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[Pnx]

And of course, $7.66 a day is still less than the typical American spends on food. That said I think I will probably still wait a while and see if the price drops some more before buying a sample.

[SalmonGod]

A friend from India just told me that he saw a clip about Soylent on local tv news.

[DWC]

The Soylent guy gave an interview on NPR this morning. The interviewer seemed sort of offended by the whole thing.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/04/03/176175513/bored-with-food-an-all-liquid-diet-is-not-such-a-hot-idea

[Max White]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/04/03/176175513/bored-with-food-an-all-liquid-diet-is-not-such-a-hot-idea

But wait a minute, we wondered: What exactly is so bothersome about eating food?

Sustainability. /article

[SalmonGod]

It's interesting to me how negative so many people are about it.  Like they take it pseudo-personally.  I truly and honestly cannot understand what is so important about the experience of eating to most people, to the point that they react this way.

[Pnx]

It's interesting to me how negative so many people are about it.  Like they take it pseudo-personally.  I truly and honestly cannot understand what is so important about the experience of eating to most people, to the point that they react this way.

I'm honestly not really sure, but I think it might be because they feel it's a threat to the way they eat?

I've noticed some people get really sensitive about what food they eat.

[Morrigi]

It's interesting to me how negative so many people are about it.  Like they take it pseudo-personally.  I truly and honestly cannot understand what is so important about the experience of eating to most people, to the point that they react this way.

Agreed. I consider eating simply a necessity of providing sustenance and enjoying appetizing food a secondary outcome. But then I'm one of those people who would be perfectly happy to replace their right arm with a robotic one if it worked better, so take that as you will.

[Sheb]

That article has been written by someone that didn't do its research. The recipe is on his blog...

But I think most of its criticism has been addressed already. He never claimed Soylent was healthier than a good, balanced diet of freshly prepared food. Just that it's was healthier than easy food, and easier than healthy food. And he doesn't claim tho know everything, that's why he's constantly adjusting his recipe. Sure, he might be missing something that we haven't discovered yet. But then, so might I, if it's present in  something I don't eat normally.

[Max White]

So technically, if we were doing this properly, we would need a double blind study. Send half the people signing up jars of flour.
If we don't see a dramatic difference, I've got some really great news! Turns out humans can life off flour.

[Skyrunner]

The comments are appalling Some of the people are strawmanning the Soylent maker's stance very hard.

[Grakelin]

And of course, $7.66 a day is still less than the typical American spends on food.

Shenanigans. My girlfriend and I have some pretty badass metabolisms and we spend about $6.67/day on food together by my generous calculation.

If a guy is selling you a special diet replacement smoothie for $200 a month, you are being scammed. This is far from being a new trick. I am sorry to the people here who really want it to be an actual advancement in food science. Especially since they'll assume I'm just being a negative Neonivek.

[Max White]

So I am going to do something I don't enjoy doing, but as my data structure was modeled from the human brain, it is something I must sometimes submit to, and that is making a purely emotional argument.

I wouldn't mind having tasteless thick shakes every day as my major source of nutrition, simply because it would make dining out so much more special. Can you imagine the taste and texture of a well cooked piece of chicken breast? It is great isn't it? Now imagine if you hadn't had solid food for two months and you are out on a date and you put that in your mouth. That is going to be the best night you have had in a while.


I like dark chocolate. And by that I mean I fucking love dark chocolate. That is why I never eat it, so it is nice when I do. I think from a love of food perspective... Well, absents makes the heart grow fonder.

[SalmonGod]

If a guy is selling you a special diet replacement smoothie for $200 a month, you are being scammed.

He's not.  He's doing crowdfunding right now.  If you invest $230 he rewards you with a month's supply.  Not the same as selling.

They've hit $400k, btw.  At $500k there's supposed to be a special surprise.

Now imagine if you hadn't had solid food for two months and you are out on a date and you put that in your mouth. That is going to be the best night you have had in a while.

I still can't relate     Even if I really, really enjoyed that chicken... it would be over in 20 minutes at most.  Twenty minutes of a physical sensation that has no meaningful context beyond the sensation for its own sake cannot define an entire night, or even have any bearing on anything beyond that specific chunk of time.  I'd probably enjoy food more if I ate it less often, but that's not saying much for me.  I am soooooooo in the minority on this point though. 

It really bothers me that I can't understand something that at least 99% of people I've ever known take so seriously.  Not that I want to be an obsessed foodie.  But it seems like this kind of thing is a serious disconnect between how I think and experience life vs how the majority of people do.  Like if I could understand it, a whole bunch of other things might fall into place.

[Sheb]

Did you ever go to a fancy restaurant or something? Or even just some really, really good family restaurant? Food can be a pleasure.

[SalmonGod]

Did you ever go to a fancy restaurant or something? Or even just some really, really good family restaurant? Food can be a pleasure.

My wife loves food and is a very good cook.  She has me go to nice restaurants with her.  Her cooking is good enough that a culinary school in New York accepted her after sending a taste tester halfway across the country.  Too bad she couldn't afford to go.

I enjoy the food while I'm eating it... but then a few minutes later, my mood or the perceived quality of my day will be exactly the same as if the meal had been bad.  Once it's over, it's over.  I never think about it again, because the sensation just doesn't have any meaning beyond the moment in which it's taking place.