June 24, 2006
Random thoughts from an undisclosed location
Hi, back for a bit. Who knew this retreat involved so many Xeroxes? Anyway, some thoughts.
1. The press corps and the Prisoner's Dilemma
I am not the only person to have watched American news organizations over the last decade and wondered, "WTF? No, really, WTF?" Because I am crass, my first guess at an explanation was, "Money." Because I am extremely crass, my second guess was, "P&B, you know how they live."
But, since I do know how some of them live, I understood that these explanations were, at best, incomplete.
My third guess has to do with the game theory of asymmetrical information access. And, unfortunately, it's not something I know enough about to think further on. Suggestions?
2. Milman Parry.
Parry is an unrecognized keystone figure in the intellectual history of the twentieth century. And that's an interesting list in itself; I would be interested to learn what other figures HDTD's readers would add.
3. Incremental hedonic progress and the invention of mayonnaise.
The ingredients in mayonnaise have been known since before history began. But put together as a commonly used sauce? Not until the early modern era, and good luck trying to track the history down.
How many other small improvements to the human condition have been made whose provenance has been lost, and whose existence we take for granted? Enough little things can add up to a big thing. Mmm, mayonnaise.
Posted by coyu at June 24, 2006 08:47 PMParry is an unrecognized keystone figure in the intellectual history of the twentieth century.
I think that I spend too much time around Anglo-Saxonists, because my first thought upon reading this was, "But everyone is familiar with oral-formulaic theory!"
Posted by: Andrew Reeves at June 26, 2006 06:28 AMNecessity is the mother of invention – from Minorca to Marengo.
-
Les origines de la mayonnaise
L’origine de la mayonnaise est controversée. Un certain nombre de sauces semblables existaient d’ailleurs déjà avant le XVIIIe siècle, telles que l’aïoli (œuf, huile et ail) ou la bayonnaise de Bayonne (huile, épices, gelée de poisson au lieu de l’œuf).
La mayonnaise entre dans l’histoire en tant que Mahonnaise au milieu du XVIIIe siècle, en souvenir de la prise de la forteresse Port-Mahon à Minorque (Baléares) par le Maréchal Richelieu. Confrontés à un maigre ravitaillement, les cuisiniers de l’armée française durent, pendant de longues périodes, se contenter presque uniquement d’huile et d’œufs. C’est ainsi que naquit par hasard la première mayonnaise. Le retour de l’armée en France, où l’on ne connaissait que les sauces liées et cuisinées, offrit de nouvelles possibilités à la cuisine française, grâce à cette sauce uniquement battue, «à la mode de Richelieu». Au XIXe siècle, le maître gastronomique Carême donna un nouveau style plus léger et raffiné à la culture culinaire. Sa mayonnaise, «douce et délicieuse», sera souvent mentionnée dans les écrits de cette époque, et il la rendra célèbre jusqu’en Angleterre et en Russie.
But we English often still prefer salad cream. Terry Pratchett, growing rhapsodic about salad cream sandwiches in one of his discworld books, added a wonderful note at the bottom of the page *
* For those of you for whom the tradition calls for mayonnaise; don’t ask, just … don’t ask.
Carlos, whither my other Cairo posts?
Posted by: Luke at June 29, 2006 11:11 AMSorry, man. Migraines and overwork.
I mean, too much pudding!
This weekend.
Posted by: Carlos at June 29, 2006 02:16 PMOf the above: I read through the first paragraph before I remembered that I can't bloody well read French. My punk-ass subconscious just showing off.
-Frankie «douce et délicieuse»
Posted by: L’origine de la Francoise Burdett est controversée at June 30, 2006 11:24 PM