Happy New Year!
Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.
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Notes -
This might not be a thing where you live, but every Indian (and Thai, for that matter) restaurant I've been to in Pittsburgh asks how spicy you want the dish on a 1–10 scale. As a white guy, 7 is usually the sweet spot (but may be a little tame), 8 is on the spicy side, and I couldn't imagine getting a 9 or 10. I've never ordered below a 7 but I imagine that the lower numbers are for more sensitive customers, like my mother who can detect the faintest hint of spice in something that seems bland to me. I'm doubtful that they'd dial back the relative spice level for "ethnic" customers if they're using such a scale, but I can see that they might do that to avoid offending gringos whose definition of spicy is a little less than the average Asian.
As for your experiment, I don't think the blinding and all the precautions are really necessary. For a relatively straightforward variable like spice level that manifests itself with obvious physical symptoms, if there's any real difference it should be enough to overcome any implicit bias you may have. If you really want to blind it, though, it's better to do it this way: Divide each order into, say, 10 bite-sized samples. Mark the bottom of each dish with a number and write down which number corresponds to which order. Refrigerate the samples for two hours and then renumber them without looking at the original numbers. Take a bite or two of each sample unblinded to establish a baseline. Taste each sample and write down your guess as to which order it is, under the assumption that the samples ordered under an Indian name will be spicier, and write down your guess next to the new numbers. After you're finished, look match the new numbers with the original number to see what corresponds and check to see how many times you guessed correctly. If you're in the neighborhood of 50%, you're just guessing and you can be sure that there's no difference to the orders. The closer you get to 100%, obviously, the more likely it is that there is a difference. If there's no difference, or only a subtle difference, though, you'll probably figure this out pretty quickly.
I've seen that at Thai restaurants, but not the Indian places in my area.
I do want to blind it. Thanks for the design suggestion!
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