From ad9d1ceb22b0edd264016aa8de5b65cab1fd223b Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: James Date: Thu, 23 Jun 2022 10:07:14 -0700 Subject: [PATCH] Grammar and style edits to the preface (#9) * Update preface.tex Some grammar fixes, capitalization of proper nouns (days of the week like Saturday), and some modest language changes to make the text flow a little better. * Update preface.tex Fix double quotes * Update preface.tex Fix double quotes (again) * Update preface.tex One last double quotes fix * completed grammar and style edits for the preface * small fixes * final polish --- book/intro/preface.tex | 323 +++++++++++++++++++++-------------------- 1 file changed, 162 insertions(+), 161 deletions(-) diff --git a/book/intro/preface.tex b/book/intro/preface.tex index e3d4d20..70cfdde 100644 --- a/book/intro/preface.tex +++ b/book/intro/preface.tex @@ -1,185 +1,186 @@ -If there is the one food Germany is known for, then it is probably bread. -There are thousands of different varieties of bread in Germany. -Making bread has been an integral part of our culture. +If there is one food Germany is known for, it is probably bread. +There are thousands of varieties in Germany, +and making it has been an integral part of our culture. -My bread journey began already a earlier in my childhood. My mother being parent -of 3 would always use saturdays to bake a delicious loaf of bread for the family. -It was a white fluffy sandwich bread made within 1-2 hours using yeast. -Being a bit more experienced now I know that it's -ideal to wait a bit before cutting slices of your bread. But back then -we kids couldn't help it. Mom had to directly cut us a few slices. We would then -directly proceed and pour butter or jam on each slice. Within a few minutes 1kg of -flour has been consumed. Bread became an integral part of my weekly food. +My bread journey began during childhood. My mother, being a parent +of 3, would always use Saturdays to bake a delicious loaf for the family. +It was a white fluffy sandwich bread, and she made it within one to two hours using store-bought yeast. +Being a bit more experienced, I now realize it's +ideal to wait a little while before cutting into your bread, but back then, +we kids couldn't wait. Mom would cut for us a few slices straight from the oven, and we would +immediately proceed to pour butter or jam on each slice. Within minutes, 1kg of +flour would be consumed. Bread became an integral part of my weekly food. -I was lucky that my parents were able to afford a yearly skiing trip to -Alto Adige in northern Italy. In the small town called Valdaora we -would try new restaurants every year, but ultimately always end up in our favorite -pizza place. The pizzas we had were incredibly delicious. The dough -alone was so tasty that we ordered blank pizzas with purely the dough and a +I was lucky that my parents could afford a yearly ski trip to +Alto Adige in northern Italy. In the small town called Valdaora, we +would try new restaurants every year, yet always end up in our favorite +pizza place. The pizzas there were incredible. The dough +alone was so tasty that we would order just the bread with a bit of olive oil and salt. -Of course my question was always, mom - can we make this at home too please? -So over the years as we became friends with the owners we would receive + +Of course, my question would always be, ``Mom, can we make this at home, too, please?'' +So over the years, we became friends with the owners and would receive more and more clues as how to make the perfect pizza dough. There -are no secret ingredients inside. It's just flour, water, salt and a bit of yeast. +are no secret ingredients inside. It's just flour, water, salt, and a bit of yeast. How can such a simple combination of ingredients create such an incredibly delicious -pizza dough? My parents being persons of habit would return every year with us. -Each year my interest grew. At home mom and me would try to replicate -the recipe. We tried baking on a stone, a steel, adding oil to the dough, -adding herbs to the pizza sauce. We ended up in a never ending cycle -of experiments. However, we never managed to get close to the experience -that we had on vacation. +pizza dough? My parents, being creatures of habit, would return every year with us, +and every year, my interest would grow. At home, Mom and I attempted to replicate +the recipe. We tried baking on a stone and on a steel. We tried adding oil to the dough and herbs +to the pizza sauce. We fell into an endless cycle of experiments. However, we never managed +to get close to the experience we had while on vacation. -A few years later I began my studies in the small German city Göttingen. -For the first time I was faced with shopping for my own bread. It was never -on my mind to actually start baking my own bread. I would just buy me -a good loaf of bread while shopping in the supermarket. My favorite variety -used to be a Schwarzbrot, Korn an Korn. It's a very dark hearty rye bread, -consisting of lot of rye berries and sunflower seeds. Being a little naive -I never before looked at the packaging of what I was actually buying. That -changed one day. I looked at the packaging and was shocked. The seemingly -healthy bread consisted of all sorts of things other than flour and water. +Some years passed, and I eventually began my studies in the small German city of Göttingen. +For the first time, I was faced with shopping for my own bread. It was never +on my mind to actually start baking it for myself. I would just buy +a good loaf while shopping at the supermarket. My favorite variety +was a Schwarzbrot, Korn an Korn. It's a very dark and hearty rye bread, +consisting of many rye berries and sunflower seeds. Being a little naive, +I'd never before examined the packaging of what I was buying. One day, that +changed. + +I looked at the label and was shocked. The seemingly +healthy bread consisted of so many other things aside from flour and water. The black color was not coming from the flour, but from caramelized sugar. -The packaging stated it was a sourdough bread. Why was there additional yeast -added to the process though? I thought sourdough doesn't require additional -yeast? I realized that