional survey. Methods: A web-based, E-mail, cross-sectional survey was designed having three sections: demographic characteristics; work-related discomfort and its rating on the Visual Analog Scale (VAS); and scoring on the Simple Lifestyle Indicator Questionnaire (SLIQ). Completed questionnaires and the responses from employees in WFH were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results: Demographic data showed that the majority of the respondents were male (n = 190 [78%]). One hundred and ninety-five (80%) respondents reported symptoms of musculoskeletal discomfort. The SLIQ score showed 1 (1%) of the studied population in the healthy category, 70 (29%) in the intermediate healthy category, and 173 (70%) in the unhealthy category. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was calculated for the individual scores in each category with the VAS score. Exercise and VAS score showed a significant negative correlation (ρ = −0.146; P = 0.001; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −0.261 [LL], −0.005 [UL]) while the VAS score with smoking (ρ = 0.362; P = 0.000; 95% CI: 0.227 LL, 0.466 UL) and stress level (ρ = −0.140; P = 0.029; 95% CI: −0.286 LL, −0.003 UL) showed a significant positive correlation. Conclusion: WFH has led to an overall reduction of participation in healthy lifestyle behaviors, with a substantial percentage of people classified in the unhealthy category. Survey also elicits a significant association where higher levels of exercise in people correlated with a lower reported work-related musculoskeletal discomfort. Similarly, smoking and higher stress levels correlated positively with reported musculoskeletal discomfort symptoms. Thus, awareness measures to promote healthy lifestyle behaviors and stress management should be incorporated among computer users working from home settings.

Environmental Distribution of Personal Care Products and Their Effects on Human Health.

Personal care products (PCPs) are generally used for personal hygiene, cleaning, grooming, and beautification. These include hair and skin care products, baby care products, UV blocking creams, facial cleansers, insect repellents, perfumes, fragrances, soap, detergents, shampoos, conditioners, toothpaste, etc., thus exposing humans easily. Personal preferences related to PCPs usage frequency are highly variable and depend on socioeconomic status and lifestyle factors. The increasing availability and diversity of PCPs from the retailer outlets consequently result in higher loading of PCPs into wastewater systems and, therefore, the environment. These compounds persistently and continuously release biologically active and inactive ingredients in the atmosphere, biosphere, geosphere, and demonstrating adverse effects on human, wild, and marine life. Advanced techniques such as granular activated carbon filtration and algae-based system may help biotransformation and remove PCP contaminants from water with improved efficiency. Additionally, harmony among PCPs related regulations of different countries may encourage standard checks to control their manufacturing, sale, and distribution across the borders to ensure consumers’ safety. Furthermore, all intended ingredients, their concentrations, and instructions for frequency of use as per age groups may be clearly labeled on packages of PCPs. In conclusion, the emerging environmental contaminants of PCPs and their association with the growing risks of negative effects on human health and globally on the environment emphasize the chemical-free simple lifestyle.

Will Rogers’ 1920s (1976), An American Family (1973) and The War Room (1993): A Cowboy’s Guide to the Pristine Sunshine and Wars in the Name of Peace

The study compares the responses of an artist, a common man and an American president to the times by analyzing the content of three documentary films: Will Rogers’ 1920s: A Cowboy’s Guide to the Times, An American Family (1973) and The War Room (1993) from the twentieth century. Will Rogers’1920s gives an insight into the simple life of a jongleur and a troubadour, cowboy cum actor, Will Rogers who was famous for topical humor in 1920s and whose life size sculpture occupies space in the American White House to keep an eye on the deeds of the greatest world leaders. An American Family, the world’s first ever reality show, documents real life events of seven members of a common American family and provide a contrast to the perfect Hollywood family portrait in 12 episodes. The War Room focuses on the president Clinton’s political agenda during his 1992 election campaign. The authors reviewed literature on the said documentaries and history of documentary film, American institutions and movements by Jack C. Ellis and Betsy A. McLane, Jeffrey Ruoff, Peter C. Rollins, Peter Ian Crawford, Klin Richard, Chris Hegedus, Shawn J. Parry-Giles and Trevor Parry-Giles. The study finds that Will Rogers learned to share his inherent happiness with the American audience by mollifying and disciplining many of their anxieties in the context of industrialization and the world war in 1920s. An American family is disturbing yet hilarious and presents a real portrait of the American family against 70s “culturally polyglot confluence backdrops” (Ellis and McLane 254). Pat Loud divorces her husband on air and their son Lance Loud becomes the first gay icon of the ‘gay decade,’ as several feminist, gay/lesbian, and civil rights, antiwar, ecology, and environmental protection movements takeover America. An American Family shows the mundane truth of everyday life in its social context. Its controlled realism reflects the filmmaker’s social conscience for audience’s identification and political action. The War Room celebrates the ideology of war during the president Clinton’s election campaign.

