From a report by Sonja Pace in VOANews.com, we are informed that the London’s Science Museum holds an exhibit featuring the scientific inventions the world has inherited from the ancient Muslim world. There is no ‘clash of civilizations’ with this one, as Islam and non-Islam are now pitted against each other in most of the Western world. Coffee, computers, and piston engines are just some of these inventions and discoveries.

The world owes coffee to the Muslim heritage. ‘Kawha,’ the precursor of modern-day coffee, is said to have been first developed somewhere in today’s violent Yemen.

Professor Salim al Hassani of the University of Manchester states that ‘coffee was invented in the very early years of Islam’ by a shepherd named Khaled who hailed from Ethiopia. His sheep developed a taste for the coffee beans and he, thus, brought the produce to Yemen. The drink was developed soon after.

The concept of the university giving degrees is also an early Muslim discovery and development, circa 850. The honor goes to Fatima al-Firhi from the city of Fez in Morocco.

The exhibit at the London Science Museum is dubbed “1001 inventions: the Muslim Heritage.” It presents interesting information on scientific, technological, mechanical, and medical inventions that changed the world, courtesy of the Muslim heritage.

Photo Courtesy S. Pace -VOA

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McDonald’s with more than 30,000 convenient locations around the world undoubtedly is the world’s largest fast food chain. Apart from serving famous hamburgers, the company has recently started serving coffee as well, which helped in making a big business. Well, this time around McDonald’s has come up with a really good plan to offer free wireless internet access at most of their outlets in the U.S. McDonald’s has been in fact, offering internet access in some of their outlets for about five years but none for free.

By mid-January, the company plans to lift the $2.95 fee it has charged for two hours of Internet access at 11,000 of its 14,000 U.S locations. After the fee is lifted, there will be no time limit. Dave Grooms, the chief information officer for McDonald’s USA opines that their company strongly believes and focuses on adding value in both their foods and services as well. He further states that the company has absolutely no hassles when the customers come and avail of the Wi-Fi facility in their restaurant.

The free wireless service is provided through a partnership with AT&T Inc. However, McDonald’s prefers to keep mum regarding the terms of the contract and how much the company is going to shell out for the same. Well, we respect their decision and leave them unbothered in this regard. As long as we get the free Wi-Fi service, we are happy.

Via: McDonald’s\HuffingTonPost

They say caffeine can kill you. Yes, that’s true if you ‘drink 80 to 100 cups in a hurry.’ Others insist that coffee is good for you. Well, one to two cups a day will give you your needed antioxidants. But if you need those life-prolonging substances, you can also get them from black tea, bananas, dry beans, and corn wrap. Those antioxidants are also what make coffee taste bitter.

It is said that caffeine might reduce pain. Two cups ‘can cut post-gym muscle pain,’ alright, but this research was conducted on people who were not regular coffee drinkers. Yes, caffeine can keep you awake at night. It is advised not to drink it 6 hours before bedtime.

So, you’ve been playing it safe and have just been drinking decaffeinated coffee? 5-10 cups of decaffeinated coffee equal 1-2 cups of caffeinated coffee. Afraid that decaffeination uses chemicals? ‘Beans are steamed, so that dissolved caffeine rises to the surface, where it is washed off using an organic solvent called methylene chloride.’ Now heave a sigh of relief, or half of it.

And you probably already know that the darker the roasted coffee beans are, the more caffeine there is. But those who worry about coffee need not fret. Coffee is one of the healthiest beverages known to man. It sure beats the two to three sugar-laden and zero-nutrition pop sodas people mindlessly consume in a day – but, as in everything, moderation is the key.

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Via Live Science

Researchers of the Fraunhoffer Institute, in Germany, developed a new cup type that can revolutionize the ritual of savoring a coffee cup, indispensable in our day by day.

The utensil was projected to maintain the drink in the ideal temperature for the consumption for the largest possible time. The secret is in the use of Phase Change Materials (PCM), substances that change of physical (of solid for liquid, for instance) state under certain temperatures.

The researchers established that the ideal temperature for the consumption of hot drunk, as coffee or tea, it is of 58 degrees Celsius. Therefore a hollow mug of porcelain was built and the interior of their walls covered with a beehive of aluminum filled out with PCM that is liquefied exactly this temperature.

