3 ms·

Literally the first sentence in the article: "Gum arabic, a vital ingredient used in everything...." The identity of this secret isn't what makes this article

Literally the first sentence in the article: "Gum arabic, a vital ingredient used in everything...." The identity of this secret isn't what makes this article worth reading.

latexr 2y ago
I know it’s in the first sentence, I read the article, that’s how I know what the ingredient is. The point of my comment was to reduce the click-bait so people are better informed regarding if they want to read more or not, and provide an easy reference for more information.
- btbuildem 2y ago
  Exactly. How hard would it have been to include the two words "gum arabic" in the title in the first place?
  - hnlmorg 2y ago
    Probably because the article is about how this important ingredient is smuggled rather than a list of ingredients for popular drinks and snacks. And also probably because the article is featured on general audience site rather than a scientific or culinary journal. I get that people hate clickbait headlines but this is hardly misleading, impossibly vague nor exaggerated.
    - bena 2y ago
      "How gum arabic, a key ingredient in Coca-Cola, M&M's, is smuggled from war-torn Sudan".
      - hnlmorg 2y ago
        Sure. But now you have a more verbose heading that places the emphasis (by being earlier in the title) on information that’s not actually relevant to the article itself. While also making is sound less accessible to the general audience of that specific website. In short, that’s not an improvement. This is a classic case of the HN crowd not understanding that different audiences are interested in different details.
        bena 2y ago
        Personally, I'd flip it around to make Sudan the lead in. And it's two words, you could make other cuts if you want. However, at this point, you arguing a matter of taste. I don't think Coca-Cola or M&Ms are relevant to the article itself. Gum arabic isn't that uncommon. I mean, this is a largely software developer focused crowd and a lot of people here were like "Ah, gum arabic".
- pvg 2y ago
  It mostly creates a thread of meta, as you can see.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]

Literally the first sentence in the article: "Gum arabic, a vital ingredient used in everything...." The identity of this secret isn't what makes this article worth reading.

latexr 2y ago

I know it’s in the first sentence, I read the article, that’s how I know what the ingredient is. The point of my comment was to reduce the click-bait so people are better informed regarding if they want to read more or not, and provide an easy reference for more information.

btbuildem 2y ago
Exactly. How hard would it have been to include the two words "gum arabic" in the title in the first place?
- hnlmorg 2y ago
  Probably because the article is about how this important ingredient is smuggled rather than a list of ingredients for popular drinks and snacks. And also probably because the article is featured on general audience site rather than a scientific or culinary journal. I get that people hate clickbait headlines but this is hardly misleading, impossibly vague nor exaggerated.
  - bena 2y ago
    "How gum arabic, a key ingredient in Coca-Cola, M&M's, is smuggled from war-torn Sudan".
    - hnlmorg 2y ago
      Sure. But now you have a more verbose heading that places the emphasis (by being earlier in the title) on information that’s not actually relevant to the article itself. While also making is sound less accessible to the general audience of that specific website. In short, that’s not an improvement. This is a classic case of the HN crowd not understanding that different audiences are interested in different details.
      - bena 2y ago
        Personally, I'd flip it around to make Sudan the lead in. And it's two words, you could make other cuts if you want. However, at this point, you arguing a matter of taste. I don't think Coca-Cola or M&Ms are relevant to the article itself. Gum arabic isn't that uncommon. I mean, this is a largely software developer focused crowd and a lot of people here were like "Ah, gum arabic".
pvg 2y ago
It mostly creates a thread of meta, as you can see.

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]