I can't see the taste!

Alva Noe has done her research and believes that the taste of something comes from the context it is in when consumed. She proves her thesis by scientific research, specific examples, and her personal experiences.

Noe starts with saying that the taste of different foods really depends on the context they are taken in, and proves it with scientific research that has been done. The results of the research reveal that “most people won't notice the difference between paté and dog food, so long as the latter is suitably presented with the right sort of garnish.” This scientifically proves her main point because most people will believe a scientific fact. She also states that the taste of soggy potato chips can be enjoyable if we hear the crunch that fresh chips make. This shows that the research done on people has shown that the context and what people hear are very important to how people taste things.

She moves on to talk about the specific examples that prove her thesis. She first talks about the differences of the blind tasting of red and white wine. She points out that it was proven that “experts” could confuse red and white wine if they were served at the same temperature. In the conclusion, Noe returns back to her example of the pate and dog food, and how it could be easily confused if we cannot see it. In this example the garnishing is what is important if it is served the same way. She then goes on to talk about love, and how that ties into the thought of “taste.” She says that if people are holding hands, they feel different if they are with someone they love then when they are just holding a random persons' hand.

Noe's last example is a personal anecdote. She talks about her father saying Chinese food tastes better with chopsticks. She points out that he was not saying that because he was smart, but because he enjoyed the food being authentically how it was supposed to be. This proves her point because she herself had experienced it after her father told her what he thought.

Through her examples and research, Noe shows that the taste of anything truly depends on the context it is in, and how it is handled. When eating food and we do not see it, it is easy to mistake it for something else; if we see the food we are eating we will have a taste in mind and it will taste how we think it will.