jtotheizzoe:

There’s More to That Red Plastic Cup Than You Thought

We know that drinking is a social activity. But did you know that the red plastic cup is related to social drinking rituals from Polynesia to Africa? It puts attendees on equal footing, it’s a sign of community and sharing.

Our red plastic cups work similarly. Cup in hand, we mingle. Liberated by the social permission granted by the red plastic cup, we catch up with old friends and make new ones. It becomes a factor that connects attendees at the event—we all have a red plastic cup, so we all belong. And we assert that these cups are ours by writing our name on them, which further making them a handy tool for socialization. This sort of possession also minimizes the burden on our hosts to have a bounty of cups available for guests.

No word on whether our ancestors tried to bounce quail eggs into them before slamming fermented fruit juice.

(via Anthropology in Practice, Scientific American Blog Network)