Meanwhile, fees have gotten worse, small restaurants are being extorted, delivery drivers are getting their tips stolen, and there's still like a 30% chance that if you order a burger from Shake Shack, it's going to take 75 minutes and when it shows up, it's going to be someone else's half-melted pint of ice cream.

與此同時，費用變得更糟，小餐廳被勒索，外送司機的小費被盜，如果你從 Shake Shack 點一個漢堡，仍然有 30% 的機會需要 75 分鐘，當它出現時，這將是別人的半融化的品脫冰淇淋。

This is as good as it gets—that is, unless you live in Mumbai.

除非你住在孟買，否則這已經是最好的了。

For the last 130 years, Mumbai, India has operated one of the most efficient and reliable food delivery systems in the world, delivering 300,000 lunches per day, with precision timing and an error rate of only 0.0001%.

在過去的 130 年裡，印度孟買一直營運著世界上最高效、最可靠的食品配送系統之一，每天配送 30 萬份午餐，精確計時，誤差率僅為 0.0001%。

All of this is done entirely offline, with a fleet of 5,000 predominantly illiterate delivery workers who organize their supply chain themselves.

所有這些都完全通過離線方式完成，由 5000 名主要是文盲的送貨員組成的車隊自行組織供應鏈。

Oh, and did I mention that it only costs like $6 a month and still turns a profit while every major food delivery app somehow manages to lose all the money that they gouged by charging you $37 for Pad Thai?

哦，我有沒有說過，它每月只需 6 美元，而且還能盈利，而所有主要的外送公司卻因為向你收取 37 美元的泰式炒飯費用而虧得血本無歸？

Let's talk about it.

我們來談談吧。

The year was 1890, and Mumbai was rapidly industrializing.

那是 1890 年，孟買正在迅速實現工業化。

As the Great Indian Peninsular Railway extended out across the country, rural Indians and British colonizers alike poured into town.

隨著印度半島大鐵路向全國各地延伸，印度農村地區的居民和英國殖民者也紛紛湧入小鎮。

The new spectrum of different cultures also came with different tastes, and when lunchtime rolled around, the local restaurants couldn't quite support the diverse… um… look,

新的文化譜系也帶來了不同的口味，當午餐時間到來時，當地的餐廳無法完全支持多樣化的......嗯......聽著，

basically, what I'm trying to say is that the British people are too racist to eat food that tastes good and there aren't many restaurants that serve wet bread or whatever it is that British people eat.

基本上，我想說的是，英國人太種族主義，不吃美味的食物，而且沒有多少餐廳提供濕麵包或英國人吃的任何東西。

So, a fellow by the name of Mahadeo Havajibachi decided to start a delivery service that would pick up home-cooked meals from people's houses in the morning, and deliver them to their offices at lunchtime.

於是，一個名叫 Mahadeo Havajibachi 的人決定創辦一家外送服務公司，早上從人們家裡取家常菜，中午送到他們的辦公室。

That way, everyone could eat a lunch from their own… culture.

這樣，每個人都能吃到自己......文化的午餐。

The delivery men were called dabawalas—daba being the standardized cylindrical lunch container that they used to transport meals, and wala being… guy, I guess.

送餐員被稱為 「達巴瓦拉」——「達巴」是他們用來運送飯菜的標準圓柱形午餐盒，「瓦拉」則是......我猜是......傢伙。

For a small monthly payment, these dabawalas would pick up your lunch each workday and deliver it, on the hour, to wherever you worked—and the system worked so well that it has remained, mostly unchanged, though far, far larger, for the last century.

只要每月付一小筆錢，這些達巴瓦拉就會在每個工作日為你取午餐，並按時送到你工作的地方，這個系統運作得非常好，以至於在過去的一個世紀裡，雖然規模大得多，但基本上沒有什麼變化。

The question remains then, how does it actually work?

那麼問題來了，它究竟是如何運作的呢？

Well, the dabawalas do not operate like traditional delivery drivers.

