h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I read in this months Discover magazine about a study in Milan, Italy. A group of doctors determined that people who don't eat "lots" of pizza are about twice as likely to have a heart attack as people who do eat "lots" of pizza.

Junk food, my ass! Pizza to the rescue. I just wish they had said how much "lots" was.

It said the doctors were baffled as to why this trend would occur. ...Probably almost as baffled as I am as to who the hell would spend money, instead of trying to find a cure for AIDS, cancers, mad cow prions, avian influenzas, you name it, something worth studying, but instead spend it on the longterm effects of pizza on the cardiopulmonary system.

That does it. I'm moving into a cave, and not coming out till it's all over. And by it, I mean civilization. Because there is no way a society that studies pizza as a life saving device can not go belly up soon.

Until then, take it easy. ...and eat "lots" of pizza!

I suspect pizza made in Milan is 'real' food, not fast food at all I mean it'll be made with fresh ingredietns and not an additive or flavour enhancer/colour enhancer in sight

True dat, but people in Milan (and the rest of Italy) eat so many different kinds of pastas that to do a study that finds out pizza is the one responsible would have cost even more money and brainpower than doing the study stateside, or anywhere else.

It's like picking a needle out of a haystack made of needles.

In addition, I've been to La Maddelena, Italy, and the only fat people there were the americans I was with. Everyone over there walks everywhere, gets lots of exercize... I think this study is a big waste of money brains and time. ...in the computer nerd business, we shorten that to WOMBAT!

mmmmmmmmmmmm pizza...

don't get me wrong... I'm not complaining. I'm grateful to the scientists who told me what I believed all along, about pizza being better for you than my mom liked to admit.

I just think its a colossal waste of time, is all.

I love pizza.

mmmmmmm wasting time.

I love pizza too. That's the single most sucky thing about living in Japan, there's no decent pizza here, at least not like the kinda I love.

mmmmmmmmm...pizza...

Isn't it, like, tomorrow there? ...What's the future, like?

Anyway, no good pizza, eh? ...Do they have American restaurants there? I always wonder that, because we have Japanese restaurants, as well as English pubs and italian, you know all this.

But do those places have their equivalents?

I went to an American place in Greece (crete) once, but it was just stylized. Looked like a 50's diner with lots of neon, jukeboxes, and lamb served with grape leaves and hummous.

Kinda ruined the illusion. They did have good Root Beer floats, though!

Yeah, to you it's tomorrow at 8am here. The future is raining so far.

There are probably "real" ethnic restaraunts in big cities like Tokyo. But no mexican anywhere....i'd almost kill for a S.F. burrito.

Generally there are american and italian restaraunts and such around but they are the japanese take on these things so they never taste quite how your psyche is hoping for.

ps, in case you haven't followed the invasion of the vogons, the latest battleground is here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/brunel/F112778?thread=609121

Japanese take. Righty-O.

...does that mean I'm eating an American take every time I go to a Sushi Restaurant?

Is anything markedly different (i.e. wrong) with American Japanese restaurants?

And have you tried any of that fugu pufferfish yet?

And have you yet decided that the opposite of white is red?

I love Japanese food but I don't have a sashimi chef that I like enough to trust with fugu.

One of the best things about America is that you can genuinely experience other cultures there. Most of the ethnic places I ate in in S.F were genuine because there's real immigrants/descendents who set the place up; and real immigrants who want to eat real food go there. Seattle has lots of Japanese, so chances are good that the food is genuine.

Japan on the other hand is still mostly japanese so you get stuff like hamburgers with fish sauce on 'em and pizza with...*shudders*...seafood and Mayonaise. Blagh.

p.s. California Roll (obviously) and teriyaki are not real japanese cuisine and even tempura is actually portugese (though quite popular here.)

Not that the Japanese take is bad, in fact (except for the pizza) it's usually quite good. Just...different. Which is fine, but not when one is looking for one's comfort food, ya know?

Oh, and post a new movie quote!