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Supersizing the "Last Supper"
gandhi_2 writes "A pair of sibling scholars compared 52 artists' renditions of 'The Last Supper', and found that the size of the meal painted had grown through the years. Over the last millennium they found that entrees had increased by 70%, bread by 23%, and plate size by 65.6%. Their findings were published in the International Journal of Obesity. From the article: 'The apostles depicted during the Middle Ages appear to be the ascetics they are said to have been. But by 1498, when Leonardo da Vinci completed his masterpiece, the party was more lavishly fed. Almost a century later, the Mannerist painter Jacobo Tintoretto piled the food on the apostles' plates still higher.'"
In his portrait the fries are all supersized, when many historians note that apostles were much more likely to order from the dollar menu.
But they drank Diet Coke!!!!
That article was worthless. It's about a series of paintings, and yet the only picture is of some athlete in the side column.
If this is the current standard of quality in newspapers, no wonder they're a dying breed.
tl;dr: relevant pics or gtfo!
are you implying he is not a specialist in a particular branch of study? Or are you just a dick.
I'll call Harvard and have them disband the entire English Literature department.
Everyone knows that the apostles ordered Filet o' Fish! C'mon!
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Did they ever think that over time people became more advances and better able to feed themselves. We no longer live on the verge of starvation!
This story proves tow things: The first is obviously that size matters when it comes to food. And the second which is slightly more deep: Slashdot is indeed about stuff that matters... sometimes. Food!
My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.
Historians were also both pleased and horrified by the recent unearthing of a rendition of the Last Supper by Michaelangelo. While the portion sizes are closer to what is believed to be accurate, the painting also features such embellishments as a kangaroo, twenty eight disciples, and three Christs.
However the card attached to the painting is actually labeled "The Penultimate Supper", and historians must admit there are no records of how many people attended that gathering.
The enemies of Democracy are
Leonardo's Last Supper is not exactly what most of us would describe as a pig-out. We see about one bread roll for each disciple and two or three dishes of what looks like some undetermined Indian takeaway, washed down with a few glasses of red wine. Big deal.
Not on friday.
THL phish sticks
It works, mate!
How can I believe you when you tell me what I don't want to hear?
...I wanted to give the impression of a real last supper. You know, not just any old last supper. Not like a last meal or a final snack. But you know, I wanted to give the impression of a real mother of a blow-out, you know?
The truth may be out there, but lies are inside your head
I think he's implying, properly, that scholarly pursuits (scholars) involve and require an inherent objectivity that isn't found in 'faith' based pursuits---which is correct.
Using the size of the diners' heads as a basis for comparison, the Wansinks used computers to compare the sizes of the plates in front of the apostles, the food servings on those plates and the bread on the table.
Maybe people's heads have just been getting smaller? It would sure explain a lot.
Scientists point out problems, engineers fix them
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This looks to me like an attempt to win an ignoble prize. Just like this one, which was an actual winner: http://improbable.com/ig/2002/scrotal-asymmetry.pdf "Scrotal Asymmetry in Man and in Ancient Scupture"
Pass the fries.
The Future of Human Evolution: Autonomy
Everyone has blinders (or sets of presuppositions) - to assume otherwise is ignoring reality. If I begin a project in web design, I have a certain set of presuppositions about how things go together - this on the basis of general consensus. If I begin a project involving history, I begin with a certain set of presuppositions (If I set out to do a project on what the food was at the Last Supper, I would generally have to have as a presupposition that the meal happened).
Being scholarly does not mean rejecting presupposition but rather working towards a greater understanding of a given topic while understanding the presuppositions upon which my research is based.
And if we really want to get down to it, the whole reason we have "scholarly" pursuits is because of the medieval "scholastics" who were almost uniformly religious in some respect.
However there ARE legitimate scholars who study the bible as a work of literature and history. Translations, interpretations, writing styles, geography, politics.
I see no reason to group the same people who paint Lev 18:22 on placards in the same group who simply treat the bible like Shakespeare's first folio.
It also depicts them as a bunch of white guys.
No, I’m not suggesting that Jesus was black. But he probably wasn’t white.
Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
I see no reason to deny at least a subgroup of religiously motivated biblical scholars the "scholar" status. Anyone who doubts that should find a well-trained catholic theologian to discuss with. First, they do a lot of serious literary/language/history study, second, even within the realms of dogma, where you might question their axioms (as I do), they usually are well-trained in logic and able to deliver a hell of an argument. Not every religious scholar is a frothing at the mouth evangelical - that is pretty much an American phenomenon.
Ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant.
I thought it was only on friday?
xkcd is not in the sudoers file. This incident will be reported.
The painting was made in the dining room of a monastery in the first place. Its not surprise that extra food would be added...
Ginga no Rekshiya Mata Each page.
Artistic License. The artists at the time were portraying this painting in their own eye, during times that when food was increasing in supply. Same deal with Rockwell and his work.
This is a riot that a obesity study group would try to connect the lines between historic and religious art with obesity. That is rather like trying to associate American League Football with blood sports.
First rule of holes; When in one, stop digging.
It was a wallaby
The US government have made it clear that we have no inalienable rights; any we do not defend vigorously will be taken.
While it is certainly more common to find protestants or baptists as opposed to catholics here, "frothing at the mouth evangelicals" are not "American". Besides, I know countless protestants today who are more scholarly in their pursuits (whether you agree with their presuppositions or not) than the average "expert scholar" we see talking on TV.
If you don't believe me, just consider how faith motivates people to the greatest extents. And it's no different when it comes to the study of theology/history/anthropology/language/etc.
