Maggie Tsai's Public Library

Fig  1. - Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells [HUVEC]

Lebow's paper discussed the cost of maintaining the American lifestyle in 1955, and the effect this cost had on retail profits. Lebow wrote:

 

“Our enormously productive economy demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfactions, our ego satisfactions, in consumption. The measure of social status, of social acceptance, of prestige, is now to be found in our consumptive patterns. The very meaning and significance of our lives today expressed in consumptive terms. The greater the pressures upon the individual to conform to safe and accepted social standards, the more does he tend to express his aspirations and his individuality in terms of what he wears, drives, eats- his home, his car, his pattern of food serving, his hobbies".

 

He further wrote: "These commodities and services must be offered to the consumer with a special urgency. We require not only “forced draft” consumption, but “expensive” consumption as well. We need things consumed, burned up, worn out, replaced, and discarded at an ever increasing pace. We need to have people eat, drink, dress, ride, live, with ever more complicated and, therefore, constantly more expensive consumption. The home power tools and the whole “do-it-yourself” movement are excellent examples of “expensive” consumption.”

Even the Chairman for the Council of Economic Advisors, under President Eisenhower, stated the “U.S. economy’s ultimate purpose is to produce consumer goods”. At some point along the path to economic and social recovery after WWII, the concept of conspicuous consumption was born and integrated into the U.S. and eventually, the world economies. However, it appears that no one was raising the concern or red flag over sustainability of this innovative revolution which has lead us blindly to where we are today.

A yearly increase by 2% leads to a doubling of the energy consumption every 35 years. This means the world-wide energy consumption is predicted to be twice as high in the year 2040 compared to today (2007).

It is also obvious that no combination of alternative technologies can replace the current usage of fossil fuels. There is simply not enough non-fossil fuel available for this. In order to mitigate global warming, we have to use the available energy much more efficiently. But this won't be enough either: We will have to change our behaviour to reduce our personal energy consumption. We must change our current live style and seriously strive for a sustainable living

In 2010, renewable energy supplied an estimated 16% of global final energy consumption and delivered close to 20% of global electricity. Renewable capacity now comprises about a quarter of total global power-generating capacity. 

I have been contemplating over the last few years how it is that I somehow seems to have gotten caught up in the "more, more, more" attitude that alot of society seems to have and more importantly, I have been attempting to get myself out of that frame of mind (not to mention that frame of spending). 

I have been contemplating over the last few years how it is that I somehow seems to have gotten caught up in the "more, more, more" attitude that alot of society seems to have and more importantly, I have been attempting to get myself out of that frame of mind (not to mention that frame of spending). 

People are afraid and anxious. We’re destroying the planet, undermining happiness, and clinging to an unsustainable economy. Our obsessive pursuit of wealth isn’t working.

But there’s another way. Less can be More. Throughout history wise people have argued that we need to live more simply—that only by limiting outer wealth can we have inner wealth. Less is More is a compelling collection of essays by people who have been writing about simplicity for decades. They bring us a new vision of Less: less stuff, less work, less stress, less debt. A life with Less becomes a life of More: more time, more satisfaction, more balance, and more security.

When we have too much, we savor nothing. When we choose less, we regain our life and can think and feel deeply. Ultimately, a life of less connects us with one true source of happiness: being part of a caring community. Less is More shows how to turn individual change into a movement that leads to policy changes in government and corporate behavior, work hours, the wealth gap, and sustainability. It will appeal to those who want to take back their lives, their planet, and their well-being.

how businesses can cut out waste from the top to the bottom (e.g., if companies don't pay executives $80 million a year, they might not have to lay off 1,000 workers to improve the bottom line). Along with his research team of recent Princeton and Stanford grads, Jennings, who founded the media consulting firm Jennings-McGlothlin & Co., writes about a handful of organizations-e.g., Ryanair, IKEA, Lantech, Nucor-that seem to defy reality with their unbelievably impressive profits, productivity and employee loyalty. The book is written as efficiently as its subject companies operate, and Jennings conclusively proves a number of truisms: nothing improves worker loyalty and productivity like telling them the truth; don't hire people you'll have to lay off in a year; and don't lose focus

The notion that simplicity and clarity lead to good design

The term minimalism is also used to describe a trend in design and architecture where in the subject is reduced to its necessary elements. Minimalist design has been highly influenced by Japanese traditional design and architecture

The structure uses relatively simple elegant designs; ornamentations are quality rather than quantit

"Religions traditionally were ways of seeing the world -- a system for understand the universe," he tells me in the accompanying video. "That's literally what an operating system is for us today. When I wake up in the morning...the first thing I reach for is not my wife, it's my iPhone."

 

If technology is a religion, then Steve Jobs was clearly a deity, or certainly an extremely powerful prophet

"The way he was able to chain all of Apple to himself, to make Apple a reflection of his tastes and desires...makes him sort of a saint," he says. "Jobs was a very powerful figure [and] Apple will have to wrestle with that legacy."