Analyzing the Environmental Burden of an Aquaponics System using LCA

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations accepted that soil-less agricultural practices are among economic, scientific, and technological developments in the agriculture sector over the last 200 years. These emerging farming techniques (i.e., hydroponics, aquaponics, and aeroponics) are environment friendly. They can be a good production system in a controlled indoor environment or open-air with few possible alterations. Aquaponics is a combination of two agriculture technologies: recirculation aquaculture and hydroponics, within a close loop. It is less energy-intensive, environment friendly, and less water consumption with a minimum requirement of chemicals or fertilizers. However, other factors govern their agricultural operations, such as climatic conditions, water quality, etc. Above all, it’s important if aquaponics is really resource-efficient and economically viable for small and marginal farmers. To understand the same, an environmental impact assessment of a small solar-powered aquaponics system is carried out using a simple life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. The assessment provided visualization of potential benefits for farmers, which can be achieved with the help of the proposed system. The study also has highlighted if solar-powered systems are useful for agricultural production or grid-based power is more useful. The study’s research outcomes will support the further development of aquaponics systems for small and marginal farmers. One important limitation of aquaponics systems is water choice when encountering Indian agriculture in terms of groundwater and surface water quality. This development will lead to the growth of new agriculture systems for urban food systems.

Mathematics need and utility : An Analysis

To understand the nature and to live a simple life, man himself has created mathematics. it is constantly developing according to the need. It is still progressing. Mathematics has been created in all aspects of life. Today, humans are completely dependent on mathematics, but mathematics is not dependent on the existence of humans. Knowledge of mathematics is inherent in the living beings, it can be easily understood. Mathematics is only the language of knowledge, understanding the wisdom of living beings.

Resenha do livro O REINO: A história de Edir Macedo e uma radiografia da Igreja Universal

De uma vida simples que vivia na remota cidade Rio das Flores no Rio de Janeiro, Edir Macedo ao longo de sua vida conseguiu ter mais de 10 mil templos, no Brasil e em quase cem países, tornando a Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD) num gigante neopentecostal. Chegou a construir uma réplica do Templo de Salomão em São Paulo, Macedo administra sua igreja mostrando autoridade e respeito dos seus séquitos e por várias autoridades políticas e empresariais. A unção do atual presidente Jair Bolsonaro, celebrada pessoalmente por Macedo, demonstra um projeto de poder iniciado há mais de quarenta anos na primeira sede da Universal, no Rio de Janeiro. Gilberto Nascimento conta a história da IURD, de seu fundador e de sua expansão até os fatos ocorridos no final de 2019.

Can we anti‐consume our way to sustainability? Finding answers at the intersection of cultural values

AbstractAnti‐consumption behaviours are frequently seen as an effective way for an individual to mitigate harm done to the natural world and foster sustainability. Despite explicit calls to investigate the drivers of anti‐consumption behaviours, the effect of cultural values on anti‐consumption remains under‐researched. Our research examines the influence of two antecedents, cultural values (individualism and collectivism), and self‐efficacy on anti‐consumption behaviours in an emerging country setting. Our results indicate that cultural values influence anti‐consumption behaviours. Consistent with our expectations, we found that collectivistic values positively influenced anti‐consumption behaviours. This relationship remained valid across anti‐consumption behaviours, such as voluntary simplicity and brand avoidance. Furthermore, beyond our initial expectation, this study demonstrated a positive indirect relationship between individualism and anti‐consumption, which is activated through the self‐efficacy pathway. These findings suggest that approaches for managing anti‐consumption behaviour do not work equally well in all cultures, and that managers may need to fine‐tune their international marketing strategies to ensure their effectiveness.

