We blind-tasted three cabernet sauvignon wines, one of which (the most expensive) was described by Wine Spectator as "extremely well done ... with style and panache." Our response was somewhat different.
I bought three red wines at different prices
to see if my coworkers could tell the difference.
🍷
Would they be able to tell which wine was the most expensive?
Check out the video to
see our results
In any given grocery store, you might find a couple dozen types of
beer. But glance over to the wine section, and you'll see maybe a
hundred different bottles with prices ranging from a couple bucks to a
small fortune.
How does this make sense?
Americans drink seven times more beer than
wine. And most of us can't tell so-called "good wines" from bad ones.
The ambiguity of wine is presumably what gives rise to the sizable
industry around wine competitions, sommeliers, ratings, and commentary that often sounds more like poetry than a beverage review. ("Yellowing and leesy in character, with a deep, brooding style.")
In a 2007 essay, Princeton economist Richard Quandt discussed "the two principal sources of bullshit" in life: First, there are some subjects that tend to induce an unusually large
amount of bullshit ... Equally importantly, there are some people who
engage in bullshit with greater frequency than the average; they have a
special propensity to bullshit, perhaps habitually or compulsively or
just for the fun of it ... In some instances, there is an unhappy
marriage between a subject that especially lends itself to bullshit and
bullshit artists who are impelled to comment on it. I fear that wine is
one of those instances where this unholy union is in effect."
Therein lies the problem with wine: you have the science of turning a
great fruit into a great drink. Then you have what are seemingly
objective quality variables like balance and complexity. But layered
onto that is a mountain of subjective opinions, people trying to prove
their sophistication, and a whole lot of marketing. The nature of wine
makes it really hard to tell the difference between expertise, nonsense,
and personal preference.
Take wine comments, for example. There's no doubt that people can
learn through training how to identify different grapes and regions, and
develop the vocabulary to distinguish and describe subtle flavors and
aromas. But at the same time, people are always vulnerable to the
influence of their expectations. And time and again, researchers have
been able to trick even expert wine tasters.
By dyeing a white wine red, researchers at the University of Bordeaux showed
how easily visual cues can dominate wine students' sense of smell. When
they thought the white wine was a red one, they described it using
words commonly applied to red wines (incidentally, those words are
typically dark objects like red berries or wood).
Another powerful cue is price.
We can't help but associate price with
quality, and most of the time it's probably a good assumption that
you're paying more for a reason.
But does that association hold up for
wine?
Buy three red wines at different prices to see if coworkers could tell the difference.
Would they be able to tell which wine was the most expensive?
Protein is a great source of energy during the day, but at night it will only keep you awake. Not only will it keep you awake, but if you eat too much you will also gain weight. Carrying extra weight on your body can even lead to a sleep disorder such as insomnia. Protein also blocks the activity of serotonin and without serotonin your body won't be able to relax or fall asleep.
Sleeping longer and deeper has been shown to boost serotonin
concentration in platelets around the body during waking hours – try to
disconnect yourself before sleep and wind down. Alternatively, light
from devices, especially blue light and visual stimulation can trigger
excitatory neurons that may keep you awake for longer.
Protein is great for keeping you alert and giving you energy, but if you eat it in excess it will keep you awake. Stay away from meats and poultry that may be high in fat before bedtime as they may also cause indigestion. When you consume meat during the day, make sure that it is lean. Your body needs protein but make sure not to do overdo it because it will keep you awake at night.
👍 Bananas 😴💤
If bananas aren't already a favorite food of yours, then you should think about adding them to your diet. People don't normally think of bananas as a food that can help you sleep better, but the truth is they are one of the best when it comes to sleep aid. In order to fall asleep you need to feel relaxed. In order to feel relaxed you need to relieve all the tension in your muscles that has been built up over the day. This is where bananas come in! Bananas are rich in potassium and magnesium which are both natural muscle relaxants. The more relaxed your muscles are the easier it will be to fall asleep. Need to unwind after a long day? Eat a banana.
