Tutorial of MA project--31 Oct 2012

Today we had a smell presentation about our project concept. Although we already learned 
how to clearly communicate ideas to audiences through a professional way, I still felt there are thousands pounds of  pressure putting on my shoulder because I do not know the idea is worth to research or not.

The following  is the concept of my project.

The Project is about the working culture in Taiwan, China, and UK. To be precise, I want to encourage working people to take a break in afternoon by engaging in the activity of afternoon tea, which is most quintessential of English customs, or these kinds of enjoyable movement. Namely, through advocacy of taking a break in afternoon, their working efficiency probably will become better. Moreover, through the project, people might deliberate about what is their working right and the value of work.

However, why I desire to create the project because of tow reasons below:

First, I observed phenomena that many employees cannot concentrate in afternoon; because, our mental are tired and our body needs energy, we feel hungry and want to sleep. Nevertheless, owing to the working culture, in Taiwan, people have to work eight hours a day and only have half hour to rest. Therefore, the working culture resulted in poor performance at work.

Furthermore, according to Mandy Barrow (2012)” Afternoon tea is not common these days because most adults go out to work in UK.” Hence, if I design a project that is about to improve employee’ s working efficiency by the concept of to enjoy the English afternoon tea, maybe the custom of drinking afternoon tea will become popular again and might engender numerous benefits on society.

The presentation of the project will emphasize that the interaction between objects and employees. For example, I want to create a space like tearoom. Maybe this room will have pretty china with special tea smell so when people enter the room, they may feel refreshed and this room will possess some ingredients that can help people to inspire their thinking. Therefore, I need to learn some skills to assist my project. For instance, I desire to learn how to produce ceramics, to draw 2D animation, and to use the software of Flash and Dreamweaver.   

The bullet points are some suggestions of the second tutorial.

• To brand the idea of taking a break from work.
• How to market workers 
• If I want to create a tearoom for worker, I have to think about how to let workers know the event.

RESEARCH--Top 10 health benefits of drinking tea

(Fuling, 2013)

There are lots of reasons why people enjoy a hot cup of tea: I love the aroma of various flavors of tea; holding onto a hot tea mug warms my hands on a cold winter morning; sipping tea in front of the fireplace is a great way to relax. And those are just the feel-good reasons. If you're not drinking tea yet, read up on these 10 ways tea does your body good and then see if you're ready to change your Starbucks order!

1. Tea contains antioxidants. Like the Rust-Oleum paint that keeps your outdoor furniture from rusting, tea's antioxidants protect your body from the ravages of aging and the effects of pollution.

2. Tea has less caffeine than coffee. Coffee usually has two to three times the caffeine of tea (unless you're a fan of Morning Thunder, which combines caffeine with mate, an herb that acts like caffeine in our body). An eight-ounce cup of coffee contains around 135 mg caffeine; tea contains only 30 to 40 mg per cup. If drinking coffee gives you the jitters, causes indigestion or headaches or interferes with sleep -- switch to tea.

3. Tea may reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke. Unwanted blood clots formed from cholesterol and blood platelets cause heart attack and stroke. Drinking tea may help keep your arteries smooth and clog-free, the same way a drain keeps your bathroom pipes clear. A 5.6-year study from the Netherlands found a 70 percent lower risk of fatal heart attack in people who drank at least two to three cups of black tea daily compared to non-tea drinkers.

4. Tea protects your bones. It's not just the milk added to tea that builds strong bones. One study that compared tea drinkers with non-drinkers, found that people who drank tea for 10 or more years had the strongest bones, even after adjusting for age, body weight, exercise, smoking and other risk factors. The authors suggest that this may be the work of tea's many beneficial phytochemicals.

5. Tea gives you a sweet smile. One look at the grimy grin of Austin Powers and you may not think drinking tea is good for your teeth, but think again. It's the sugar added to it that's likely to blame for England's bad dental record. Tea itself actually contains fluoride and tannins that may keep plaque at bay. So add unsweetened tea drinking to your daily dental routine of brushing and flossing for healthier teeth and gums.