Between fiction and reality: an investigation into the anticolonial message of the bantu religious practices in “Quicumbi Assanhada” by Arnaldo Santos

The aim of the present article is to investigate the linguistic strategies used by Arnaldo Santos to decolonise the Angolan literature through the spiritual discourse of Bantu derivation in the short story “Quicumbi assanhada”, initially contained in the collection titled Tempos do Munhungo (1968) and then included in Kinaxixe e outras prosas (1982). In the above story, by combining real-life events with elements coming from his imagination as a writer, Arnaldo Santos is able to compose a literary piece that depicts the simple life of the oppressed people from Luanda, hence sustaining an anti-colonial literature that subverts the order imposed by the Portuguese regime, before the birth of the Angolan country.

Effect of Educational Program about Life style behaviors for infertile Couples at infertility outpatient clinic in women’s health Hospitals.

In recent times, the modifiable lifestyle factors have been shown to affect the chance of conception in both infertile and general population. There is strong evidence that weight, smoking, alcohol consumption, caffeine intake, nutritional habits, physical activity, Stress, exposure to animals, pollution and Recreational drugs had an adverse impact on reproductive health. Aim: assess the perception of infertile couples regarding the effect of lifestyle factors on fertility; compare the lifestyle factors between fertile and infertile couples. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional design was used to conduct this study. It was conducted at infertility outpatient clinic women’s health Hospitals, Assiut University, Egypt. Sample: included 117 infertile couples. Structured interview questionnaire was used and included two parts: Socio-demographic data and questions to assess perception of infertile couples regarding lifestyle. Simple Lifestyle Indicator Questionnaire. Results: A highly statistically difference was found between infertile husbands and wives regarding perceived the smoking habits. No significant difference was found among infertile couples regarding drinking alcohol, over or underweight, stress, exposure to animals and environmental pollution, dietary habits, and influence of caffeine, exercises and taking recreational drugs. Conclusion: perceptions of the impact of lifestyle factors on fertility vary by sex, socioeconomic factors and treatment. Lifestyle factors significantly affected couples fertility, as BMI, exercises, nutritional status and stress with a statistical difference between groups. Recommendation: In-services educational program for infertile couples for maintaining lifestyle habits to improve their chance of spontaneous conception.

DIELECTRIC OPTICAL ANTENNA: A NEW CONCEPT FOR MICROWAVE FREQUENCIES

The dielectric optical antenna operating band is used to enhance bandwidth of operation band. The dielectric resonator antenna has high permittivity. The capabilities of antenna depend on made-up materials. Antenna range plays very important role for transmission of radio-signals. The properties of antenna play very important role in any technical or communicational devices. Current communication system requires high level portable communicational devices. Nanoantenna has high level configurable conductor power to help to change specific feature. Optical antenna has great capability to connect one network another network . The specific feature of optical antenna moving around development of our life to give convenient life. Only advanced generation technology has power to change our simple life to advanced technological life. In this research paper we have introduced new technical idea to develop our brain to gain high level efficiency to controlled our system with helps of antenna full usability for human being .The antenna characteristics depends on permittivity , dimension, properties limiting factors, geometrical properties, shape, model, wavelength scale and intensity of antenna aperture wavelength, which incident radiation relates to its design . In this paper we apply maxwell equations for free space propagation, as well as solve its amplitude of phase future plasmonic integrated circuits will be capable to extremely high range data processing at optical domain, the optical frequencies will be controlled by efficient optical emission of plasmonic antenna. In this project the new concept of microwave range arrays is applied to convert plasmonic optical antenna array, with nano-coupled plasmonic wave guide, as a spatial filter to absorb a specific wave length at particular specified incident angle. Nanoantenna transmits optical signals on nanometre scale. Optical nanoantenna are expected to radiate in THZ or GHZ frequency range. Optical DRA antenna has very unique and key application for such types of device based configuration .The optical DRA –antenna has unique spectral ability to optimize as well as design in nanometre scale.

