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O.K. so maybe the title is a bit on the heavy side, but I've always noticed a few interesting things regarding my coffee cup, more so now with climate change being on everyone's mindset these days.
It's like this - I've always found owning a coffee cup, a great way to meet new people, or strike up conversations from people you don't know. It's almost like it s an emblem of your character. As if the type of cup you use can offer insight into the sort of personality you are.
Or maybe not...
For example, look at mine above. Pretty much half the time I'm in a coffee line up, a stranger (male and female) will comment about my coffee cup. Usually, a "that's a cool cup" type of comment, or "that's cute cup." Which is kind of strange to me, because I don't find it necessarily "cool" or "cute." I mean, is the cup that unique? Or is coffee cup commentary a common occurence?
I've also noticed that this trend of openness from strangers is even more prominent these days, and that this is presumably because my being environmentally friendly is part of that character assessment.
So, let's see... Yes, I'm am environmentally conscious, so that works. I'm a big science geek, so maybe the steel look is reflective of that. And I'm also someone who appreciates clean aesthetics, so that also works from a design perspective. I was once voted "coolest geek" from my colleagues, so even if I don't fit the "cute" label, maybe the "cool" label works in some contexts.
Anyway, all of this makes me curious about a couple of things. And hopefully, this will allow us to start a meme generally and a "Ask a Scienceblogger, sort of" specifically. That is:
1. Can you show us your coffee cup?
2. Can you comment on it? Do you think it reflects on your personality?
3. Do you have any interesting anecdotes resulting from coffee cup commentary?
3. Can you try to get others to comment on it?
Comments
I have to say, that IS a cool coffee cup! everyone's seems to be from some company or something artsy. The plainess of the cup makes it stand out from its cluttered cohorts.
Posted by: IRobot | May 17, 2007 12:22 PM
You can't microwave that, though, can you?
Unfortunately, my coffee cups are disposable paper ones from Greenberries, Bodos, Higher Grounds or Starbucks. What's sad is that they all know me in those places... I should be more eco-friendly.
Posted by: meerasedai | May 17, 2007 12:50 PM
http://www.triplepundit.com/pages/ask-pablo-the-coffee-mug-debac-002246.php
Will/have you used it at least 369 times? And do you expect to drink 8 times as much out of it as a ceramic?
"Based on this result alone, you would have to use your mug at least 46 times (daily for a month and a half) and you would have to use your SS mug at least 369 times (daily for a year) to justify its higher material intensity. The results for water are a little more difficult to grasp since water is a renewable resource that continues through its natural cycles after we use it (PS - 966g, Ceramic - 1,706g, SS - 77,528g). For the highly-processed SS, we need 164 times as much water as the mug holds ( 77.5 liters)!"
http://www.triplepundit.com/pages/ask-pablo-the-coffee-mug-debac-002246.php
Posted by: Lifecycle | May 17, 2007 12:59 PM
Hi Lifecycle. Holy mackerel! I had read about the nuances of the ceramic cup before, but not the stats for the stainless steal mug. I've had my mug for about 3 years now (and if I'm honest, I'm good for one cup of coffee a day, and use it about 3/4 of the time), so I guess I'm in the clear, but still - food for thought.
Thanks for the link whose moral is basically, "if you don't think you can keep your cup around for over a year, you'd probably be best to get a ceramic mug."
Any stats available for the plastic cups? As well, any studies that also incorporate water/detergent use for the rinsing out?
Posted by: David Ng | May 17, 2007 1:31 PM
Interesting article.
Posted by: White Badger | May 17, 2007 1:36 PM
The thread below the discussion mentioned the washing/detergent issues, and also pointed out that disposal costs were missing. As for plastic cups, I imagine it might be similar to polystyrene costs on a per-weight basis, so an unrecycled 150 gram plastic mug might balance 25 styrofoam cups.
(I just googled stainless mug impact to find the article...)
Posted by: Lifecycle | May 17, 2007 1:59 PM
I put up mine here and sent a trackback that isn't showing up
Posted by: RoninGeographer | May 17, 2007 4:45 PM
Ping!
Also, I'm puzzling over the significance of the plurality of 3's in your itemized list of questions. (This is one of those things the initiates understand, right?)
Posted by: Dr. Free-Ride | May 17, 2007 5:21 PM
My coffee cup is from the Body Worlds exhibit that was recently in Vancouver. It shows a closeup of a slice of brain. I don't get any comments about it. I don't understand why...
Posted by: T. Bruce McNeely | May 17, 2007 5:34 PM
Just a simple White Casle mug here. Usually the only comments I get on the mug are from other former Midwesterners who miss sliders/bellybombers. It does reflect my interest in food of all kinds, both gourmet and otherwise.
Posted by: Salad Is Slaughter | May 17, 2007 6:29 PM
I'm predictable
http://scienceblogs.com/deepseanews/2007/05/the_coffee_mug_meme.php
Posted by: CR McClain | May 18, 2007 12:38 AM
Caught the bug.
Posted by: Susannah | May 18, 2007 11:50 AM
I'll bite...
http://sayingyes.typepad.com/saying_yes/2007/05/hands_off_my_mu.html
Posted by: Jennifer | May 18, 2007 12:56 PM
Directed here by Saying Yes, I've bitten as well.
http://www.idyllopuspress.com/meanwhile/?p=1386
Posted by: idyllopus | May 18, 2007 3:59 PM
I've caught the mugbug, too.
Posted by: Thomas Robey | May 19, 2007 2:09 PM
I'm not a "Scibling" but with a blog title like mine, how could I not respond to this meme?
http://hotcupofjoe.blogspot.com/2007/05/hot-cup-of-joes-hot-cup.html
Posted by: cfeagans | May 20, 2007 11:21 AM
After drinking out of mugs that I didn't care for, started making my own.
Posted by: dorid | May 20, 2007 9:26 PM
While pondering which of the 60+ mugs we keep on our rack to post, and figuring how to post it, I should call your attention to the coffee mug work of this gentleman at Mug Shots, a good Texas blog: http://coffeemugshots.blogspot.com/
Posted by: Ed Darrell | May 21, 2007 5:44 AM
I am not a science blogger, but my science blog addiction almost surpasses my caffeine one. This is what I reach for to satisfy the latter .
Posted by: Rachel Rev | May 21, 2007 4:07 PM