6. Tea bolsters your immune defenses. Drinking tea may help your body's immune system fight off infection. When 21 volunteers drank either five cups of tea or coffee each day for four weeks, researchers saw higher immune system activity in the blood of the tea drinkers.

7. Tea protects against cancer. Thank the polyphenols, the antioxidants found in tea, once again for their cancer-fighting effects. While the overall research is inconclusive, there are enough studies that show the potential protective effects of drinking tea to make adding tea to your list of daily beverages.

8. Tea helps keep you hydrated. Caffeinated beverages, including tea, used to be on the list of beverages thatdidn't contribute to our daily fluid needs. Since caffeine is a diuretic and makes us pee more, the thought was that caffeinated beverages couldn't contribute to our overall fluid requirement. However, recent research has shown that the caffeine really doesn't matter -- tea and other caffeinated beverages definitely contribute to our fluid needs. The only time the caffeine becomes a problem as far as fluid is concerned is when you drink more than five or six cups of a caffeinated beverage at one time.

9. Tea is calorie-free. Tea doesn't have any calories, unless you add sweetener or milk. Consuming even 250 fewer calories per day can result in losing one pound per week. If you're looking for a satisfying, calorie-free beverage, tea is a top choice.

10. Tea increases your metabolism. Lots of people complain about a slow metabolic rate and their inability to lose weight. Green tea has been shown to actually increase metabolic rate so that you can burn 70 to 80 additional calories by drinking just five cups of green tea per day. Over a year's time you could lose eight pounds just by drinking green tea. Of course, taking a 15-minute walk every day will also burn calories.


Reference:

IVILLAGE,2005, TOP10 Health  Benefits of drinking tea [Online], Ivillage, Available at: http://www.ivillage.com/top-10-health-benefits-drinking-tea/4-a-108301[Accessed 27 October 2010]. 

RESEARCH-- The Tea Culture In The UK

Tea consumption increased dramatically during the early nineteenth century and it is around this time that Anna, the 7th Duchess of Bedford is said to have complained of "having that sinking feeling" during the late afternoon. At the time it was usual for people to take only two main meals a day, breakfast, and dinner at around 8 o'clock in the evening. The solution for the Duchess was a pot a tea and a light snack, taken privately in her boudoir during the afternoon.

'Afternoon Tea' by artist George Goodwin Kilburne 

Later friends were invited to join her in her rooms at Woburn Abbey and this summer practice proved so popular that the Duchess continued it when she returned to London, sending cards to her friends asking them to join her for "tea and a walking the fields." Other social hostesses quickly picked up on the idea and the practice became respectable enough to move it into the drawing room. Before long all of fashionable society was sipping tea and nibbling sandwiches in the middle of the afternoon.

 'Afternoon Tea' by artist Alexander Rossi 

Occasionally you will see hotels serving a ‘high tea'. Traditionally, the upper classes would serve a ‘low' or ‘afternoon' tea around four o'clock, just before the fashionable promenade in Hyde Park. The middle and lower classes would have a more substantial ‘high' tea later in the day, at five or six o'clock, in place of a late dinner. The names derive from the height of the tables on which the meals are served, high tea being served at the dinner table.

'Afternoon Tea c.1910' by artist Rene Lelong 

Many visitors from overseas still imagine that we are a nation where, in the words of the well-known song, ‘at half past three, everything stops for tea'. Sadly these days Afternoon Tea is usually only an occasional luxury for the British; a birthday treat in a country house hotel, or a welcome break from a hectic days shopping ‘in town'. Luckily the tourist is still able to indulge in a little bit of British tradition for themself.

Reference

AFTERNOON TEA, 2003. The Tea Culture In The UK [online]. Afternoon tea. UK Available at:http://www.afternoontea.co.uk/index.phpoption=com_content&task=view&id=131&Itemid=18#.UW7dqI7HxJq [Accessed 26 October 2012]. 