Poems of home: domestic poetry written by Antonio Rubino and Emilia Villoresi

In the preface Della poesia domestica. Pensieri (“On domestic poetry. Thoughts”) (1839) Giulio Carcano outlines a connection between poetry and family life. The author believes that home and intimate relationships are by nature rife with poetry. In Poetry for childhood in the XIX Century (“Poesia per l’infanzia nel sec. XIX”) (2007) Renata Lollo unlocks the educational potential of this vision. The paper, leveraging on this hermeneutical vision, proposes domestic poetry as a the interpretative lense to analyze some works by Antonio Rubino (1880-1964) and Emilia Villoresi (1892-1979). On the Corriere dei Piccoli, between 1909 and 1934 Rubino published several components based on the daily life for a child at the time. The artist, capable of adopting a multimedial approach in his dialogue with childhood, always considered poetry as the optimal way to narrate and to educate to beauty. By describing in verses daily life and domestic chilhood life he unlocks all its depth and richness. Likewise in 1937 Emilia Villoresi published Picci, non far capricci, a collection of poems dedicated to her niece that narrate the life of a three year old child. The poems describe simple and funny life episodes and, through rime, they are conveyed to children through images they are familiar with, using a clear but fascinating language. For both authors poetry is a primary choice used to describe childhood and to addreess childhood, full of educational meanings. By dealing with apparently trivial issues (linked to domestic and everyday life), poetry makes literature available to the youngest and educates them to the values that are pillars of family life.

The Environmental Impact of Consumption Lifestyles: Ethically Minded Consumption vs. Tightwads

This study investigates the environmental impact of anti-consumption lifestyles and compares it to environmental concern and ethically minded consumption. Environmental impact was measured in a sample of 357 individuals with a carbon footprint calculator capturing all greenhouse gases released by an individual’s activities. Three types of anti-consumption lifestyles were considered: frugality, voluntary simplicity, and tightwadism. Results suggest that tightwadism is negatively associated with environmental impact. This negative association is stronger when participants are knowledgeable about the emissions impact of their behaviors. These findings suggest that tightwadism can lead to positive outcomes to achieve sustainability. Surprisingly, frugality and voluntary simplicity, as well as environmental concern, are not significantly associated with environmental impact, whereas ethically minded consumption correlates positively with the latter. This study demonstrates that increasing consumers’ environmental and ethical concerns alone might not be an effective way to lead them towards a more sustainable lifestyle. Such findings have important implications for sustainability and public policy makers.

Selling organic candy: multimodal critical discourse analysis of commercial websites

PurposeThis paper examines how organic candies are marketed as healthy and ethical choices on commercial websites through the use of visual, rhetorical and promotional strategies.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses social semiotics and multimodal critical discourse analysis to identify the narratives and discursive traits that organic candy manufacturers reproduce on their websites as part of their ethical branding policy. The dataset is formed by 10 websites that commercialize organic confectionery.FindingsThe findings indicate that sellers try to associate organic candy to healthiness, simple and traditional lifestyles and social awareness to distinguish themselves from their competitors. Often the ethical claims that organic candy websites reproduce are not justified.Research limitations/implicationsA major limitation of this study is that the investigation does not evaluate the effectiveness of rhetorical and discursive strategies on real consumer decisions. Further research of an ethnographic or empirical nature would be required for this purpose.Practical implicationsThis study recognizes the strategies that organic candy sellers reproduce can help consumers make more informed choices. From the point of view of marketers, understanding the multimodal, rhetorical and discursive strategies that organic candy brands employ can be useful to devise their own marketing approaches.Originality/valueThe investigation contributes to a growing body of research about multimodal critical discourse analysis within food marketing studies. To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first paper that analyses organic candy branding from a multimodal perspective.

«Feliz como un perro»: la recepción de Diógenes el cínico en la poesía de Jorge Guillén

En este trabajo analizamos una manifestación de la recepción clásica en la obra poética de Jorge Guillén (1893-1984): su poema “Diógenes”, incluido en el libro Final (1981). En este poema Guillén presenta una evocación completa del filósofo cínico, abarcando los siguientes apartados: 1) Figura de Diógenes (vv. 1-5, 38-39); 2) Ideario y actitudes (6-30); y 3) Muerte del filósofo (31-37). La fuente principal, aunque no única, de documentación para Guillén fueron las Vidas de filósofos ilustres de Diógenes Laercio. Los aspectos que destaca el poeta moderno del filósofo antiguo son su desvergüenza, su deseo de libertad extrema de expresión, la necesidad de ejercicio (físico y espiritual), su desprecio de las ciencias especulativas, su independencia intelectual, su gozo por vivir y su preferencia por un tenor simple de vida. Se concluye que Jorge Guillén rememora la figura de Diógenes para expresar sus propios valores mediante un correlato objetivo.