達巴瓦拉的經營方式與傳統的外送司機不同。

From your kitchen to your office, your lunch will be handed off to at least three, but up to twelve different people, and take multiple different forms of transportation on its way to you.

從廚房到辦公室，你的午餐至少要交給三個人，最多可達十二個不同的人，在送達你的途中還要搭乘多種不同的交通工具。

All of this is coordinated, not by a computer or a map, but by a collection of four to five colored symbols painted on top of each daba, which contain the information, not only of where to deliver it, but also the route the container needs to take, and who's responsible for each step of the journey.

所有這些都不是通過電腦或地圖來協調的，而是通過在每個達巴上面畫上四到五個彩色符號來協調的，這些符號不僅包含了運送地點的資訊，還包含了飯盒需要走的路線，以及誰負責旅程的每一步。

It all starts here, with a symbol that denotes one of Mumbai's 150 train stations.

一切從這裡開始，一個符號代表著孟買 150 個火車站中的一個。

The entire dabawala system is built around the Mumbai Suburban Railway—one of the busiest and most extensive commuter railways in the world.

整個達巴瓦拉系統圍繞著孟買城郊鐵路而建——這是世界上最繁忙、範圍最廣的通勤鐵路之一。

Each station serves as an initial collection hub for the surrounding households, which themselves are grouped into smaller areas that are each overseen by a single dabawala, labeled from A to Z.

每個收集站都是周邊住戶的初始收集中心，而周邊住戶又被劃分為更小的區域，每個區域都由一個從 A 到 Z 的達巴瓦拉負責監督。

So, for example, VLP would mean the container would start its journey at Vilpar Station, and E would indicate that it should be collected by the dabawala assigned to that station's E-zone, which, in this case, are the houses along Hooniman Street.

例如，VLP 表示飯盒從 Vilpar 站出發，E 表示應由分配到該站的達巴瓦拉收取。在這種情況下，E 區指的是沿胡尼曼街的房屋。

Every morning, from 8:30 to 9:30, the dabawalas collect lunches from the households in their zone, usually between 25 and 35 stops, which each need to go off without a hitch in order to keep the process moving.

每天早上 8:30 到 9:30，達巴瓦拉從他們所在區域的住戶那裡領取午餐，通常有 25 到 35 個站點，每個站點都需要順利完成，以便讓整個過程繼續進行。

If a customer's lunch is too heavy, they'll get a fine.

如果顧客的午餐太重，就會被罰款。

If they don't have it ready to be picked up on time, the dabawala can drop them as a customer altogether.

如果他們無法按時取貨，達巴瓦拉就可以完全放棄他們這個客戶。

It's sort of similar to my proposal for DoorDash, which is that if you make your driver wait for more than five minutes, the driver should be allowed to come inside your house and kill you.

這有點類似於我為 DoorDash 提出的建議，即如果你讓司機等待超過五分鐘，就應該允許司機進屋殺了你。

From 9:30 to 10:30, the dabawalas take their 25 to 35 lunches, by foot or by bicycle, to a collection center outside the station.

9:30 至 10:30，達巴瓦拉們步行或騎自行車將 25 至 35 份午餐送到車站外的收集中心。

Here the containers are sorted by the middle symbol, this one here, which indicates the destination station.

在這裡，飯盒按照中間的符號排序，這個符號表示目的地車站。

Once sorted by destination, each collection of containers are handed off to a second group of dabawalas, who are given just 40 seconds to load the lunches onto the goods compartment at the front of the correct train.

按目的地分類後，每一批容器都會交給第二組達巴瓦拉，他們只有 40 秒鐘的時間將午餐裝到正確列車前部的貨廂中。

If any of the containers need to transfer trains to reach their final destination, the dabawalas will have already identified a secondary transfer hub along the route, like Mumbai Central, where the containers can be handed off to a third group of dabawalas and loaded onto their next train in under 20 seconds.

