The Foodie Equation: Value for Money

  • Context: Undergrad 
  • Thread starter Thread starter Oerg
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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a proposed "foodie equation" intended to evaluate the value for money of food based on various parameters such as mass, selling price, taste grade, and personal willingness to pay. Participants explore the implications of this equation in the context of consumer behavior and perceptions of value in food purchases.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant introduces the foodie equation, defining its parameters and suggesting that a value greater than 1 indicates good value for money.
  • Another participant questions the logical consistency of the equation, arguing that if consumers are rational and aware of the equation, they would not purchase food with a value less than 1.
  • Some participants argue that people often buy food that is overpriced or not worth the value, citing examples from restaurants and trendy food locations.
  • There is a discussion about the behavior of teenagers in relation to food purchases, with some asserting that they often make poor choices due to their age and financial situation.
  • One participant shares a personal anecdote about a recent experience with food after a flight, illustrating the complexities of food choices and perceived value.
  • Another participant suggests that the equation could be adapted to evaluate the cost of food ingredients, questioning whether raw ingredients could be cheaper than fast food meals.
  • Some participants express frustration over generalizations about teenagers and their spending habits, sharing their own experiences of making more economical food choices.
  • One participant clarifies that the discussion is meant to be light-hearted and not taken too seriously.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of views, with no clear consensus on the validity of the foodie equation or the behavior of consumers. Disagreements arise regarding the rationality of food choices and the generalization of teenage spending habits.

Contextual Notes

Participants highlight the complexity of consumer behavior, including factors like social trends, personal financial situations, and the subjective nature of food value, which are not fully captured by the equation.

Oerg
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Hi guys/gals

In view of the recent spate of sheer boredom englufing me, I have spent my time coming out with a foodie equation to evaluate the value of food!

[tex]V= k_m\frac{1}{k_s}(\frac{G}{50})^{\log_2?}[/tex]

[tex]k_m[/tex] represents the mass of food you are getting over the standard mass of food in a normal serving

[tex]k_s[/tex] represents the selling price of that meal over the market price of the same meal.

[tex]G[/tex] represents the grade you are giving to your food. On a scale of 1-100, how tasty is your food?

[tex]?[/tex] represents the maximum multiple of the standard mrket price you are willing to pay for that dream meal

When V=1, the value of the food is average with values of mroe than 1 considered to be value for money.

For V<1, rationalize by 1/V to compare the results linearly. The resultant value means how lousy for value the meal is, with higher values indicating lousier value for money.

Be practical about the amount of money you are willing to pay for the dream meal, of course it must be within your means.
 
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Either there is a logical inconsistency, or people are idiots and/or suckers.

If people behave rationally and they know all parameter values with certainty (a big if), then they will only buy food if V > 1.

But you defined V = 1 as the average; so there must be some people who have bought less-than-average food (otherwise, everyone would be above average, a logical impossibility). But if they are rational and know everything with certainty, they wouldn't have bought less-than-average food. Therefore they are idiots and/or suckers.
 
well people do buy food which are not worth their value, like how food is sometimes more expensive in restaurants or in places like airports whereas there may be great tasting food lying around the neighbourhood which do not cost really much but taste great!

And how people always go to this and that restaurant because it's "hip" or trendy when one can probably just get the same food at a better price somewhere else.
 
Therefore they are idiots and/or suckers
Wrong. They are teenagers. Which is synonymous with idiots who are suckers.
16 yr old males especially fall for the larger [itex]K_m[/tex] values when [itex]K_s[/tex] falls below the current value their wallet [itex]W_\$[/tex][/itex][/itex][/itex]
 
Last edited:
They are teenagers. Which is synonymous idiots who are suckers.
Generalizing? What? No body's generalizing around here— :rolleyes:
 
Yeah, Jim...jerk. Hey, start a diet from this. There's plenty of fat Americans that have a slight bit of intelligence(passed algbera) to figure out how to use this equation. Better get a patent on it.
 
binzing said:
There's plenty of fat Americans that have a slight bit of intelligence(passed algbera) to figure out how to use this equation.
It would be interesting to do a simialir equation for the cost of the food.
I doubt that in America you could buy the ingredients for a fast food meal for less than the meal costs. In fact it might not be possible to buy raw calories cheaper than a fast food soda in any form.
 
well people do buy food which are not worth their value, like how food is sometimes more expensive in restaurants or in places like airports whereas there may be great tasting food lying around the neighbourhood which do not cost really much but taste great!
Reminds me of a few things from yesterday.

When I had gotten off the plane my right ear never "popped" between cruising altitude and ground, and it felt quite painful. On the way down I could feel more pain as the altitude lessened. When I got off, I ran to the snack bar, "Snacks on the fly" and bought a milky way to shove down, hoping maybe my ear would feel better. On the plane I'd tried yawning dozens of times, sneezing once, chewing gum, drinking water, and swallowing a few horrible cinnamon candies my seat neighbor gave me.

The Milky Way still did nothing and now my ability to hear out of that ear was almost nonexistent but the pain had lessened. So I made way over to Nathan's (hot dog franchise) and bought a hot dog and french fries, maybe a meal would help; I could swallow more at a time.

Eh. Didn't work. But a hot shower and some decongestants pretty much fixed it after I drove home.
 
jim mcnamara said:
Wrong. They are teenagers. Which is synonymous with idiots who are suckers.
16 yr old males especially fall for the larger [itex]K_m[/tex] values when [itex]K_s[/tex] falls below the current value their wallet [itex]W_\$[/tex][/itex][/itex][/itex]
[itex][itex][itex] <br /> Im sorry but when I was 16 two years ago, most of my friends and I paid for our food with the money we earned. Because we paid for our own food and everything, we bought cheap but good food. I know that this isn't how most 16 year olds are, but I am just saying don't generalize so much. You seem angry or something... And then if you take a look at the 18 and 19 year olds in college, we spend barely any money on food![/itex][/itex][/itex]
 
  • #10
Mk said:
Reminds me of a few things from yesterday.

When I had gotten off the plane my right ear never "popped" between cruising altitude and ground, and it felt quite painful. On the way down I could feel more pain as the altitude lessened. When I got off, I ran to the snack bar, "Snacks on the fly" and bought a milky way to shove down, hoping maybe my ear would feel better. On the plane I'd tried yawning dozens of times, sneezing once, chewing gum, drinking water, and swallowing a few horrible cinnamon candies my seat neighbor gave me.

The Milky Way still did nothing and now my ability to hear out of that ear was almost nonexistent but the pain had lessened. So I made way over to Nathan's (hot dog franchise) and bought a hot dog and french fries, maybe a meal would help; I could swallow more at a time.

Eh. Didn't work. But a hot shower and some decongestants pretty much fixed it after I drove home.
Incidentally, I had the exact same problem when flying on Wednesday, even down to the right ear. I figured out that if I closed all of my orifices (my mouth, nose, and left ear) and blew really hard, I was able to pop it at will. After that, a simple yawn removed any remaining pressure build-up.
 
  • #11
anyway this was something i thought out of for fun :D it isn't meant to be naything serious
 
  • #12
moose said:
Im sorry but when I was 16 two years ago, most of my friends and I paid for our food with the money we earned. Because we paid for our own food and everything, we bought cheap but good food. I know that this isn't how most 16 year olds are, but I am just saying don't generalize so much. You seem angry or something... And then if you take a look at the 18 and 19 year olds in college, we spend barely any money on food!


Angry? No. Clowning around about how much food teen age boys can eat. I'm jealous.
And the point it seems I did not make clearly was that volume of food appears to count more than quality of food. YMMV.
 

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