Nathan Myhrvold: Cut your food in half

[@WhitentonMike]

I was kinda scratching my head as to why 20% or so people disliked this video. I read some of the comments and I'm still scratching my head for a different reason. There is a group of people that want all things to be pure research and the knowledge given away for free and have no commercial aspect. Then there is the group that sees no need for anything that is purely science research without a large portion being of commercial benefit. Reality is in the middle.

[@vladimirmkrtumyan2983]

Comment of the year, this should be a blogpost

[@polymath7]

This straining my patience. The title tells me nothing, and four minutes in I still haven't the slightest idea what (if anything) this talk is about. Ok, six minutes in it's finally getting of the ground and becoming interesting.

[@gulllars]

Nathan Myhrvold is one of my inspirations, a contemporary true polymath. And his lab, Intellectual Ventures, is an awesome institution.

[@pauldavies3056]

I'm relieved I don't have to cut my food consumption in half.

[@Ko252]

This is guy is multitalented genius.

[@thecatholicchoirdirector8322]

Did anyone catch what he said at 1:30? The most profound thing I have ever heard. WOW!!!

[@wits2014]

What?... "in order to learn their way of cooking, you have to go work in their restaurants"....? Or "the old way of looking at food is the old way"...? Neither of these statements are not in the least startling to me... both very apparent, to me... So what illicits the "WOW!"... from you ?

[@Stormandfire]

The book looks gorgeous and it is five volumes, which makes the $750 price tag a little easier to bear, but 'What Einstein Told His Cook" was a) cheaper and b) was what got me interested in the mechanics of cooking in the first place. And c) doesn't ask questions like "Why does conduction heat things more quickly than convection?" Answer: Most things conduct heat better than air. Easy. But pretty photography and science makes me want the book set anyway.

[@mike020363]

This guy knows more about taking food off of people's table than putting food on it.

[@Burningtree22]

4:51 ...some people think we use Photoshop, but we don't really... 5:40 ...and you suubstitute the edges, and that part uses Photoshop... I was impressed for just under a minute...

[@actigene2]

i like it :) i really appreciate the effort his team put into this book. and, it explains the science of food - i love that.

[@maggie94306]

I completely agree that this is undeserving of TED. If I want to watch commercials, they are not hard to find.

[@flipletape9706]

The title, description, and complete lack of introduction of this video are a disservice to the accomplishments of this genius. Bet that nobody here has any idea who he is and what he's done.

[@Mgaak]

Well, after watching this TED I finally can see food in cooking :D

[@MrJaiLeeworthy]

I love the one guy who laughed when he said "we don't use photoshop, we have a machine shop"

[@hansensalad]

the picture at 4:50, is that Intellectual Ventures Lab? (Pablos Holman at TEDxUCSD 0:34)

[@cuscof2]

Yes, part of it. I've been in there, and it's extremely cool. They have megawatt lasers, metal lathes, liquid nitrogen, millisecond cameras, a supercomputer, and a kitchen that could be in a 5-star restaurant. They also have a lab that grows mosquitoes (apparently that's hard to do) for another project, a laser that automatically targets and shoots only the female mosquitoes, and can select by species.

[@McPrfctday]

[@traianima]

I'm having trouble detecting the idea worth spreading here. Oh i get it, silly me ... it's a 10 minute comercial of a cookbook.

[@sr166]

Nice presentation on food and it's devilish physics of the 21st century...

[@LAnonHubbard]

I did dislike that it was advertising a book, but he made up for it with his love of science and will to educate the masses a bit more. LOL @ the partial differential equations in a cookbook!

[@thewinematcher]

um, so these techniques are found in plenty of books and online journals. Harvard has a molecular gastronomy cooking class that actually was taught by Ferrán Adriá himself.

[@ratholin]

great now I've gotta steal a book. Thanks TED.

[@korikakumei]

i WANT that book!!

[@SubconsciousGatherer]

I wonder if they can show what a club sandwich looks like being cut in half, instead of being quartered? Amazing what we can do with science these days.

[@j4y88]

I would buy that book ...

[@holisticjose]

I think I want this cookbook! Awesome

[@WombatSamurai]

The way he talks is highly entertaining. I wish he read the news.

[@jdschu01]

The old way of cooking food is the old way. WOW! That is the most profound thing I have ever heard anyone say about anything.