When putting the hot drink in the mug, PCM begins to absorb heat, cooling the drink until that arrives to the point of liquefaction of 58 degrees. Since then PCM stops of absorbing the heat and it begins to liberate it slowly back to the drink. With that, the temperature stays stable and the coffee is in the point for consumption for more time.

In agreement with Klaus Sedlbauer, boss of the department that drove the research, in ideal conditions the temperature can be maintained by a period among 20 to 30 minutes. The researcher informs that the technique can also be used for cold drunks.

The institute is already working with companies interested in marketing the invention that still doesn’t have date to arrive to the market nor an estimated price.

Via: Spiegel.

If you are one of those who love collecting weird stuffs like the skull-shaped gadgets, then you will definitely love the Skull-shaped coffee mug. Although it’s just a ceramic made coffee mug, you may use it as a show piece as well. Its rare design will certainly catch a few curious eyes and, perhaps they will be dumbstruck too.

However, one thing that you may not really appreciate about this unusual coffee mug is its price. It is priced at $18, which is indeed a tad expensive for a coffee mug. Nevertheless, it is rare to find a cool and unique coffee mug such as this. You can buy it online from Uxsight. Go for it if you are eccentric enough to sip a hot cup of coffee from a spooky coffee mug.

I would have bought one for myself had I the fascination about collecting skull-shaped gadgets. Moreover, this coffee mug doesn’t seem to be very appealing either, as it has nothing special about it except for the unique look of it. I would rather spend the eighteen dollars on something else.

Via: TechChee

For those who suffer from sensitive stomach, here is the best coffee brewer called Hourglass Coffee Brewer. It is a cold brew coffee system that will help you reduce the acid content in your stomach. Hourglass Coffee Brewer produces smooth coffee, which is ideal for your troubled stomach (with 69.6% less acid than the coffee, which is brewed hot).

Better still is that the coffee doesn’t taste bitter. You do not need electricity to brew coffee with the Hourglass Coffee Brewer. All you have to do is to just add the ground coffee into the stainless steel filter, then fill the water and steep the coffee for 12 hours. You can leave it longer for even a stronger taste.

Just go ahead and add water or milk and brew your favorite coffee. The best part is that the you can brew the grounds twice and it still leaves you with a great flavor. You can pick up this Hourglass Coffee Brewer for $79.95. Nobody can take away the freedom from you to sip a hot cup of coffee with this special coffee brewer.

Via: Cnet\Solutions

Starbucks should enhance its high-end character. It should concentrate on its biggest strength which is being perceived as a high-end specialty coffee store. This strategy is to keep it loyal costumers loyal. The interiors of its stores should remain as such for the sake of its high-end market that will continue to frequent the cozy, homey, and clean stores. Nothing should change along these lines because the high-end market will continue to shell out premium product cost for product plus ambience.

The marketing strategies that have been implemented through in-store marketing campaigns and point-of-sale collaterals should remain for the usual market. These people have already associated the brand with these factors. Starbucks should not rock the boat. For the sake of the usual market, Starbucks should stay as how people have known it through the decades.

Starbucks should also remain a pure brand. It should be known as it is with no changes that can be brought in due to co-branding with other brand names. It should be a stand-alone brand, capitalizing on its highly-recognizable name and reputation. Equal partnerships with other known brands will only dilute the brand and water down market perception. It should be an exclusive brand.

Since Starbucks’ usual market, high-end in nature, is willing to pay for the usual high-end product costs, the company should not deviate much from its pricing schemes. To drastically cut the product prices will result in an image of non-exclusivity. Starbucks should be loyal to its loyal customers that are known to visit the store at least eighteen times in a month.

There is, however, the wide potential market of low-end profile. Starbucks should create a sister brand that will cater to this market base, without intermingling it with the high-end market group. In other words, Starbucks should not mix the two markets under the same roof. Doing so will only gradually cancel the two. Starbucks should open and expand into a new line of retail coffee stores that can offer lower-priced concoctions, offer marketing gimmicks that cater to the new market upon consideration of its characteristics, and offer a store ambience that is more suited to the new market’s character.

This new line of coffee retail stores may not necessarily be new constructions. Some of the already existing stores can be transformed into this new market stores. The company can also offer the concept to potential franchisees. The consideration to transform an existing store will depend on the market characteristics of the geographical areas. This new store would do better in an area that is less high-end.