👎 Spicy Foods 😒 Spicy foods are great for adding a little flavor to your meal at dinner, but you will regret it when you bedtime rolls around. Spicy foods cause indigestion which could keep you up all night. If that isn't bad enough just know that the side effects don't end there. Heartburn and nausea are both common side effects of spicy foods as well. These types of side effects could have you tossing and turning all night. On top of that, depending on what you eat you may need to take multiple trips to the bathroom. Although spicy foods seem like a good idea at the time, they could have a big impact on how you sleep. It's OK to eat spicy foods every once in a while but don't do it before bedtime.
👍 Toast 😴💤 Do you have too much energy before bedtime? Do you need to wind down? Toast could be just the thing you need. Foods that are rich in carbohydrates cause a spike in your blood sugar levels. When your blood sugar levels rise your body produces insulin in order to bring them back down. When your body produces the insulin, it causes you to become sleepy. Another great benefit of the insulin is that it triggers a release of serotonin and tryptophan in your body which will make you feel relaxed. Toast is not only good for breakfast, it's also a great snack before bedtime.
👎 Chocolate 😒 Thinking about having a nice sweet little snack before bedtime? Think again! We all know caffeine is notorious for keeping us awake, but it might surprise you to know that most chocolate contains caffeine. Dark chocolate can contain up to 30 milligrams of caffeine, which is the same as a cup of tea. Chocolate also contains theobromine which is another stimulant. Theobromine is known to increase your heart rate as well as cause sleeplessness. Sounds like a pretty big price to pay just because you wanted to indulge your sweet tooth. If you're making a list of foods to consume before bedtime, make sure to leave chocolate off of it.
👍 Cherries 😴💤
In order to fall in to a deep sleep your body needs to produce a healthy amount of melatonin. According to research, cherries are one of the only natural food sources of melatonin. Increasing the melatonin in your body will help control your body's internal clock and regulate your sleep patterns. The problem with cherries is that they are out of season for ten months a year. During the months when cherries are out of season, cherry juice and dried cherries make great substitutes. It is recommended that if you want to enjoy the sleep benefits of cherries, that you eat them an hour before bedtime. Not only will cherries help you sleep but they are also a great source of vitamin C. On top of all that they taste great as well!
👎 Alcohol 😴 😒 Quite a few people get in the habit of having a drink to help them fall asleep. Alcohol tends to make you drowsy so it should make you sleep better right? Wrong.
Alcohol is good for helping you fall asleep fast but not much else.Your body won't go into a very deep sleep under the influence of alcohol and you won't feel as rested as you normally would when you wake up. You may experience night sweats, headaches, and frequent awakenings if you drink alcohol before bedtime. If you can't avoid drinking alcohol then it is best for your body if you stop drinking it 4 to 6 hours before you plan on sleeping. When you find yourself drinking before bedtime make sure to drink a glass of water for each alcoholic drink you have. Drinking water will make the effects of the alcohol less severe.
👍 Cereal 😴
Believe it or not, carbs are good for sleep. That doesn't meant it's a good idea to binge on cookies or pasta before bedtime, but cereal is a different story. Cereals such as shredded wheat contain complex carbs. Complex carbs are the type of carbs that are good for you. Cereal also goes great with milk, which also helps promote sleep. You can kill two birds with one stone by eating cereal as a before-bedtime snack. Make sure to avoid cereals that are high in sugar. Grab a nice bowl of cereal, top it off with some milk, and enjoy a good nights sleep.
👎 Coffee 😒 Coffee is great for getting you going in the morning, but it's definitely not a good choice if you are searching for something to help you fall asleep. Coffee is high in caffeine and caffeine will keep you up all night. Although some people have the opposite reaction and find that caffeine calms them down, that type of reaction is very rare. Caffeine also has many side effects that will make it harder for you to fall asleep. Side effects of caffeine include anxiety, heart problems and diarrhea. Coffee has also been known to make you jittery and cause your body to shake. All of these side effects will surely make you very uncomfortable while trying to fall asleep. Stay away from coffee before bedtime.
👎 Jasmine Rice 😒 Jasmine rice is easy to eat, low in fat and great before bedtime. Jasmine rice ranks high on the glycemic index and your body digests it slowly. While your body is digesting the rice slowly it will gradually release glucose into the bloodstream. It is suggested that you eat jasmine rice 4 hours before bedtime. Studies have show that eating jasmine rice 4 hours before bedtime will help you fall asleep much faster than you normally would. It is also believed that jasmine rice helps your body produce tryptophan. More tryptophan in your body means more serotonin which means better sleep for you. If you want a before-bedtime snack, jasmine rice is perfect. Just remember to eat it 4 hours before you plan on sleeping.
