Latest news with #publicrestrooms
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
29 "Normal" Things From Other Countries That I, An American, Absolutely Cannot Believe Are Real
Contrary to popular belief, most of us Americans are well aware we're not the center of the universe. Admittedly, though, we do get a little set in our ways. Recently, the question was posed on Reddit: "What's something totally normal in your country that would shock most Americans?" and honestly, from leaving babies outside to walking around barefoot, these 29 "normal" things from other countries are actually pretty mind-blowing: 1."My family is from Ecuador, specifically Guayaquil, so I visit often. On Saturday nights, there is a rollercoaster cart that drives around town, drifting, doing donuts, and going super fast while playing music. It's the shape of a worm, so they call it 'el gusanito' [little worm]. It picks people up like every other block, and it costs 25 cents to ride. There are no limits to how many people can get on per cart. I even saw a stray dog catch a ride once. It's so unsafe but super fun. That would never happen in the States." undefinedundefinedundefined 2."When people die, we put up little posters — printed obituaries [necrologs] — on the walls of buildings all around town and close to places the person liked to frequent. They have a little picture of the person, their date of birth and death, and a message of mourning from the family. I'm from Bulgaria." undefinedundefined 3."Sauna naked with friends. Sauna naked with family. Sauna naked with strangers." undefinedundefinedundefined 4."Having to pay for public restrooms." undefinedundefined 5."Walking around in public in bare feet. Very common to see supermarket shoppers and such with no shoes on, and no, it's not a class thing, all kinds of people do it. Not beating the Hobbit allegations, I guess." undefinedundefined 6."This really only occurs in Ontario and Quebec, but the whole bagged milk thing seems to really freak them out." undefinedundefinedundefined 7."If you get sick on your vacation, you go to the doctor, and the company has to give you your days back." undefinedundefinedundefined 8."Here in Germany, our pharmacies only sell medicine, no snacks, makeup, or random stuff. The first time I visited the US, I thought I was in the wrong store." undefinedundefined 9."Taking your shoes off to go into a school. In Japan, they typically wear indoor shoes. I grew up in the States, so I thought it was normal to wear outdoor shoes inside. Never even put any thought into my shoes being dirty until after I moved to Japan. Now, there is no way that I'd even want to wear my outdoor shoes inside my house." undefined 10."I lived in Spain for a few years as an American. One of the biggest differences was the fact that their whole family lives together indefinitely. In a home the size that would fit a starter family in America, they have their grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc., and they all take care of each other. As someone who was forced to move out at 18, that fascinated me." undefined 11."A man walking along a street with a massive machete is no cause for alarm and wouldn't even get an eyebrow raised." undefined 12."The one with which I shocked my fellow Americans, since I used to live in Japan, was how it wasn't uncommon to see a 5-6-year-old child riding the train to school unaccompanied. I thought it was a beautiful testament to the culture. In the U.S., you would have your child taken away for neglectful parenting." undefinedundefined 13."Boyfriends and girlfriends (or partners) sleeping together at each other's houses from about age 14-15 years old. (Denmark here). Parents would rather have this than kids sneaking around and getting into bad situations." undefinedundefinedundefined 14."We can have 'snap elections,' and not wait for two or four years of stupidity to play out." undefinedundefined 15."The maternity leave is fucking bonkers, to the point where I've had colleagues that I didn't even meet due to them being out on maternity for like three to four years. Plus, you accrue paid leave during this time at a rate of one month per year, so you can extend it by almost half a year off." undefined 16."You are allowed to have sex outside/in nature. There are no specific rules, but you have to be mindful of other people who might be outside as well. So you are encouraged to seek out areas that are less visited. And you are not allowed to harass or accost others. If by chance you pass by someone having sex, you are encouraged to just move on." undefined 17."Anything without rice is just a snack, no matter how big the portion is." undefined 18."In Australia, an independent election authority that draws election boundaries in a non-partisan way. A respected, independent judiciary where almost no one can recall the names of our judges. A universal pharmaceutical scheme that heavily subsidizes medication for the entire population." undefinedundefined 19."University fees are relatively low. We generally pay off our student loans in our twenties (South Africa). We're paying R70k [just under $4,000] per annum for our son to do Chemical Engineering. His 4-year degree will be around R280k, which is around $16,000. Most of my American friends still have student loans of around $50,000." undefinedundefined 20."28 days annual leave." undefinedundefinedundefined 21."When I (American) was in Bavaria, there was a nice little cafe with outdoor seating not far from the lodge I was staying at. It wasn't very far from a photo/art studio that had a bunch of their photos on display in their storefront, which included quite a few really tasteful and elegant nudes. Right in front of the studio was a bus stop as well, where kids of all ages would embark/disembark, paying the studio photos zero mind at all. I pictured how that studio would be mobbed in full pitchfork and torch style in America, even considering displaying a fraction of that artwork anywhere remotely near a public area, especially with frequent kid traffic." undefinedundefinedundefined 22."Hospitality staff don't have to rely on tips in order to receive a survivable wage each month." undefinedundefined 23."Free healthcare." undefinedundefined 24."Police don't carry guns and can't shoot a person just because they felt afraid." undefinedundefinedundefined 25."In India, men walk holding hands." undefinedundefinedundefined 26."Sweden: The government helps pay for childcare. Women can take a year or more of maternity leave from their job. And it's pretty much a cashless society. Never have a need to carry Krona." undefinedundefined 27."Our babies sleep outside, in prams/strollers. No matter the weather (snow/rain/sun). We leave them in our garden, in our courtyards (if we live in flats), outside restaurants/cafés. It's totally safe (but we do use baby monitors, so we can hear when our kids wake up or know when they get too hot). I'm in Denmark. I think it's the same in Norway, and probably Sweden." undefinedundefined 28."Here in Austria, we get paid for 14 months of the year. A double month for summer and a double month for Christmas." undefined finally, "Sex education for children in Norway is not subtle. There's a children's series about puberty on the state-run channel that doesn't use innuendo or drawings. They just use naked people of all ages. There's also a show where kids ask naked adults questions about their bodies. And by kids, I mean 10-year-olds. They don't beat around the bush with sex ed here." undefined Now, I've gotta know — if you're not American, what are some normal things from your home country that you think Americans totally wouldn't believe are real? Let us know in the comments. And if you'd like to remain anonymous, you can fill out the form below.