The company can still keep its old identity via its name and logo, but with a new twist to it. Perhaps, an additional word or phrase to the Starbucks name can be appended as a new logo to create a seemingly new brand name. The world-renowned Starbucks identity now becomes aspirational for this new market segment.

Segregating the two markets of high-end and low-end by way of fashioning marketing strategies suited to each respective market characteristic will create for Starbucks a niche in each of the markets. Also, this will assure that customer satisfaction is met in each respective market. There shall be no confusion in market perception, as well as the Starbucks image.

Starbucks already has a strong brand recall. It is now time for all market segments to perceive the brand recall according to market niches.

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Via CNN/24/7 Wall St

The underlying marketing problem that Starbucks has lies in its failure to see that its marketing strategies do not necessarily meet its marketing objectives. It wanted to expand but failed to see that it has not necessarily been meeting the market. Market profile was shifting to characteristics that the brand was not originally marketed for. A high-end priced product in a seemingly expensive place did not match the market that was becoming lower economic bracket, less educated, and younger.

That is why the new market base does not frequent Starbucks stores because the brand seems to be anachronistic to their character. The whole packaging of Starbucks was targeted towards a high-end market. It would naturally see a lower growth rate amidst a market base that is shifting to low-end. Younger and less educated people will not sit it out on a lounge chair to sip coffee, read, or talk about issues.

The growth strategy was not really the failing point. In fact, this augured well for the company’s bottom line. What the company’s executives failed to see was the fact that if it wanted to saturate the market, its product and service offerings were not really meeting the characteristics of the market. That is why the market perceived Starbucks as merely concerned with growth in the number of stores and profits. The wide potential market base did not see Starbucks as concerned with their needs.

The issue of customer satisfaction being rather low is really not Starbucks’ main problem. Speed of service is not really the panacea to its main handicap. If retail is all about customer relationship at the point of sale, Starbucks is not even bringing in its potential retail market. The retail business of Starbucks is simply not attracting the market to the point of sale.

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Via Reuters/pseudorandom

Starbucks’ strength rested on four factors: retail expansion, product and service innovation, having an observed clean store, and being a brand associated with the specialty/gourmet coffee niche. The strongest attribute that consumers associate with the Starbucks brand is its being known for specialty/gourmet coffee. Starbucks is a widely-recognized brand. Its top-of-mind recall is high. It is both a household name and a buzzword.

Starbucks has implemented two effective drivers of growth: retail expansion and product/service innovation. By 2002, Starbucks already owned more than 30 percent of all US coffee bars, more than its next five competitors combined. The Frappuccino became a pop culture buzzword. The new product came in both coffee and non-coffee based lines. The company provided an in-store high speed wireless Internet service in 2,000 of its stores. It also introduced a prepaid service card that people were availing of to give as a convenient gift item.

Externally, the shifting behavior of the market customer base poses as threat to Starbucks. The old clientele profile belonged to the high-end and educated population. The market was shifting to such characteristics as lower economic bracket, less educated, and younger. This new market was visiting the stores less.

The opportunity for Starbucks lies in the potential market link between its highly-perceived product and a wide potential market for such. The growth of market in the specialty-coffee category is expected to be 9-10 percent annual growth rate. Because of this, Starbucks US business is projected to grow 20 percent revenue growth. In the US specialty coffee retail market ($3.2 billion), Starbucks was estimated to have a 4 percent share.

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Via Marketing Teacher/Business Week

Who wouldn’t love a hot cup of aromatic coffee freshly pound from a machine! Well, the truth is we all do but cringe at the thought of using expensive coffee machines. However, the Pinzon Contemporary 8-Cup Coffee Press is an amazing coffee brewer and can brew up to 32 ounces of coffee at one go. It retains the coffee beans’ original taste, flavour and the oils’ rich and complex aroma.

It comes in a contemporary design and surely is one of the best coffee machines available for such a cheap price. It has a mirror finish frame and is resistant to heat and flames. It comes with a stainless-steel press mechanism and all you would need to do is add a spoon of coarsely grounded coffee for every cup of coffee.

It can be easily washed with hands using warm water and soap which makes things only easier for people like us who are lazy. Amazon has a special offer running thanks to New Year and the Pinzon Coffee Press, which usually costs $50 is being given away at a price of $19.99. So go ahead and get your piece now, for it might be too late.

Via: Amazon