(A) Too many companies advertise their new products as if their competitors do not exist. They advertise their products in a vacuum and are disappointed when their messages fail to get through. Introducing a new product category is difficult, especially if the new category is not contrasted against the old one. Consumers do not usually pay attention to what’s new and different unless it’s related to the old. That’s why if you have a truly new product, it’s often better to say what the product is not, rather than what it is. For example, the first automobile was called a “horseless” carriage, a name which allowed the public to understand the concept against the existing mode of transportation.
(B) Human beings are driven by a natural desire to form and maintain interpersonal relationships. From this perspective, people seek relationships with others to fill a fundamental need, and this need underlies in many emotions, actions, and decisions throughout life. Probably, the need to belong is a product of human beings’ evolutionary history as a social species. Human beings have long depended on the cooperation of others for the supply of food, protection from predators, and the acquisition of essential knowledge. Without the formation and maintenance of social bonds, early human beings probably would not be able to cope with or adapt to their physical environments. Thus, seeking closeness and meaningful relationships has long been vital for human survival.
(C) Plastic is extremely slow to degrade and tends to float, which allows it to travel in ocean currents for thousands of miles. Most plastics break down into smaller and smaller pieces when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light, forming microplastics. These microplastics are very difficult to measure once they are small enough to pass through the nets typically used to collecting them. Their impacts on the marine environment and food webs are still poorly understood. These tiny particles are known to be eaten by various animals and to get into the food chain. Because most of the plastic particles in the ocean are so small, there is no practical way to clean up the ocean. One would have to filter enormous amounts of water to collect a relatively small amount of plastic.
