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Boom times in Silicon Valley call for hard work, and hard work — at least in technology land — means that coders, engineers and venture capitalists are turning to liquid meals with names like Schmoylent, Soylent, Schmilk and People Chow. The protein-packed products that come in powder form are inexpensive and quick and easy to make — just shake with water, or in the case of Schmilk, milk. While athletes and dieters have been drinking their dinner for years, Silicon Valley's workers are now increasingly chugging their meals, too, so they can more quickly get back to their computer work.
Demand for some of the powdered drinks, which typically mix nutrients like magnesium, zinc and vitamins, is so high that some engineers report being put on waiting lists of one to six months to receive their first orders. And the drinks are taking off across techie social circles. Venture capitalists have also poured money into the companies that offer the meal replacements, and investors including Alexis Ohanian, a founder of Reddit, count themselves as fans of the drinks.
[Editor's Comment: Original Submission]
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Wednesday May 27 2015, @02:47PM
So people will choose a synthetic sludge with who knows what stuff and artificial taste over real food that is prepared without killing the vitamins? vitamins that work in the long run and thus is really compatible with the body chemistry.
And when spamvertizing is removed and general false food choices of shit vs crap.. And when you have depleted substances that wreck the craving system (like artificial taste and sugar). Cravings are a good thing. They will tell you what your body needs but if it's already premixed. This adjustment mechanism will be impaired. Control system feedback short circuit.
Meaning of life is to be feed nutrient sludge for code output such that the shareholders may profit from your corpse? ;-)
(Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Wednesday May 27 2015, @03:20PM
On the contrary, the recipe for Soylent is open and remixing [soylent.me] is encouraged on the website.
What's "synthetic sludge" and how is it bad? All food is made of chemicals. There's the argument that certain processed foods can be unhealthy, such as high-fructose corn syrup and table sugar being too easy for your body to digest, but what applies to Soylent? Does your red line line exclude bread and oatmeal (and other foods that appeared after humans shifted from hunting to an unnatural agricultural diet)?
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Wednesday May 27 2015, @10:15PM
A lot of pre-prepared food is made of processed and thus chemically altered food and pure synthetic additives in addition. Often a conservation method is used which further deteriorate the food. Some of the contents may be GMO.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday May 27 2015, @10:56PM
1. processed and thus chemically altered food
Can the "chemical alteration" turn out to be a good thing?
2. pure synthetic additives
"Pure" as in unadulterated and good?
3. a conservation method is used which further deteriorate the food
Isn't deterioration the opposite of conservation?
4. Some of the contents may be GMO
GMO is the least dangerous thing in your list.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2015, @12:27AM
> GMO is the least dangerous thing in your list.
That's kind of like saying "its natural so it is good" even though all kinds of toxic substances occur naturally. Every GMO is different. Just because some GMOs have been in use for a decade or two without any obvious harmful effects doesn't mean that every GMO will too.
(Score: 1) by mmarujo on Thursday May 28 2015, @12:06PM
Well, for the most part, I only eat chemically altered food (read cooked) :)
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Thursday May 28 2015, @12:29PM
So you destroy many vitamins. But of course it tastes good ;)
The issue is rather industrial processes that hasn't been around long enough for evolution to accomodate them.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 27 2015, @03:46PM
Cravings are a good thing.
That is not really true. Cravings are part habit too. For example right now I crave eating a bag of oreos and wash it down with a 32oz cola. It is very easy to misunderstand cravings, habit, and need.
Instead I am drinking my water as I am trying to lower my sugar intake to reduce my weight (15 so far this year). What you eat is also habit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFzDaBzBlL0 [youtube.com]
This puts it in an interesting way. Think of all the habits you have learned in your life. You have habits you do not even THINK about. Eating is one of them. To actually change your diet takes months of unconditioning and actually understanding why you eat. But do not mistake a new habit for good or bad. It may not be so. For example I could take up the habit of smoking. One that is arguably bad for me. But it would not take long to learn the habit of it. As the chemical brew that is a cigarette is designed to be habit forming.
This sludge does not sound like a good habit. It sounds like the sort of thing you use when you are trying to minimize carry weight. To ignore taste and texture is to ignore being human. But you also need to realize the big food conglomerates have thru evolution of their products had 50+ years to hone their craft of selling you processed foods. They do it with advertising (repetition), taste (tweaking salty/bitter/sweet mix), texture (how smooth or rough the package/food is), smell, sound (the way a can clicks and pops), and brand.
My point? Cravings can be easily manipulated to be turned into habits. Do not mistake them for 'what your body needs'.