[@TheCriticalTwins]

Loved this talk!

[@liquidminds]

@amoswembley 375... on amazon i only found the $625 version.... 375 sounds really cheap compared to that....

[@961kgb]

when i first read the title i though it was some sort of way to help you eat less. although cutting everything in your kitchen in half does help achieve this goal, i don't think it's very effective.

[@DonRade]

why the dislikes? this guy is genius !!

[@Suertsje]

Want the book!

[@shupuwka]

characteristic flavor of the hamburger that gives it "smoked" fragrance comes from a) charcoal, b) absent if one uses gasoline-soaked wood, the you will get a gasoline taste, yuk! c) and it could be chemically enhanced by certain aldehyde (need to find out) that is used in the food industry to make "smoked" kelbasa without smoking process. Lot's and Lots of information that I only wish to have access to. One book calls "chefs companion" I need this book.... speaker might benefit from it too ;-)

[@oO_ox_O]

@YawnGod Same in French, there are people who pronounce "oui" like the sound when whirling a stick.

[@ama-tu-an-ki]

Looking at Myhrvold 10 years later, it's pretty clear he didn't cut his food in half.

[@AnNoYiNsPo0n]

'Good eats' teaches it all!

[@sophiemarissa]

I think the cookbook would make a good programme, just like heston's.

[@BenRHarsh]

@Rantandreason Because mixing up the first 2 letters is proper.

[@dylanlawless1]

Great advert!

[@SEThatered]

@sckchui It does not bother me much, i just wanted to see what people responses will be... I have a deep respect of what this man does, so i wasn't trying to troll or laugh of his pronunciation. Also i learned that apparently [hwahy] is an older version of [wahy] in "why" (requires verification)

[@dookiecheez]

Wasn't this posted like 3 months ago?

[@shupuwka]

love the fact that other trivia and calculations included in the book, and I would love to learn about different heat application. washable waterproof paper is great and spiral binder is helpful in the kitchen ;-) I will "grade" it when I see the book ;-) I hope there are something about vegan cheese chemistry or cheese chemistry at all ;-)

[@paskom0]

Brilliant!

[@enriqueDFTL]

I want to read that cookbook for the science! =)

[@SujanThapaNajus]

How is "How to see through clothing" video related to this one?

[@GeracaodeValor]

Great!

[@mtdeezy]

I would definitely buy this.

[@awesome220]

@marianopicco He must be from the south or Maine or something. Both those areas have lots of people who still do the 'hw' thing.

[@SuperCuriouss]

i have to say, my inquisite mind has always wondered about the physics and chemistry while cooking and baking.

[@Desert2GardenLV]

I thought you werent supposed to sell stuff on TED

[@kontekzt]

i want that book

[@AzjatyckiCukier]

I miss TedTalks that were about inspiration, not authors doing advertorials for their books :|

[@MoowChair]

i want this cook book...

[@Zubinen]

@zassounotsukushi It's really easy to sit on the side lines and be arm chair life coaches, but really it's all a matter of what makes him happy. If killing seals and skinning them to make custom boots makes him happy, then so be it. So long as he isn't harmful to other human beings, he has the right to do what he wants.

[@Talon3000]

That was the longest advertising for a book I ever saw.

[@InnerCityMuscle]

the title should be buy my book

[@AlgisKemezys]

great idea

[@oO_ox_O]

@2bsirius What is the rationale for eating it raw, your body can't make that much use of some foods (including vegetables) in raw form.

[@tle999yt]

Love the differential equation.

[@2bsirius]

This is my 16th day of eating a completely raw diet, so I'm not eating cooked food right now, but I still thought this was really interesting anyway.

[@P00P0STER0US]

I was waiting for the big finish when he'd cut a chef in half :( Oh well, it was interesting anyway.

[@SashaLine]

😂😂😂👍🏻

[@pusanghalaw]

or when alan dershowitz and jeffrey epstein comes out to taste mhyrvold's food - they're all close friends.

[@MsSquarebearz]

omg i have to have one!!

[@plastram]

No useful information given, instead, if you need any info, "buy the book".... is that the message??? Surprised it is a TED talk...

[@WhitentonMike]

BTW, I am not trying to pick a fight with you. I am simply defending myself against an attack by someone that doesn't know what the word troll means. So go fight your little battle and leave me out of it.