something is utterly wrong with the bread I was buying. -Quickly I proceeded to check all the other supermarket breads, only to -notice that all of them contained ingredients I never heard of. I lost trust -in all supermarket bread. +The packaging stated it was a sourdough bread, but then why was there additional yeast? +I thought that if it was really sourdough, it shouldn't require additional yeast, and I +soon realized that something was wrong with the bread I was buying. +I proceeded to check the other supermarket breads, only to discover that they, too, +contained ingredients I'd never heard of. That was the day I lost trust +in supermarket bread. -At home I decided to read on how to make bread. Much to my surprise I learned -that the recipe for making a pizza and bread are quite similar. Some recipes -would call for fresh yeast, others would call for dry yeast. Deep diving -into some forums I read lengthy discussions and was even more confused. -I tried to use different flours from different brands, organic flours, -non organic flours. I realized I know nothing about making bread. Recipes -would very often confuse me, because they contradicted each other. The recipes -were just a collection of seemingly random steps to follow. The baking instructions -and temperatures were all different too. +At home, I decided to research the proper way to make bread, and much to my surprise, +I learned that the recipes for making pizza and bread were actually quite similar, yet +there were also diffferences. For example, some recipes would call for fresh yeast, while +others would call for dry. Deep diving into various online forums and all their many +discussions, I became even more confused. -Having completed my studies I started to work as an engineer. -When working as an engineer you are faced with challenges. The compiler or runtime -always screams at you with errors you have to fix. Sometimes it can take hours or -even days to fix a simple problem. If you want to become a software engineer -you have to develop a certain never giving up mindset. Frequently when writing code, -a set of pre-made routines is used by developers. These routines have been -programmed before by other engineers and can then be used to ship code faster. -The pre-written code is commonly known as {\it a framework}. In many cases -these frameworks are not built by a single person. The source code is published -and other engineers from all around the world can help improving and changing -the source code. Frameworks have made many successful businesses possible. Working -with frameworks in most cases they do exactly what they say they do. However +I tried using different flours and different brands, all in both organic and non-organic varieties. +I realized then that I knew nothing about making bread. Recipes would often contradict each other, +leaving me further confused. They seemed like little more than a collection of apparently random +steps to follow. The baking instructions and temperatures were all different, too. + +Meanwhile, having completed my studies, I started work as an engineer. +We engineers are faced with many challenges. The compiler or runtime is +always screaming at you with errors, and it's your job to figure out how to fix them. +It can take hours, sometimes days just to fix a simple problem. If you want +to become a software engineer, you have to develop a certain ``never-give-up'' attitude. + +Frequently when writing code, a set of pre-made routines are required. These routines have been +written by other engineers and can then be used to ship code faster. +This pre-written code is commonly known as {\it a framework}. In many cases, +these frameworks are not built by a single person but by engineers from all around the world, +each of whom can help by improving and changing the source code. Frameworks have made many successful +businesses possible. + +In most cases, frameworks do exactly what they claim they do. However, sometimes you are faced with issues you don't understand. In 99.95 percent -of all bugs in software, the developer writing the code is probably the issue. -Sometimes though the framework has a bug. This is when you have to dig deeper and -see what and why the framework is doing something. You will need to read other -engineer's source code. You are forced to understand why things are happening. +of all software bugs, the developer is the issue. Sometimes, however, the framework has a +bug. That is when the developer must dig deeper to see the what and the why behind what the +framework is doing. You will need to read other engineer's source code, and you will be forced +to understand {\it why} things are happening. -Being not happy with what I was baking, my engineering mindset took over. I had -to deep dive and understand exactly what happened. Much to my surprise none -of the recipes I could find would tell me why I should use exactly amount X -of water for flour Y. Why exactly should I use fresh yeast over dry yeast? -Why should I slap my dough while kneading on the counter? Why is a standmixer +Being unhappy with what I was baking, my engineering mindset took over and I had +to do my own deep dive to understand what was going on. Much to my surprise, however, +none of the recipes I'd encountered would tell me {\it why} I should use amount X +of water and amount Y of flour, or {\it why} exactly I should use fresh yeast over dry yeast. Why +should I slap my dough while kneading it on the counter? Why is a standmixer better than kneading by hand? Why should I let the dough sit for this long? Why is steaming the dough during baking important? Do I really need to -get myself an expensive dutch oven to bake bread? This became even worse -when I started to read about sourdough. It sounded like dark magic to me. -Some sourdoughs were made from fruits, other from flour? Why do some -people have a wheat, a rye and a spelt sourdough? How often should the sourdough be -fed? All my questions back then could probably fill 20 pages. I was confused -but became more and more determined to find out how decent bread at home -should be made. +get myself an expensive dutch oven to bake bread? -The feedback from my friends had improved and improved with each -iteration of homemade bread. Compared to coding where -you sometimes have to wait for months to receive feedback on what you do, -bread making is much more direct. Plus you can eat your successes and failures. -Much to my surprise even my failures would start to taste -better than most of the store-bought breads. Eating a homemade bread that -took you hours to make allows you to develop a different relationship -with your food. Making a bread from scratch with my bare hands -was a much welcome change after hours of working on the computer. -I would keep learning more about the process of fermentation and -various techniques of bread making. I approached the topic of sourdough bread -in a very similar way how I approach software. +The problem compounded when I started reading about sourdough. It all sounded like black +magic. Why were some sourdoughs made from fruits, while others were made from flour? +Why should one recipe use wheat while another used rye or spelt? How often should the +sourdough be fed? The questions I had then could have filled 20 pages. I was confused, +but became even more determined to learn how decent bread at home should be made. -After several years of learning and documenting my progress I decided it was -time to share my ideas with the world. When working on open source projects -it is important to see a history on how the code changes over time. This -way you can jump back to previous versions of the source code. This was -the perfect tool for documenting my recipes, because my recipes would also change -with each subsequent iteration. Much to my surprise my open source sourdough -work had been appreciated by many other engineers. The project became -very popular on the website GitHub, originally built to share software -source code. When baking great bread you also need to learn certain techniques. -I figured it was easier to share these techniques as a video. That's how -my YouTube channel was created. I chose the name {\it The Bread Code} to -visualize my software engineering approach to bread. The channel only gained -viewers when I started to choose more engaging thumbnails and titles for -the videos that I made. 3 years later I now reserve 2 days per week -to follow my bread baking passion. 3 days per week are used for my engineering -job where I still write code on a daily basis. My bread days continue -to fill me with a lot of joy and passion. To me there is nothing better than -seeing how people make amazing bread thanks to my tips and explanations. -The community has grown and grown, providing many interesting discussions -and ideas surrounding the topic of bread making. There is always something -new to learn and I feel that even now I am just barely scratching the surface with -what I know and teach. Would you ever have imagined that fruit flies are like -bees and are part of the wild yeast's success story? I made a video where +The feedback I received from friends helped me to improve with each +iteration of homemade bread. Compared to coding, where you sometimes have to wait months +for this feedback, bread making is much more direct. Plus, you can eat your successes +(and failures!) And, much to my surprise, even those failures started tasting better than +most store-bought breads. Eating a homemade bread that took you hours to make allows you +to develop a different relationship with your food, and baking bread from scratch with my +bare hands was a welcome change after hours of working on the computer. + +I continued learning about the process of fermentation and various techniques of bread making. +I approached the topic of sourdough in a manner similar to software, and after years of +researching and documenting my progress, I decided it was time to share that progress with the +world. + +When working on open source projects, it is important to see their history and how the source +code changes over time. This way, you can easily jump back to previous versions. This was +the perfect tool for documenting my recipes, because they, too, would change with each +subsequent iteration. Much to my surprise, my open source work on sourdough was appreciated +by other engineers, and the project became popular on the website GitHub, originally built to +share open source software. + +Now, when baking great bread, you also need to learn certain techniques. I figured it would be +easier to share these techniques in video form. Thus, my YouTube channel was born. I chose +the name {\it The Bread Code} to capture my engineering-oriented approach to bread. It took some +time to get right, but after choosing more engaging thumbnails and titles for +the videos I made, the channel started gaining viewers. + +Now, three years later, I dedicate two days each week to follow my bread baking passion, while +the other three days I continue to work as a software engineer, writing code on a day-to-day +basis. + +My bread days fill me with both joy and passion. To me, there is nothing better than seeing +how many people have made amazing bread thanks to my tips and explanations. The community has +continued to grow, spawning many interesting discussions and ideas surrounding the topic of +bread making. There is always something new to learn, and I feel that even now I am just barely +scratching the surface with what I know and teach. Would you ever have imagined that fruit +flies are like bees and are part of the wild yeast's success story? I made a video where I tried to cultivate wild yeast spores coming from fruit flies in order -to bake a bread. It worked, the bread turned out amazing and even tasted -very good. These kind of experiments spark my natural interest. Conducting them -and seeing how other people share my interest makes me very happy. +to bake bread. It worked; the bread turned out amazing and even tasted good! These kinds of +experiments spark my natural interest. Conducting them and seeing how other people share in my +interest makes me incredibly happy. The problem with running a YouTube channel is that all the information -you see is filtered and provided to you through an algorithm. I am very -worried how algorithms are shaping modern information. They tend to -put users into certain categories where you only see news