So how do these replicators work? They produce mass out of ideas? They transform one mass into another? With what knowledge? Do they have a model to replicate or is that information stored on some kind of hard drive?
I'm struggling to understand how they save space and spoilage. So how does one produce a cup of Earl Grey tea out of thin air? Presumably, you would have a water supply and access to the basic elements of its chemical composition, but that's a tall order: tea leaves, bergamot oil, etc. And if they produce this the way I like it, it's not just any Earl Grey -- some of the commercially produced varieties are so acerbic that they can peel paint -- it would have to be one that is acceptable, with a splash of milk or half & half (a substance I'm not sure is sold in the UK, let alone producible in space). Color me skeptical. Safer to stow it away in the cargo bay, but that is another issue: weight, storage time, etc.
I forgot the part about addictive corn. It's been a long time since I viewed Stargate. I enjoyed the series but I don't know that I'd want to view it again. What I liked about The Expanse was the effort put into really thinking through the problems of remote food production. Stargate just assumes lots of planets with breathable atmosphere and quaint Tudor style agricultural villages with unique local cuisines. That's charming but probably not realistic.
I also liked the NASA video because they have a team of food scientists worrying about all kinds of practical issues like pathogens that might replicate in the foods, so packaging and storage/spoilage are legitimate concerns. I don't know that I'd be so happy to have tortillas smeared with honey but I guess after a while if that's what's on the menu, you'd eat it and be happy to have it.
