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This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

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Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#121

Post by jgoney »

jgj wrote: post #99
saidajigumi wrote: post #75

> a 24-year-old software engineer > ... > Soylent contains all of the nutritive components of a balanced diet What utter bollocks. We're (as in, scientists studying nutrition and how utterly wrong food industry has gotten that in the 20th and early 21st century) finally starting to get our collective heads around the benefits of whole foods vs. highly processed foods, and just how badly our bodies deal with the latte…

First off, thanks for dampening the enthusiasm I was feeling after reading the OP. I would love to hear your thoughts on what, specifically, his formula is/may be missing. I can think of nothing more amazing than to consume a magic glass of nutrition a day and be done, and your post has given me pause.

Does he get enough fiber? I had always understood that the lower digestive system requires adequate fiber to function correctly.

And less relevant, I had to chuckle at the "if I had any money or a girlfriend" part. He's not doing anything to break any stereotypes, there.

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#122

Post by Retric »

criley wrote: post #103
saidajigumi wrote: post #75

> a 24-year-old software engineer > ... > Soylent contains all of the nutritive components of a balanced diet What utter bollocks. We're (as in, scientists studying nutrition and how utterly wrong food industry has gotten that in the 20th and early 21st century) finally starting to get our collective heads around the benefits of whole foods vs. highly processed foods, and just how badly our bodies deal with the latte…

You sound like an industry-insider explaining why a new startup will fail. "They're too young!" "They don't have the experience" "We've devoted our LIVES to figuring this out, one kid in his basement didn't do it in a few weeks!" Etc etc No offense but we've heard the exact same thing about every successful idea. And what's more: People look at the human GI totally wrong anyway. They think, what can I put in to get t…

As a side note, look into what rescue organisations feed to starving people. There are a few options that area all cheap and vary effective at bringing people back from starvation.

With that said, the question becomes what's the goal. Is it to cover the bases while keeping room left over for desert? Is it to find something better than the average western diet? Because, while perfection is going to depend on your DNA and activity levels finding a good baseline substitute for breakfast and lunch is vary possible.

PS: Now if you read what was written then this is sounding a lot like a 'fad' food with wondrous super powers. But, there are fairly good substitutes out there that cover most bases.

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#123

Post by lilsunnybee »

criley wrote: post #103
saidajigumi wrote: post #75

> a 24-year-old software engineer > ... > Soylent contains all of the nutritive components of a balanced diet What utter bollocks. We're (as in, scientists studying nutrition and how utterly wrong food industry has gotten that in the 20th and early 21st century) finally starting to get our collective heads around the benefits of whole foods vs. highly processed foods, and just how badly our bodies deal with the latte…

You sound like an industry-insider explaining why a new startup will fail. "They're too young!" "They don't have the experience" "We've devoted our LIVES to figuring this out, one kid in his basement didn't do it in a few weeks!" Etc etc No offense but we've heard the exact same thing about every successful idea. And what's more: People look at the human GI totally wrong anyway. They think, what can I put in to get t…

I doubt he's taking the manner by which nutrients are best absorbed into account. Having everything in a liquid suspension is likely not ideal, and could result in a dangerous deficiency.

Just because someone can survive on something doesn't mean they're getting good nutrition. Humans have adapted to eat many types of food, but that doesn't mean everyone was equally as healthy, disease-resistant, etc.

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#124

Post by criley »

baak wrote: post #118
criley wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You sound like an industry-insider explaining why a new startup will fail. "They're too young!" "They don't have the experience" "We've devoted our LIVES to figuring this out, one kid in his basement didn't do it in a few weeks!" Etc etc No offense but we've heard the exact same thing about every successful idea. And what's more: People look at the human GI totally wrong anyway. They think, what can I put in to get t…

Did you read his blog? He's claiming it cured his skin disease, gave him mental superpowers, has him in the best shape of his life, it gives him more energy, it tastes great, and costs $150 a month. Reads like a sleazy wonderpill ad.

In my personal experience, optimal nutrition creates what I would, in jest, refer to as "superpowers". When I compare my mental and physical state under optimal conditions to under poor conditions, there is a dramatic difference in me.

This, to me, is also why for many athletes, their performance doesn't begin on the field but rather it begins with their food intake.

I don't trust the data he provided because it isn't rigorous, reviewed or even analyzed at all.

But I'm curious, regardless.

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#125

Post by pfraze »

criley wrote: post #103
saidajigumi wrote: post #75

> a 24-year-old software engineer > ... > Soylent contains all of the nutritive components of a balanced diet What utter bollocks. We're (as in, scientists studying nutrition and how utterly wrong food industry has gotten that in the 20th and early 21st century) finally starting to get our collective heads around the benefits of whole foods vs. highly processed foods, and just how badly our bodies deal with the latte…

You sound like an industry-insider explaining why a new startup will fail. "They're too young!" "They don't have the experience" "We've devoted our LIVES to figuring this out, one kid in his basement didn't do it in a few weeks!" Etc etc No offense but we've heard the exact same thing about every successful idea. And what's more: People look at the human GI totally wrong anyway. They think, what can I put in to get t…

I think what he's lamenting is a lack of appreciation for the history and nuance of the field, and the presumption by software engineers that everyone else is too mired in old-world thinking to do the obviously-successful thing.

