Things that catch my eye when I'm travelling.
Design decisions I've run into on the road, usually where I least expected them.
Designing a meal in wartime Vietnam: lessons in constraint
At the Cu Chi Tunnels north of Ho Chi Minh City, every detail answers to extreme constraint. But the part that stayed with me was the food. A meal had to do four things at once: provide enough calories to fight on, keep soldiers lean enough to move through the tunnels, cook without smoke giving away position, and carry without spoiling.
Boiled cassava handled the calories, dipped in ground peanuts and salt for fat and protein. Fermented fish sauce added umami, and protein, in tiny amounts. Kitchens sat deep underground, smoke vented through bamboo pipes that surfaced far away, barely visible. The pipe ends were rubbed with captured uniforms to throw off enemy dogs.
Every choice serves several goals because nothing else fits.