👍 Oatmeal 😴 Oatmeal is normally thought of as a breakfast food, but it is great for helping you fall asleep. If you're having trouble getting some rest, a warm bowl of oatmeal might be exactly what you need. Not only is oatmeal easy to prepare, but it's also rich in calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon and potassium. All of those ingredients combined create the perfect recipe for sleep.
Just make sure you don't go overboard when it comes to the sweeteners. Too much sugar can have the opposite effect that you are looking for. If you are looking to indulge your sweet tooth, then skip the sugar and add some bananas. If you want to sleep great then don't skip the oatmeal!
👎 Celery 😒 Many people think that eating vegetables before bedtime will help them sleep. The truth is that's not always the case. When it comes to celery, it's a bad choice before bedtime due to the fact that it's a natural diuretic. Because it is a natural diuretic it will cause you urinate more frequently throughout the night. Diuretics push water through your system and elevate the rate of urination. This will cause you to wake up several times during the night to pee which won't make for a good nights sleep. Celery is good for you, but not before bedtime.
👍 Fish 😴 💤 Have you ever thought about having a nice seafood dinner to help you sleep better at night? The truth is that might not be such a bad idea. Fish is great for you due to the fact that it contains Omega 3. Omega 3 is a fatty acid that helps fight blood pressure. Eating fish will also help your body produce serotonin and melatonin. Better production of these important chemicals will help you sleep better and longer. Some people take fish oil supplements to get the same effect, but there is no evidence to support that fish oil supplements will help you sleep better. If you want a good nights sleep make sure you get your Omega 3 straight from the fish itself.
👎 Ice Cream 😒
We know it's tough to resist, but ice cream is not a good choice before bedtime if you want to fall asleep. Ice cream is high in fat and eating it before bed won't give your body a chance to burn that fat. Ice cream is also high in sugar which will give your body energy. Not only will your body not be able to burn the fat, but the sugar will be stored and turned in to fat. This means consuming ice cream before bed is just a lose-lose situation for your body. Consuming foods that are high in sugar before bed can also cause you to have nightmares. If you're looking for a food to help you fall asleep, ice cream is definitely not the right choice.
👍 Milk 💤😴💤 At one point or another everyone has been told to drink a glass of warm milk if they are having trouble sleeping. The reason why so many people suggest it is because drinking milk before bed actually does help you fall asleep. The ingredient in milk that helps you sleep is called tryptophan. Tryptophan is a strong amino acid that can promote sleep. Your body cannot produce tryptophan on its own, which is why it must be consumed through foods. Tryptophan assists your body in creating niacin, a B level vitamin that is essential to creating serotonin. Your body uses serotonin as a catalyst for sleep. *
Other foods that are good sources of tryptophan include bananas, peanuts and pumpkin seeds.
Massage therapy has been found to promote the release of serotonin and decrease the stress hormone cortisol, making it an appealing non-pharmaceutical addition to depression and anxiety treatment plans. You don't even need a professional massage to reap the benefits.
What Is Serotonin?
Digestion: Most of your body’s serotonin is in your GI tract where it helps control your bowel function and plays a role in protecting your gut. Your gut can increase serotonin release to speed digestion to rid your body of irritating foods or toxic products. Serotonin also plays a part in reducing your appetite while eating.
And, for most people, frequent contact with good friends makes us feel content.
That is, unless you’re really, really smart.
In a 2016 paper published in the British Journal of Psychology,
researchers Norman Li and Satoshi Kanazawa report that highly
intelligent people experience lower life satisfaction when they
socialize with friends more frequently. These are the Sherlocks and the Newt Scamanders of the world — the very intelligent few who would be happier if they were left alone.
To come to this conclusion, the researchers analyzed the survey
responses of 15,197 individuals between the ages of 18 and 28. Their
data was a part of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health —
a survey that measures life satisfaction, intelligence, and health.
Analysis of this data revealed that being around dense crowds of people
typically leads to unhappiness, while socializing with friends typically
leads to happiness — that is, unless the person in question is highly
intelligent.
