UW CSE Affiliate Professor Alon Halevy, who leads the Structured Data Group of Google Research in Mountain View, California, has been moonlighting for the past few years as a coffee aficionado. The result of this effort is a just-published book, The Infinite Emotions of Coffee. Alon will discuss the book on Thursday January 12 at 10:30 in CSE 691 (the Bill & Melinda Gates Commons).
Based on travel to over 30 countries on 6 continents, Alon tells of the latest and greatest in the coffee world, and explains why a database researcher felt the need to venture on such a journey. The Infinite Emotions of Coffee provides a contemporary prism of the drink that so much of the world takes for granted every morning.
Halevy’s travels shed light on how coffee has shaped and is influenced by different cultures through the bean’s centuries-spanning journey of serendipity, intrigue, upheavals, revival, romance and passion. With more than three years of field research, over 180 color photographs, and richly illustrated infographics, this book is an immersive experience that brings alive the enduring allure of coffee and the nuanced emotions of both tradition-bound and avant-garde café cultures.
Written in an engaging narrative, this travelogue entertains through numerous coffee-related tales from around the world. It celebrates all parts of the inextricably linked global coffee ecosystem, from growers, importers, and roasters to baristas and consumers. Readers will learn about the rich, mysterious and often amusing history of coffee; discover the latest hotbeds of coffee and the complex issues facing the coffee industry today; and meet the worldwide network of inspiringly spirited and passionately committed professionals whose relentless pursuit of excellence are pushing coffee to unprecedented levels of quality.
Join us on Thursday January 12 at 10:30 in CSE 691!