a faint smile in appreciation of 'rational' defense of chocolate enjoyment
preferences creeps onto my lips......the duration/intensity curves for
various experiences in life varies greatly for me .... i also preferred my
chocolate slow becoz of the self-imposed restraints of not more than 2
pieces from Lindt 85%, per day.

-s.

Alex> at Mon, 08 Dec 2003 02:36:02 GMT in
Alex> >, (Suvrit)
Alex> wrote :

>> i prefer my chocolates frozen --- gives them more time in my mouth and
>> thus a longer span of enjoyment

Alex> Interesting. I think there may be 2 leanings: those who prefer the "maximum
Alex> intensity" approach to sensory experience, and those who prefer the
Alex> "maximum duration". Proponents of the first approach would try to condense
Alex> all the sensation into the shortest time at the greatest strength, those of
Alex> the second to spread out the sensation at lower power into a longer time.

Alex> I know I'm definitely of the former school. Not just in chocolate, but in
Alex> essentially any other pleasant sensation, I'd find complete contentment in
Alex> experiencing infinite strength for the briefest instant, while a continual
Alex> experience of the sensation at a low level for eternity would be entirely
Alex> unsatisfying. In a similar vein, unpleasant sensations to me are much worse
Alex> if they're intensely unpleasant for a short time as opposed to somewhat
Alex> unpleasant for a long time. I can withstand a dull pain for hours without
Alex> it bothering me, while a sharp pain that lasts only a moment is torture.
Alex> For instance, for me the pain of a twisted ankle is far better than the
Alex> pain of a hypodermic needle, so that I'd rather put up with that pain for a
Alex> day or so than get an injection of anesthetic to make it go away.

Alex> With chocolate, it makes sense you'd prefer frozen chocolate if you were of
Alex> the "duration" school because it diminishes the intensity of flavour but
Alex> spreads it out over a longer time. Likewise, since I'm of the "intensity"
Alex> school, I prefer slightly warm chocolate that lasts less but packs more of
Alex> a punch. I wonder if this might also have an effect on choice of chocolate,
Alex> e.g. for the same amount of total cocoa solids intake, might a duration
Alex> person prefer milk chocolate where an intensity person would head for
Alex> bittersweet?

Alex> --
Alex> Alex Rast
Alex>
Alex> (remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)

--
odium veritas parit