The authors explain these findings with the “savanna theory of
happiness,” noting how different our world is than that of our Pleistocene-era
ancestors. The savanna theory of happiness is the idea that life
satisfaction is not only determined by what’s happening in the present
but also influenced by the ways our ancestors may have reacted
to the event. Evolutionary psychology argues that, just like any other
organ, the human brain has been designed for and adapted to the
conditions of an ancestral environment. Therefore, the researchers
argue, our brains may have trouble comprehending and dealing with
situations that are unique to the present.
The two factors that differ the most between ancestral and
modern life are population density and how frequently humans socialize
with friends. Today, most of us are around more people and spend less
time with friends than our ancestors. But not the exceptionally smart
among us: The authors argue that less intelligent people are affected by
the savanna theory more than highly intelligent people.
“In general, more intelligent individuals are more likely to
have ‘unnatural’ preferences and values that our ancestors did not
have,” Kanazawa tells Inverse. “It is extremely natural for
species like humans to seek and desire friendships and, as a result,
more intelligent individuals are likely to seek them less.”
The survey results also revealed that smarter people were less likely to feel that they benefited from friendships, but they actually socialized more than less intelligent people.
Intelligence is believed to have evolved as a psychological
mechanism to solve novel problems — the sort of challenges that weren’t a
regular part of life. For our ancestors, frequent contact with friends
and allies was a necessity that allowed them to survive. Being highly
intelligent, however, meant an individual was more likely to be able to
solve problems without another person’s help, which in turn diminished
the importance of their friendships.
Because highly intelligent people do not necessarily prefer what
their ancestors would have wanted, they are more comfortable in urban
settings, the authors write. Historically, people tended to live
comfortably in groups of around 150: the typical size of a Neolithic
village was 150, Roman military units were usually 120 men, and the
average company size of a World War II army was 180. Densely packed
urban centers, in contrast, are thought to bring about isolation and depression
because they do not foster close relationships. But a busy, alienating
place has less of a negative effect on more intelligent people.
“In general, urbanites have higher average intelligence than
ruralites do, possibly because more intelligent individuals are better
able to live in ‘unnatural’ settings of high population density,” says
Kanazawa.
That certainly doesn’t mean that if you enjoy being around your
friends that you’re unintelligent. But it does mean that the really
smart person you know who spends much of their time alone isn’t a sad
loner — they probably just like it that way.
Sarah Sloat is a writer based in Brooklyn. She has previously
written for The New Republic, Pacific Standard, and McSweeney's
Internet Tendency. She likes cheese especially when paired with a
full-bodied joke.
Hahei Beach - New Zealand
Orca Filmed Playing with Human
Judie Johnson had been out for a swim off Hahei beach in New Zealand when she found herself with unexpected company. The woman said: ‘It was so different to anything that’s happened to me before, and I thought, no, this is a life-changing experience.’
The incredible encounter was captured on drone by Australian tourist Dylan Brayshaw who watched from the beach.
Brayshaw said he was surprised to see Johnson return to the ocean after the first encounter with the orca.
Filmed on 4 December at Hahei Beach on the Coromandel peninsular, New Zealand. I was watching a pod of orcas swimming up the beach, I saw a swimmer swimming along shore directly towards them, at this point I asked my partner to get my mobile phone as I wasn’t sure what would happen and I may have to call for help. The orcas circled her and she got quite the fright. She then got out the water as she was only 20m from shore. Some on lookers chatted to her about the experience and then to my surprise she got back into the water and swam back towards the pod, to I assume continue her training swim. I then launched the drone and filmed from a fair distance away making sure not to disturb the pod of orcas. What I witnessed was truly amazing.
Killer whales filmed playing next to woman swimming Friday 14 Dec 2018 We’ve heard of swimming with dolphins, but swimming with killer whales? Well, that’s exactly what one woman ended up doing while going for her usual swim earlier this week. Judie Johnson had been out for a swim off Hahei beach in New Zealand when she found herself with unexpected company. She told 1News: ‘There was a shape that went under me, like a huge shape and I thought [it was] dolphins and I was quite excited, and then I saw the great white colour on the back. ‘I was also thinking they eat seals and I’m in a black wetsuit.’ But despite feeling a little scared, the swimmer said she looked directly into the adult orca’s huge eye before getting out of the water briefly and then returning to complete her swim. The three orca then swam with Johnson again.