RESEARCH -- The History of Tea

(Fuling, 2012)

In order to realize different tea cultures, I researched different datas of tea and organized some interesting datas below: 

The Origin Of The Word "Tea"

The Chinese originally called it “Kia”. As far as is know it was during the course of the 6th century AD that the name evolved into "Cha". On its arrival in the West it became Té which is still the name for tea in many countries.

The Discovery Of Tea

Legend has it that tea was discovered by the Chinese Emperor, Shan Nong, in 2737 B.C.

The Emperor had a habit of boiling his drinking water. One day while he was in his garden a few tea leaves fell by chance into his boiling water which then gave off a rich, alluring aroma. The Emperor, upon drinking this brew, discovered it to be refreshing and energizing.
He immediately gave the command that tea bushes to be planted in the gardens of his palace. Thus the custom of brewing fresh tea leaves in hot water began and it quickly spread.

Since the discovery of tea and over the centuries the tradition of drinking tea brewed from fresh tea leaves in boiling water has been firmly entrenched in China

Until the fifth century A.D., tea was primarily used as a remedy, due to the medicinal benefits attributed to it. From this time onwards, China's upper class adopted the fashion of presenting packages of tea as highly esteemed gifts and of enjoying drinking tea at social events and in private homes. At around the same time the Chinese tea ceremony began to develop and the tidings of tea began to spread as it reached Japan.

How Tea Arrived In The West

Tea arrived in Europe via Dutch and Portuguese sailors at the beginning of the 17th century. They had trade relations with China and brought the tea to Britain and Holland at the outset, where it was sold at auctions and became very popular among the aristocracy and the wealthy. The beverage's initial high price prevented it from circulating among the western population at large.

The tea trade was a significant factor in establishing connections between east and west. In China, tea leaves were used as a substitute for coins. In Europe, tea was used as a symbol of high status and as a stimulus for many technological developments, for instance, the development of fast sail boats such as the "Clipper", which shortened the time it took to sail from China to Europe and made it possible to provide shipments of fresh tea to the west.
British companies established for the importing tea, such as the "John Company" and "The East India Trade Company" became trade monopolies, unprecedented in size and power, and were ordained by the royal family and empowered to operate in any way necessary to ensure the continuous supply of this popular drink. At the beginning of the 18th century, with the expansion of tea imports to the west and the consequent decrease in its price, tea became a common product enjoyed by all sectors of the population.

Reference: 

WISSOTZKY TEA, 2007. The history of tea [Online].Wissotzky Tea Co. Available at: 

http://www.wtea.com/about-tea_history.aspx[Accessed 23 October 2010]. 

Lecture-- Laura Pannack

Today we were lucky enough to be given a lecture from photographer Laura Pannack who is a  London based photographer. Her art focuses on social documentary, portrait and she seeks to explore the complex relationships between subject and photographer. I found the lecture is very interesting because It explained the ways in which she works with her employers and within the industry.
Since the lecture I have to rethink about my project.  



Reference:

LAURA, P., 2012. Laura Pannack photography. [Chaucer Lecture Theatre 4. Nottingham Trent University. 24 October 2012]

Presentation-- Shadow Play

How to communicate clear ideas of works is significant for designers.

The purpose of today's presentation is to discuss how we can clearly communicate our ideas and thinking. At the beginning, we were requested to collect images, which are meaningful and interesting for you so I chose the poster, which is designed for a show of optical illusion at the Hayward Gallery.

Shadow play, tricks of perspective, anamorphic and magic lanterns play a vital role for graphic design so the designer used the work from Laurent Mannoni to create this poster and he, or she tried to twist the old graphic to new one. For example, this poster chose the contrastive color, black and yellow to trigger people’s attention. However, the original one only has monochrome so it looks less colorful. The designer also used two logos to remind audiences that it is an anamorphic image so both sides have perfect relationship with logos.

Through this presentation I know what is the best way to present my concepts, or ideas.

Reference：

Christian, B., 2004, Eyes, lies and illustration, Exhibition held at Museum of Hayward Gallery, London, 7 October 2004 - 3 January 2005, [Exhibition catalogue]