= 27d567bc2d48d9f40e9ccc20ea370b15)
falenas108 comments on How and Why to Granularize - Less Wrong
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
= 783df68a0f980790206b9ea87794c5b6)
Loading…= b715d02e85f7b3b4ae65ca3d3e450868)
Subscribe to RSS Feed
Powered by Reddit
= f037147d6e6c911a85753b9abdedda8d)
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
Comments (58)
I suppose that the relevant proverb is "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."
On the other hand, it is probably possible to over-granularize: you break a process down into small enough tasks so that when you look over the list of every step you'd have to do, it seems overwhelming.
For example, here's some overly granularized directions for cooking scrambled eggs.
Step 1: Clear junk from stove.
Step 2: Get non-stick frying pan from cabinet.
Step 3: Put pan on stove.
Step 4: Get plate from cabinet.
Step 5: Put plate on stove near pan.
Step 6: Get butter knife from drawer.
Step 7: Get stick of butter from refrigerator.
Step 8: Cut off a small piece of butter from the stick into the pan.
Step 9: Put butter knife into sink.
Step 10: Return stick of butter to the refrigerator.
Step 11: Remove egg carton from refrigerator.
Step 12: Place egg carton on counter next to stove.
Step 13: Remove two eggs from egg carton.
Step 14: Place eggs on stove next to pan.
Step 15: Return egg carton to refrigerator.
Step 16: Pick up plastic spatula.
Step 17: Turn on burner under pan.
Step 18: Use plastic spatula to spread butter on pan as it melts.
Step 19: Put down plastic spatula.
Step 20: Pick up egg from stove.
Step 21. Crack egg on the side of stove.
Step 22: Open egg above pan, so that its contents fall into the pan.
Step 23: Throw eggshell into trash can.
Step 24: Repeat steps 17-20, using the second egg.
Step 25: Wash hands to remove traces of raw egg that may contain salmonella bacteria.
Step 26: Dry hands.
Step 27: Pick up plastic spatula.
Step 28: Using plastic spatula, stir eggs in frying pan as they cook.
Step 29: When eggs are cooked, turn off fire under pan.
Step 30: Pick up pan.
Step 31: Transfer eggs from frying pan to plate. Use plastic spatula if necessary.
Step 32: Put pan down on stove.
Step 33: Put down plastic spatula.
Step 34: Move plate to table.
Step 35: Get ketchup bottle from refrigerator.
Step 36: Squirt ketchup on plate.
Step 37: Put ketchup bottle on table.
Step 38: Get fork from drawer.
Step 39: Eat scrambled eggs.
And now you know why I hate cooking. ;)
I'm considering making eggs today using this, but I have two questions. How do you know when the eggs are done, and how high do you put the heat?
The eggs are done when there are no longer goopy liquid parts. (Some ways to make eggs call for goopy liquid but not scrambling.) You can keep going after that if you want them drier and crumblier; stop when there is significant browning. The low end of medium is a good place to put the heat (4 on a dial that goes to 10).
It's useful to know that "stirring" achieves two distinct things. One is moving the more-cooked parts which are on the bottom, closest to the where the pan generates heat, so that the goopy parts get a turn close to the heat. The other is getting tactile feedback on whether to turn the heat down: if the cooked parts feel like they stick to the pan, you should turn the heat down.
Another useful thing to know is that you will need to execute the whole process at least once and probably several times, and the first time you judge the result acceptable by taste, mouthfeel and look, you should record the various sensations experienced during cooking as a "reference implementation": treat deviations from this reference experience as signs that the outcome might be different. For instance, how sticky the cooked eggs are supposed to feel before you want to turn down the heat is evaluated relative to the reference.
Step 39 is under-described, too. There are things like allowing the eggs to cool a little, for instance, which are worth mentioning.