The Story Behind this Video Orcas Approach Swimmer EXTRA FOOTAGE
Meet the Coromandel woman whose magical swim with a family of Orcas made global headlines Judie plunged in to the sea, only to find herself joined part way through by three large creatures of the deep. Apr 09, 2019 By Lynley Ward
Judie Johnson swam with orcas Hahei New Zealand Judie says if she knew she was going to have a close encounter, she probably wouldn't have swum that day. .
When long-standing swimmer Judie Johnson headed into the water for her usual Tuesday dip in a sheltered bay on the Coromandel Peninsula, there was little to indicate it would be anything out of the ordinary. Had she known four orcas were submerged just beyond the breakers, she probably wouldn't have kicked off her 2km swim to the southern end of the beach and back. But on an overcast day last December, the Hahei woman plunged in, only to find herself joined part way through by three large creatures of the deep, suddenly swooping in from behind, diving under and weaving around her. Remarkably, the magical encounter was captured by a drone buzzing high overhead and what it showed – an orca, her calf and another juvenile frolicking in the waves around the 68-year-old – was nothing short of sensational. Not surprisingly, within hours of hitting social media, it went viral. "It's blown me away to think that people would be interested," she says. "I just love talking about it because even though I think people must be over it by now, they still come up to me." Judie says at first, she thought her ocean companion was a dolphin. "And then I saw the big white markings and realised it certainly wasn't a dolphin but an orca!"
Desperate to keep nerves at bay, she kept swimming, concerned that any hint of fear might be sensed by the mammals many times her size. But as she concentrated on her stroke, the retiree grew more confident they were more curious than predatory. "I sensed they weren't there to attack," she recalls. "They swam around me, they swam really close and sometimes alongside me." She vividly remembers the mesmerizing moment the largest orca swam slowly past, turned and held her gaze. "We were probably only half a metre apart, so I was looking right into its eye. That was quite special because I felt I was looking into this huge beast. I don't know if I was looking for anger, but it all felt quite calm and non-threatening."
By this stage, the presence of orcas so close to shore and with a lone swimmer had gained the attention of anxious beach-goers gathering on the shore. Feeling confident she wasn't in harm's way, Judie says she swam to the end of the beach before getting out of the water. "I just kept swimming," she says. "I could see people gathering on the shore about 500 metres down. I wondered whether I should get out, but I was quite relaxed by then, so I swam to the end of the beach. "A couple came up to me and said, 'We could see what was happening and were really concerned. We didn't know how to contact you or let you know.'" At this point, Judie, who in her earlier years competed at a national level and who enjoys year-round regular beach swims with a group of locals, admits her desire to finish her swim saw her re-enter the water. "Even today, I wonder why I did that. People have told me I was a bit daft doing it, but it was such a special thing to do. So I got back in, and the three orcas just turned around and came back with me. "The big one kept looking at my toes. I had nail polish on and I was thinking, 'I wonder if they can actually see colour?' and, "I wonder if it's going to nibble my toes?' It obviously didn't, and I flipped over and did freestyle. I'd also seen the drone while I was doing backstroke and thought, 'What if I could see footage of this?'"
That question was answered within 24 hours, with an Australian tourist putting a spellbinding clip of the killer whales darting around Judie on social media. Her epic encounter quickly became headlines across the globe.
"I lived in Canada and have family there, and they saw it on their news. Somebody from the Netherlands approached me on the beach recently saying they saw it on their news. There's more than 25 million views on YouTube!"
But she is quick to point out had she known there were orcas in the bay that day, she would not have stepped into the water.
"If I saw them, I wouldn't think, 'Hey, there are my mates, I'll go out and join them.' I've got a healthy respect, so I'd just stand back and admire them from the shore probably.
"I find it an exceptional thing to have happened and the most exciting thing that happened in the past year," she adds.
"I was in the right place at the right time, swimming at my beach and they happened to come by that day."
Copyright
Dylan Brayshaw, This footage CANNOT be copied or reproduced without
permission. To use this video in a commercial player or in broadcasts,
please email licensing@storyful.com
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