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Why do you consider the cook "a poor sod"? Because he/she is working a job and making a living? I imagine you didn't mean much by it but understand that just be

Why do you consider the cook "a poor sod"? Because he/she is working a job and making a living? I imagine you didn't mean much by it but understand that just because everyone isn't employed in what many consider desirable professions doesn't mean their work is not important or that they don't take pride in what they do. Not meant to be a rant, just wanted to make the point.

Fellshard 8y ago
You'd be amazed how much satisfaction you can get out of learning to keep a steady stream of perfectly-crispy fries going. It's quite fun on a busy day - hectic, but strategic, and rewarding when you can stay on top of things _and_ produce minimal waste in the process. In some sense, the automation of demand prediction takes some of the fun out of gaining that intuition yourself. On the other hand, it is nice not to be the queue blocker with orders piling up behind you because you weren't prepared for a sudden burst of traffic...
- laurentl 8y ago
  Okay, looking at it as the computer helping you stay in the flow is certainly a different perspective.
  - Fellshard 8y ago
    It might be looking back on my time in fast food with a slightly more romanticized lens than most would probably give it. :)
    - zaroth 8y ago
      There’s a short-order chef game my kids play on the iPad, you can practically see the endorphins pumping when they manage to serve all the customers in time. The human brain is definitely wired for this sort of thing.
    - loco5niner 8y ago
      Me too probably. I loved my fast food job in high school. That said, I'm glad I'm not still doing it.
cloverich 8y ago
I actually interpreted the comment a bit differently. I read it that the employee who used to have some autonomy on when to make adjustments is now doing it because the computer, which they (perhaps) have no control or insight into, is telling them to. I'm sure there's more nuance and people who would view that instruction differently. But to the comments direction, I'd assumed it was alluding to a dystopia of sorts where we do more and more things "because Computer™ said so".
- laurentl 8y ago
  Yes, that’s exactly it. In hindsight, “sod” wasn’t the right term to use (that’s what you get for posting at midnight) but the point I wanted to make was the removal of meaning, autonomy and human interaction when not only are you doing a repetitive job, but how you’re doing it is dictated by a machine. The movie Brazil came to mind, although I’m sure there are better parallels to make.

Fellshard 8y ago

You'd be amazed how much satisfaction you can get out of learning to keep a steady stream of perfectly-crispy fries going. It's quite fun on a busy day - hectic, but strategic, and rewarding when you can stay on top of things _and_ produce minimal waste in the process. In some sense, the automation of demand prediction takes some of the fun out of gaining that intuition yourself. On the other hand, it is nice not to be the queue blocker with orders piling up behind you because you weren't prepared for a sudden burst of traffic...

laurentl 8y ago
Okay, looking at it as the computer helping you stay in the flow is certainly a different perspective.
- Fellshard 8y ago
  It might be looking back on my time in fast food with a slightly more romanticized lens than most would probably give it. :)
  - zaroth 8y ago
    There’s a short-order chef game my kids play on the iPad, you can practically see the endorphins pumping when they manage to serve all the customers in time. The human brain is definitely wired for this sort of thing.
  - loco5niner 8y ago
    Me too probably. I loved my fast food job in high school. That said, I'm glad I'm not still doing it.

cloverich 8y ago

I actually interpreted the comment a bit differently. I read it that the employee who used to have some autonomy on when to make adjustments is now doing it because the computer, which they (perhaps) have no control or insight into, is telling them to. I'm sure there's more nuance and people who would view that instruction differently. But to the comments direction, I'd assumed it was alluding to a dystopia of sorts where we do more and more things "because Computer™ said so".

laurentl 8y ago
Yes, that’s exactly it. In hindsight, “sod” wasn’t the right term to use (that’s what you get for posting at midnight) but the point I wanted to make was the removal of meaning, autonomy and human interaction when not only are you doing a repetitive job, but how you’re doing it is dictated by a machine. The movie Brazil came to mind, although I’m sure there are better parallels to make.