related -to the bucket that you have been placed in. A key metric is how many -people click on a video after it has been shown. The content you create -is not even shown to every subscriber of your channel. If the algorithm -determines the video is not engaging enough, your content starts to -decay in YouTube's nirvana. If your video goes viral, the algorithm -will stop showing it once engagement rates with new users go down. -Older videos are slowly fading over time, as the decay punishment -factor increases and increases. I have been developing similar algorithms -myself as a software engineer. +you see is filtered and then provided to you through an algorithm. I am concerned +with how algorithms are shaping modern information, because they tend to +put users into certain categories where they will then only see news related to +those same fixed categories. A key metric determining visibility of your channel is how many +people have clicked on a video after it's been shown, and the content you create +is not even shown to every subscriber of your channel. If the algorithm determines the video +is not engaging enough, your content starts to decay in YouTube's nirvana. Even if your video +goes viral, the algorithm will stop showing it once engagement rates with new users goes down, +and older videos fade over time as the decay punishment factor increases. I know, because +I have developed similar algorithms myself as a software engineer. -I decided I want to try taking some time off from the algorithm cycle and -work on something more long term, something even more meaningful. -My mission has always been to share my knowledge with as many people -on the world as possible. That's also why my content has been provided -in English and not in German. After discussing with members of the community -I figured that writing a book could help me to achieve that goal. Most -current books are collections of recipes. My idea was to provide you -with a deeper solid knowledge foundation that you can use to follow other recipes. -In software terms a {\it bread framework}. This book could help everyone -facing issues with flour, fermentation, baking and much more. It would provide -a detailed understanding on why certain steps should be done and how to -adapt when things go south while making bread. However -I want my knowledge to be accessible by everyone around the world. I do -not want to charge for the book. I want the information to be freely accessible, -no matter your budget. That's why I decided to make the book open source -and ask the community to support funding my project via my ko-fi page -(https://ko-fi.com/thebreadcode). -The feedback from the community has been amazing and I already raised -a lot more money than -I initially expected. The first version of the book will only be available -digitally. This way everyone can read the book. There might be a hardcover -version too in the future, depending on how well this book is appreciated -by bakers around the world. The hardcover version will cost a bit of money, -while the digital version will always be completely free. +I've since decided to take some time off from the algorithm cycle to work on something more +long term and meaningful. My mission has always been to share my knowledge with as many people +in the world as possible. That's also why my content has been provided in English rather than +German. After discussing with members of the community, I figured that writing a book could +help me achieve that goal. Most of the books that exist today are collections of recipes. My +idea, however, is to provide you with a deeper foundation of knowledge that you can use to +follow other recipes. -With this book I will try to be as scientific as possible, but in no way -claim that this is a work of science. I have conducted several experiments -myself that I will show you in this book. But to call this science, you would -probably need to repeat the same experiment a thousand times in a lab -environment. I will do my best to provide scientific references where possible -and clearly distinguish between facts and my personal opinion. +In software terms, this would be a {\it bread framework}. -I hope you have fun reading this book and that you learn a lore more about -the fascinating world of bread making. I sincerely wish that this work -will provide you with a solid toolchain that I wish I had when starting -to make bread. +It is my goal for this book to help everyone facing issues with flour, fermentation, baking, +and more. It should provide a detailed understanding as to why certain steps are necessary +and how to adapt when things go wrong while making bread. + +It is my desire for this knowledge to be accessible to everyone around the world, regardless +of budget, and as such, do not want to charge for the book. That's why I've decided to make +it open source and have asked the community to support my work financially via my ko-fi page +(https://ko-fi.com/thebreadcode). The community's feedback has been amazing so far, and +I've already raised much more money than initially expected. + +The first version of the book will only be available digitally---this way, everyone can read +it---though there might also be a hardcover version in the future, depending on how well received +and appreciated it is by bakers around the world. The hardcover version will, of course, cost a +bit of money, but the digital version will remain free. + +In this book, I will try to be as scientific as possible. I in no way claim, however, that +it will itself be a work of science. I have conducted several experiments that I will write +about here, but to truly call this science, you would probably need to repeat the same experiment +a thousand times in a lab environment, which I have not done. I will do my best, however, to provide +scientific references where possible and to clearly distinguish between facts and personal opinion. + +I hope you have fun reading this and that you learn more about the fascinating world of bread +making, and it is my sincere wish that this work provides you with the solid toolchain that I wish +I'd had access to when starting my own journey with bread. Thank you. Hendrik \ No newline at end of file