Stages of Fullness
Last night, my family went to have a buffet with the extended family to celebrate 中秋節 (mid-autumn festival). Now, depending on ones particular mindset, the goal of a buffet is to either:
- Obtain maximum enjoyment for a fixed price, or
- Try to get as maximum value out of your initial outlay — usually via cramming as much food into the stomach as possible.
Now, the above sounds similar to the Knapsack problem, but this discussion is beyond the scope of this post. All that should be noted is that it is very rare (nigh impossible) to simultaneously satisfy both of the above two points.
What this post is concerned about, is the latter of the points — as I believe many people out there (particularly Asians) adopt the “eat your money’s worth” mentality at a buffet. Even when they’re quite satiated, they’ll keep shoveling food down just so they feel they’re getting their money’s worth.
Of course, most non-professional eaters hit rapidly diminishing returns once they reach a certain level of fullness. Beyond this point, each morsel swallowed no longer brings enjoyment — you’re simply eating for the sake of value (i.e. trying not getting ripped off as much).
Those of you who have been on gastronomic adventures with me, often hear me talking about different stages of fullness. This is simply my own metric for describing the level of fullness in a somewhat consistent manner. That way, if I tell someone that I’m “stage 3″ full, they’ll know how I’m (and more importantly, my stomach is) feeling.
The only problem is, I’ve never formally defined these different stages. And so, without further ado, I present to you — Keith’s Stages of Fullness.