Cooking the books

I've stumbled on a series - strangely reminiscent of the moribund eat your way around the world in London - called Around the world in 80 dishes. It is in the Indescribablyboring.

Number 15, representing Wales is Bryn Williams' seared scallops, braised chicken wings, jerusalem artichoke and hazelnut jus. Just the thing after a hard day hacking anthracite from a seam.

In an unrelated development Microsoft alumnus Nathan Myhrvold's "Modernist Cuisine: The Art & Science of Cooking," is out.

Take one multimillionaire computer genius, a team of 36 researchers, chefs and editors and a laboratory specially built for cooking experiments. After nearly four years of obsessive research, assemble 2,400 pages of results into a 47-pound, six-volume collection that costs $625 and requires four pounds of ink to print.

I likes chips me.