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Pepsi Crystal had a short shelf life. The clear cola was brought to market by Pepsi in 1993 as part of a Super Bowl marketing blitz. (You might remember the commercials featuring Van Halen’s Right Now.) Two years later, Pepsi Crystal was no more. Today in The Conversation Canada, marketing professor Kyle Murray of the University of Alberta writes about research he’s done with Theodore Noseworthy and Fabrizio Di Muro that offers insight into why new products often fail. Their findings are fascinating.
New data released this week indicates there’s been a tenfold increase in obesity among young people over the last four decades. Sara FL Kirk, a professor of Health Promotion at Dalhousie University, dives into the reasons why. “The problem is that we have restructured our environment to be the exact opposite of what we need to maintain our energy balance,” she explains.
When most of us think of bees, we think of insects buzzing around hives. In fact, 85 per cent of bees are solitary and that means they need safe habitat – especially in major urban centres. Catherine Howell, Jennifer Drake and Liat Margolis of the University of Toronto explain how cities are coming up with solutions to help the bee population – including the increased use of green roofs.
And finally, in a piece I guarantee you would only find in The Conversation…. Donald Trump has been called many things by his detractors. But would they say he’s like an ancient Greek tyrant? That’s the case being made by Antonio Redfern Pucci of Lakehead University, who says Trump’s behaviour and actions can be explained if you compare him to the tyrant Hiero, a character in the book by the Greek philosopher Xenophon.
Regards,
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Crystal Pepsi, seen here on sale recently as part of a nostalgia campaign, was considered one of Pepsi’s epic fails.
(Creative Commons)
Kyle Murray, University of Alberta
It can be much easier to develop a new product than to actually get people to try it, even for big established brands. Where did launches for products like Crystal Pepsi go wrong?
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Over 90 per cent of food and beverage product ads viewed by children and youth online are for unhealthy food products.
(Shutterstock)
Sara FL Kirk, Dalhousie University
New data on soaring child obesity should not come as a surprise. The food industry spends billions marketing unhealthy foods in a global society where over-eating is seen as a character flaw.
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Bees living in cities often have to seek out green space like parks, ravines and gardens. Green roofs could offer them some habitat.
(Shutterstock)
Catherine Howell, University of Toronto; Jennifer Drake, University of Toronto; Liat Margolis, University of Toronto
Urban bees deal with what's known as "habitat patches," discontinuous patches of green like gardens, parks and ravines. Green roofs could offer relief to bees dealing with habitat fragmentation.
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What can an ancient Greek text tell us about Donald Trump’s tyrannical personality? Xenophon’s Hiero provides some clues.
(Shutterstock)
Antonio Redfern Pucci, Lakehead University
The president of the United States has a classical tyrannical soul. An ancient Greek text provides us with some insight into what a tyrant wants and what fuels his ambitions.
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Politics
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Rupert Alcock, University of Bristol
Governments gently cajoling people towards better life choices is only one side of the nudge theory.
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Culture + Society
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Sarah Banet-Weiser, University of Southern California, Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Public-facing feminism can often be a superficial distraction from systemic sexism.
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Environment + Energy
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Wayne Iwan Lee Davies, University of Western Australia; Shaun Collin, University of Western Australia
Animals that evolved in cold parts of the world usually have lighter skin. If a light-skinned animal has blood vessels close to the surface of their ear skin, this will make the ears look pink.
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