Diet & Food
Posts involving food, dieting, and other health-related topics.
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Background: Some restaurants serve beers in “flights”: a “sampler pack” of several small servings of a variety of different beers (Figure 1). The Issue: Strangely, very few foods are available in this format, with a few common exceptions: sliders (tiny hamburgers), charcuterie-style meats, cheese platters, and the nebulously-defined “appetizer platter.” Proposal: More foods should be…
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The Issue: When eating, sometimes the most appealing thing to do is to immediately wolf down all the food in front of you. People then occasionally regret this overeating, and wish there were some way to more easily exercise self control despite the presence of delicious food. Proposal: We can solve this wolfing-down of food…
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Background: There is an idiomatic expression, “like a hot knife through butter,” indicating something that is extremely easy to do. The issue: Yet, somehow when people make toast, they frequently use a COLD knife (or at least, a room temperature one) to cut a piece of butter. This is particularly troublesome if butter is stored…
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Background: A substantial amount of food that is produced is wasted at the consumer (household) level. Additionally, if you’re reading this text in English in the middle of the 21st century, it’s statistically likely that you, the reader, are not highly concerned with famine as a day-to-day hazard. Proposal: Ideally, we would like to both…
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Background: Part 1: Some credit cards provide special bonus features, such as a discount on certain purchases, “airline miles” that can be redeemed for plane tickets, or extended warranties on certain purchases. Part 2: When attempting to eat healthy foods, the battle is often lost at the supermarket: it’s easy to buy a gallon of…
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Background: Diet fads come and go, but most have at least one element in common: the requirement that individuals be deliberate about what they eat (rather than ravenously consuming everything like a starved beast). The issue: Unfortunately, it’s difficult to have self-control when food is delicious and plentiful. Thus, most people eat larger portions of…
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Background: It has been demonstrated that people tend to over-eat in situations in which they can quickly consume a meal. If a person has to consume a meal more slowly, they will (generally) realize that they are full and eat less. The issue: Unfortunately, in today’s decadent world, nearly every meal can be quickly devoured.…
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Make microwaving even easier with a synchronized-turntable solution that prevents you from ever having to reach all the way into the back of the microwave to get your reheated beverage! The true chef’s choice.
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Background: As civilization reaches an apex of decadence not seen since the days of Caligula, new and exotic labor-saving schemes have arisen. Specifically, you may soon be able to order food directly to your refrigerator, thus saving you from having to be present for delivery. Deluxe! The issue: While the process of delivering food directly…
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Background: It’s well-known that presentation affects the perceived taste of food (Figure 1). Can this be used by retailers to increase customer satisfaction? Proposal: In order to leverage the same instincts, we propose that all foods should be presented in grocery stores in a “natural” environment to satisfy human hunter-gatherer instincts. In Figure 2,…
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