如果有任何飯盒需要轉乘火車才能到達最終目的地，達巴瓦拉已經在沿線確定了二級轉運樞紐，如孟買在中環，飯盒可以在 20 秒內交給第三組達巴瓦拉，並裝上下一列火車。

By around 11 or 1130, the containers will have reached their final station.

到 11:00 或 11:30 分左右，飯盒將到達終點站。

Here they're sorted once again by the final part of their code, these symbols here.

在這裡，它們再次按照代碼的最後部分，即這些符號進行排序。

Much like the zones at each origin station, each destination station is also broken up into smaller zones, managed by one designated dabawala.

與每個始發站的分區一樣，每個終點站也被劃分為若干小分區，由一名指定的達巴瓦拉管理。

Churchgate station, for example, has 10 zones, with 9 on this container indicating the Neriman point.

例如，Churchgate 車站有 10 個區域，飯盒上的 9 表示 Neriman 點。

So, the dabawala responsible for that zone will take all of their containers, again by biker by foot, to the buildings indicated in this part of the code, and then finally to the floor marked by the code's final digit.

負責該區域的達巴瓦拉人將把他們所有的飯盒，同樣通過騎自行車或步行的方式，運到代碼這一部分所標示的建築物，最後再運到代碼最後一位數所標示的樓層。

Every single lunch, all 300,000 of them, have to be delivered precisely within the window of 12:30 to 1pm.

每一份午餐，所有 30 萬份午餐，都必須在中午 12 點 30 分至下午 1 點這一時間段內準確送達。

Any slip-up in any part of this process, and the window is missed, the worker goes hungry, their work efficacy plummets, India's GDP starts tanking, and China becomes the new United States.

在這一過程中，任何一個環節出現紕漏，都會錯過窗口期，工人捱餓，工作效率驟降，印度的 GDP 開始下滑，而中國則會成為新的美國。

So, pressure's on, every single morning.

所以，每天早上都有壓力。

And then, just as efficiently as they were delivered, each container needs to be collected a half-hour later, and this whole process has to happen in reverse, returning the containers to every single household so they can be reused again the next day.

然後，就像送貨一樣高效，每個飯盒需要在半小時後被收集起來，整個過程必須反過來進行，將飯盒送回每家每戶，以便第二天可以再次使用。

So, why don't you have it this good?

那麼，為什麼你的外送沒有這麼好呢？

Well, part of the problem is that you, dear viewer, are a special snowflake living in an indulgent Western society, and you don't actually want to schedule your lunch delivery a month ahead of time.

親愛的觀眾，問題的一部分在於，你是生活在放縱的西方社會中的特殊雪花，你實際上並不想提前一個月安排午餐外賣。

No, you want to eat red velvet-flavored rice pudding at 3:14am, which is a desire that cannot truly be factored into any kind of rational, standardized supply chain.

不，你想在凌晨 3 點 14 分吃紅色天鵝絨口味的米布丁，這種願望無法真正納入任何合理的標準化供應鏈。

But that's not the whole story.

但這並不是故事的全部。

Obviously, the repetitive, pre-organized structure of this system leads to gains in efficiency and consistency, but it still wouldn't function this well without the unique way that it's managed.

很明顯，這種重複的、預先組織好的系統結構提高了效率和一致性，但如果沒有獨特的管理方式，它仍然不會運行得這麼好。

You see, the Dabbawalas are not a single corporate entity—they're broken up into about 200 different, self-governing groups, each with their own coding system, culture, and routes.

你看，達巴瓦拉並不是一個單一的企業實體，他們抽成大約 200 個不同的自治團體，每個團體都有自己的編碼系統、文化和路線。

These groups negotiate among themselves to add new members, to elect Dabbawalas to positions of power, and most importantly, to sign new customers.

這些團體之間相互談判，以增加新成員，選舉達巴瓦拉擔任要職，最重要的是簽下新客戶。

If you pay to get your lunch delivered through the dabbawala system, it's going to be picked up by the same person every single day, and delivered by the same person every single day.