Beginning early in the 2d Millennium, the Catholic Church started burning many true ascetics (e.g., the Cathars) as heretics. (They of course then expanded the powers of the Inquisition to include, well, anyone their twisted logic could rationalize to oppress.)
No doubt this led to a change in the way people perceived heroes from religious history. Da Vinci may never have even considered the idea that an apostle was an ascetic. The Inquisition was in full force, and in charge of most of the governments and virtually all of the churches of Europe, when he painted that picture.
Didn't mean to generalize over every protestant/baptist there - just saying that a certain, especially rabid and vocal brand is mostly an American phenomenon. No doubt that there is respectable, serious biblical scholar work done by members of all denominations.
Ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant.
Besides, it's expected that the portin size would grow - look at what happened to those loaves and fishes.
That's the origination for the expression "something's fishy".
I'll tell you what you want, mate...you want a bloody photographer, not a creative artist with some imagination!!
Especially on Friday (though not on Good Friday).
On Easter they go out for Paella.
-dZ.
Carol vs. Ghost
But the Last Supper was on Thursday.
You are in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike.
Please!
for the complete transcript you can either read the next 72 posts (undoubtedly they will quote the entire skit) or you can look here:
http://www.mat.upm.es/~jcm/michelangelo.html
In the next years you will see a freaking burger on the last supper
no shit
It would be an improvement.
-- Yale
I wish I could sit around all day and do bullshit studies like this. Thank you sir, for providing absolutely not benefit to society.
You seem to missing the towel headed bombers that foam at the mouth. The ones that deny the holocost and blame the US for the earthquake in Haiti. The Catholic church may not change dogma with each scientific discovery, but they are far from the biggest luddites on the planet.
The researchers are, I think onto something here, but not what everyone seems to think. I saw this story carried on another site originally, and so I am willing to give it more credit than I would a typical "Idle" story... having read TFA, I suggest this merits our attention. The implication of the article is that it has to do with obesity, and although there may exist a very distant relationship, I don't think the obesity connection is what we should consider.
No, I think it may be a function of the amount of food on, and the typical size of the average person's dinner plate at or around the time the painting was made. As people got progressively better at farming, and as governments became more proficient at ensuring political and/or economic stability for the masses, the amount of food available probably went WAY up. The size of the portions in the paintings doubtless reflects a bias on the part of the painter to presume that portion size historically is similar to what he experienced during his own lifetime. I think that is a better conclusion to draw than, "OMG, we've been getting progressively fatter for over a thousand years!"
Just been discussing Christianity here, to stay vaguely on the topic of "biblical scholarship". Of course there are other flavours of serious religious study that I can respect, and, as you mention, other flavours of batshit-crazy nuts. Those shall be discussed some other day, though.
Ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant.
And here I would have guessed "something's fishy" refers to the smell more 'Something doesn't smell right"
This is not the funny you're looking for.
A probably OT point on etymology - but why is it that in the USA that the main course is called the "entrée"? The first time I had dinner in the USA it had me momentarily confused because you'd expect the "entrée" to be the starter, not the main course (in French, the "entrée" is the starter).
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Why is this here? Is it that anything with a little math is considered worthy of /.? So if I made an article which compares breast implant trends from the 60's to now as long as I used math it would make it here?
Three Christs, and 27 apostrophes swimming nude together in a giant bowl of hummus.
You mean, the Harvard Divnity School?
Now, now. It could easily be both.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
God, I pray that none of our tax dollars funded this.
Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
If you're willing to try my patent-pending system, I can have your deities and their direct descendants consuming less calories in just days, not weeks! You'll see the pounds melt before your eyes! Are you tired of worshipping overweight idols? Time to put Buddha on a treadmill? Just send me cash or money order and you will begin receiving my special deity diet plan with no further commitment!
Seriously, folks, I'm glad someone is doing this important research.
but have you considered the following argument: shut up.
In Cusco, Peru, the cathedral has a picture of JC and his mates eating guinea pig for their last supper. Da Vinci obviously got it wrong.
(If I set out to do a project on what the food was at the Last Supper, I would generally have to have as a presupposition that the meal happened).
But... But... But - This was a study on how the Last Supper was portrayed, not what was actually served. Those who don't want to posit that there ever was a Last Supper could view this as being intellectually equivalent to a study looking at the chronology of changes in Wonder Woman's apparent bra size. You don't have to believe she actually existed to study changes in depictions of her.
screw wonder woman (and hell yes, I would, especially if she was Lynda Carter, and yes, even today, I don't care how old she is. She's still one of the hottest women on the planet.) but the new superhero queen of fappage is powergirl.
...and if we take into account the fact that this was focused more on the historical end of things, it even more meets the op's apparent definition of "scholar" (as someone without religious presupposition).
There are also a number of PhD students out there right now no doubt working on articles like this one regarding the academic side of pretty much everything including super hero clothing.
Academics can be found with an interest in pretty much anything.
That was actually a salute but whatever. We know who we are.
Nah, the last supper was on Thursday....
It just means they hadn't eaten yet.
*Face palm*
Christians don't even read their own Book! The Apostles were fishermen!
I thought it was Mary Magdalene's vajayjay.
They didn't have summer's eve in the old days.
And his feet were the size of halibut. Or so the guy at Got Medieval says.
Not all of them, one of them was a Taxman, Matthew IIRC
I reject your reality and substitute my own.
Simon the Zealot was a political activist. Judas (yes, that Judas) probably worked with money in some way, like a banker or accountant.