From my perspective, both sides of this argument have supporting examples, and neither takes a clear lead. I would say that hackers who throw together disruptive successes tend to be innovating on market capture, not underlying technology, otherwise they wouldn't have quite as much success without proper education. (Either that, or the hacker is working in Information Tech, where they do have insider knowledge.) That said, market-capture should equate to commercial success, so it does matter. I just don't think it's directly correlated to the innovation you're suggesting.

As for the ability of the natural genius to emerge without formal training, of course that's possible-- and increasingly likely thanks to the Web-- but it's still rare enough that I'm skeptical of the claim.

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#126

Post by baak »

zeteo wrote: post #109
saidajigumi wrote: post #75

> a 24-year-old software engineer > ... > Soylent contains all of the nutritive components of a balanced diet What utter bollocks. We're (as in, scientists studying nutrition and how utterly wrong food industry has gotten that in the 20th and early 21st century) finally starting to get our collective heads around the benefits of whole foods vs. highly processed foods, and just how badly our bodies deal with the latte…

>an impatient _software engineer_ comes along and claims to have [succeeded with a] task that specialists have so far failed at The guy who invented the spreadsheet didn't have to absorb all available accounting literature first, and Elon Musk didn't spend 30 years in the Apollo program before being allowed to send his own rocket to space. Nutrition is a field full of pseudoscience and highly susceptible to disruptio…

Elon Musk designed the rocket? All by himself? Wow! What a renaissance man.

I figured he had physicists, engineers, mathematicians, biologists, chemists, and you name it. But I guess he just read a few books on his weekends and that was enough to design and launch the rocket.

This guy is a hobbyist who is claiming his diet has cured most of his ails. You aren't the least bit suspicious of that claim?

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#127

Post by Retric »

CapitalistCartr wrote: post #107
jgj wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

First off, thanks for dampening the enthusiasm I was feeling after reading the OP. I would love to hear your thoughts on what, specifically, his formula is/may be missing. I can think of nothing more amazing than to consume a magic glass of nutrition a day and be done, and your post has given me pause.

The biggest problem isn't what he's clearly missing; its what he's missing that we don't know about, and won't suffer any consequences for years. Saidajigumi's comment about whole foods is appropriate: whole foods have better results than any manufactured powder or drink made, but its not clear why. And how long will it take before he experiences the results?

You base that on what study?

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#128

Post by ph0rque »

randomchars wrote: post #84
Kluny wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"plants that tweet when they run out of water." Get off my damn lawn.

But I was only trying to water your lawn! It sent me a DM!

"randomchars, you gotta help me... Kluny has blocked me on twitter, and I'm like literally dying without water here!"

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#129

Post by duskwuff »

SoftwareMaven wrote: post #46

From the "recipe"[1]: This mechanism can also metabolize protein and fat, but the brain can only use Glucose for energy. In fact, the brain uses 25% of the body's glucose, though it accounts for only 2% of its weight. This would have me concerned if I were considering this. While 100% true, it neglects the entire ketone metabolic pathway[2], which the brain will use fine instead of glucose. If this something big like…

Ketone metabolism works, but it's treated as if it's some kind of fallback -- it's only used when no other source of energy has been available for a few days. While it does seem like it's helpful in some situations, the way it's treated leads me to suspect it's probably harmful in the long run for otherwise healthy individuals.

Re: This Man Thinks He Never Has to Eat Again

#130

Post by grhino »

zeteo wrote: post #109
saidajigumi wrote: post #75

> a 24-year-old software engineer > ... > Soylent contains all of the nutritive components of a balanced diet What utter bollocks. We're (as in, scientists studying nutrition and how utterly wrong food industry has gotten that in the 20th and early 21st century) finally starting to get our collective heads around the benefits of whole foods vs. highly processed foods, and just how badly our bodies deal with the latte…

>an impatient _software engineer_ comes along and claims to have [succeeded with a] task that specialists have so far failed at The guy who invented the spreadsheet didn't have to absorb all available accounting literature first, and Elon Musk didn't spend 30 years in the Apollo program before being allowed to send his own rocket to space. Nutrition is a field full of pseudoscience and highly susceptible to disruptio…

He could be one of the rare ones that doesn't enjoy food, so he doesn't understand why eating food is often a social experience.

Even if it does turn out to be the perfect drink, though I would think you could find something similar as a meal substitute shake, MRE, or for people who can't chew. There's probably already a market for something like this that is being targeted.

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