[@Truthiness231]

Inspired me to make a better lunch than the one I was going to have ^.^

[@SubconsciousGatherer]

I'd like to see this cookbook's price cut in half.

[@KaerFyzarc]

at the end I was expecting him to say "And under your seats there's a copy for each and every one of you!!" but then I remembered this isn't Oprah.

[@salahhe]

i wonder how many vids they made before they got the perfect corn pop

[@miltonparedes5883]

Jesus I had my headphones at max an this opening almost blew my head off

[@zwete]

I want that book, but damn it's expensive.

[@Stonegoal]

I thought TED didn't promote books. This video could have used much more info.

[@HannahIsUnoriginal]

02:02 'allows you to see all of HHWATS happening, HHWHILE the broccoli steams...'

[@scarfprickles]

@dudejohnny seems I missed the bit where I wasn't being sold anything.

[@readinguni99]

This guy doesn't need to sell his book by virtue of the fact that he is already incredibly rich due to his numerous far mor lucrative ventures.

[@jz2450]

Amazing achievement

[@Craigzoidz]

Misleading title is misleading.

[@SuperRmck]

@HannahIsUnoriginal Don't forget the unnecessary emphasis on the E in steams.

[@chefawkes]

there's so much important stuff for me to learn. i really don't need to know this.

[@Mystery207]

@OcularPolitics Me Too! I hope there is a point.

[@evilresidence4]

0:53 HWHY

[@toyvoicerecords]

hwhat?

[@Aresftfun]

@gaiagale The intro is fine...

[@aqwertyz]

I want that book. One day when I'm filthy rich and able to shell out $600 for a book. That thing's more expensive than a college textbook.

[@Nyxion95]

Is this an ad for a book?

[@Jotto999]

Cool!

[@EvanGuerra]

he is speaking correctly!

[@piprod01]

Patent Troll 101: 1. Buy broad patents for things that are obvious in the technology sector. 2. Don't do anything with the patent and wait until start-ups do that obvious thing unwittingly. 3. Threaten to sue those companies unless they agree to pay huge settlements.

[@groMMit1981]

aside from a book promo.......I don't see why this is on TED.......TED advertising I suppose. Can you get Intel in next or the guy behind Onlive?

[@sanoonbs]

washable waterproof paper?

[@AbuHaddadin56]

This guy is selling his book...

[@nelson32]

he says "why" funny.

[@daved.truong763]

words that begin with a "wh" have been traditionally pronounced like that. Ever notice the word "who" is pronounced "hoo" and now "woo"?

[@nelson32]

Difference between traditional and contemporary.. In your argument why stop there.. Let's all talk like the colonialists use to talk.. You maybe right but still doesn't change the fact the he says why funny

[@andrewbalio2381]

TED is no longer the gatekeeper for quality. It is over. Hopefully another org will come along that is what TED used to be. They are one big advertising agency for big business, agribusiness, big pharma, the PC mafia and the academic attention-seekers..

[@ethervillain]

This Ted talk is merely a blatant advertisement for a book peppered with self pats on the back. Disappointing.

[@ralphpurtcher]

Perhaps that's a bit cynical. Most TED talks are given by people who've written a book - blatant or not I'm sure all of these authors want people to read their books. Nathan Myhrvold is a billionaire, so he doesn't need the money from a book - he just wants to share something info he finds interesting.

[@oO_ox_O]

@ChioCytosine Didn't he tried to do it the whole time?

[@waysworth]

Seems that TED, on occasion has a lapse in good judgment in choices of its guests: sometimes it value of the talk, sometimes character of the guest, and sometimes both. Come on TED, I've recommended a lot of people to go o this site for intellectually stimulating talks by extraordinary speakers, please don't make me look a fool.

[@enzyme20056]

cool whip

[@porkypine1888]

O.o i wanna buy one now >.>

[@DonDuracell]

That book costs over 400 €!

[@heltok]

I wanted to get the book but it was $700 :(

[@dd.t.4227]

When people ask me what type of food I like, I tell them I don't think about food that much. I eat when I'm hungry. The friends I have and people I know who are foodies, who buy cooking magazines and try out recipes constantly, are always overweight. Too much emphasis on food will do that to you. They're the people who complain that they can't lose weight, even though they go to the gym 4X a week. Weight loss is 85% diet, excercise only about 15%. No wonder they're still overweight.

[@clearmenser]

Gorgeous!