如果你花錢通過達巴瓦拉系統送午餐，那麼每天都會有同一個人上門取餐，每天都會有同一個人送餐。

These are the same people that can negotiate your rates, determine your lunch's route, and drop you as a customer if they feel like it.

正是這些人可以和你談價格，決定你的午餐路線，如果他們願意，還可以把你從客戶的行列中剔除。

So there's a mutual sense of responsibility, and even community, for everyone involved.

參與其中的每個人都有一種共同的責任感，甚至是集體感。

People trust their dabbawalas, and in turn, the dabbawalas know exactly who they're serving, and how to serve them.

人們信任他們的達巴瓦哈，反過來，達巴瓦拉也清楚地知道他們在為誰服務，以及如何為他們服務。

In 1993, amidst repeated domestic bombings of the Mumbai Suburban Railway, the only riders who weren't frisked were the dabbawalas.

1993 年，孟買市郊鐵路屢遭國內爆炸襲擊，唯一沒有被搜身的乘客是達巴瓦拉。

Their local communities knew who they were, and the dabbawalas knew if they were carrying a container that had been tampered with.

當地社區知道他們是誰，達巴瓦拉也知道他們是否攜帶了被動過的飯盒。

Imagine trusting your DoorDash driver with your life—I don't even trust my DoorDash driver not to spit in my food, I just accept that it's already been spat in.

試想一下，我甚至不相信 DoorDash 司機會不會把口水吐到我的食物裡，我只相信食物已經被吐進去了。

So, maybe the problem we have is a lack of community and sense of trust in one another.

也許我們的問題是缺乏社區意識和彼此信任感。

Or maybe it's capitalism.

或許這就是資本主義。

Or maybe those are the same thing, I don't know.

或許這些都是一回事，我不知道。

Maybe try giving your DoorDash driver an unsolicited hug next time, you never know what might happen.

也許下次可以試著主動擁抱一下 DoorDash 司機，你永遠不知道會發生什麼。

I, however, do know what will happen because I've already taken a course on probability theory from our sponsor, Brilliant.org.

不過，我知道會發生什麼，因為我已經從我們的贊助商 Brilliant.org 上學習了概率論課程。

And guess what, you're going to jail.

你猜怎麼著，你要進監獄了。

Brilliant.org is my go-to resource whenever I need to learn a new STEM skill quickly and efficiently.

每當我需要快速高效地學習新的 STEM 技能時，Brilliant.org 就是我的首選資源。

They have courses on everything from neural networks, to Python, to circuitry—they even just put out a course on going viral on Twitter, not that I need it.

他們有從神經網絡、Python 到電路的各種課程，他們甚至剛剛推出了一門關於如何在 Twitter 上進行病毒式傳播的課程，但我並不需要。

Their lessons are interactive, fun, and make even the most technical concepts easy to grasp.

他們的課程具有互動性和趣味性，即使是最專業的概念也能輕鬆掌握。

And even better, they're quick.

更妙的是，它們還很快。

No sitting down and studying long blocks of text—with Brilliant.org, you can learn these new concepts a few minutes at a time, knock out a lesson on the subway, do one in bed, cruise through a few in the shower—it's up to you.

有了 Brilliant.org，你可以每次只用幾分鐘就學會這些新概念，在地鐵上學完一課，在床上學完一課，在洗澡時學完幾，一切由你決定。

So whether you're in school and trying not to forget too much over the summer, or a real adult just trying to know more stuff, I highly recommend you give Brilliant.org a try.

無論你是在校學生，想在暑假期間不忘記太多東西，還是真正的成年人，只是想了解更多的東西，我都強烈建議你試試 Brilliant.org。

And it's never been easier because you can try everything they have to offer, free for a full 30 days if you visit brilliant.org.hai or click the link in the description.

而且，這從未如此簡單，因為只要你訪問 brilliant.org.hai，或點擊說明中的連結，就可以免費試用他們提供的一切服務，為期整整 30 天。

You'll also get 20% off an annual premium subscription, so what are you waiting for?

你還可以享受年度高級訂閱 8 折優惠，還等什麼？