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
This Mass. city ranked among the lowest for public restroom access, cleanliness
Easy access to public restrooms affects travelers, commuters, delivery workers and more, yet there's a growing concern of their availability. To better understand the scale of the problem, the health and hygiene brand, Tena, conducted research to find out which U.S. states and cities have the most 'discoverable public bathrooms,' according to the report. The scores for each location were based on four key factors including how discoverability, density, cleanliness and accessibility. The company found that Cranston, Rhode Island, Essex, Vermont and Evansville, Indiana ranked the lowest overall scores. This was because none of them were discoverable on public maps, which cause all locations to score a 0 across all categories. 'While this doesn't necessarily mean there are no public restrooms in these cities, it does highlight the impact of missing or inaccurate tags,' Tena explained. 'It's a reminder of how essential proper listing is for helping people quickly find facilities when they need them.' The Massachusetts city of Worcester didn't fare well either. That city had a discoverability score of 0, an estimated density score of 1, a cleanliness score of 0, and received a 0 in accessible bathrooms. Overall, Massachusetts scored a 7 in discoverability, 3 in estimated density, a 6 in cleanliness and a 4 in accessibility. Other cities that ranked low on the list include: Stamford, Connecticut Bridgeport, Connecticut Meridian, Idaho Lexington, Kentucky Bellevue, Nebraska Wilmington, Delaware Tena also listed some of the top cities when it comes to high quality and quantity public restrooms. Those were Pierre, South Dakota, Helena Montana and Hilo, Hawaii. 'One commonality between these top three cities is their smaller population size: all under 50,000,' the company wrote. 'This may make it easier to identify and tag public bathrooms on map apps compared to larger cities with more complex infrastructures. Still, ensuring visibility in bigger cities remains just as important, given the higher demand and greater number of people navigating public spaces daily.' Other cities that ranked high overall were: San Francisco, California Seattle, Washington Orlando, Florida Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Miami, Florida Honolulu, Hawaii Los Angeles, California. Holyoke say compliance, not interference, is holding up seafood shop project Paul Pierce advises Celtics to keep Tatum-Brown duo amid trade rumors Social media perplexed at Panthers' huge extension for Brad Marchand Mass. weather: Rainy morning commute Tuesday, followed by thunderstorm risk Canton man sentenced to life in prison without parole for killing man in 2018 Read the original article on MassLive.
Independent Singapore
25-06-2025
- General
- Independent Singapore
Singaporean asks why MRT toilets are ‘so filthy' in one of the richest Asian countries
SINGAPORE: An exasperated local Reddit user lamented the sorry state of some bathrooms in Singapore, asking why toilets at MRT stations are 'so filthy', even though the country has the budget to keep them clean. In a post on r/askSingapore late last week, u/Scarface6342 listed the faults of MRT toilets, including the lack of toilet paper refills, tissue packets scattered all over the floor, and urine everywhere. 'Is this a cultural issue of people not caring or is there not enough cleaners?' they asked, adding that they had had an urgent need to use the bathroom on their way to work, but when they did so at the MRT station, they were 'appalled' by the dirtiness of the toilet. The post author added that in contrast, when they had visited Taiwan, South Korea, and 'even Vietnam, a random toilet is even cleaner than the MRT toilets'. They also don't believe that it's a budget issue, adding, 'I know this is a first-world problem, but we are one of the richest Asian countries. Can we not have basic hygiene in the toilets?' A commenter who received a lot of upvotes seemed to agree that instead of a budget problem, it's a matter of perspective. 'It's a 'not my house, so not my responsibility' kind of mindset, and they know there will be someone cleaning up after them. Basically selfish and inconsiderate users.' Another pointed out, however, that while this is by no means a new problem, toilets seemed to be cleaned more frequently in the past. However, another countered this by writing, 'Instead of expecting cleaners to constantly clean up after them, why not have some basic civility to at least minimise the mess? At the rate the toilets get dirtied, no amount of cleaning can keep up.' 'This is the typical attitude that most Singaporeans have. I mean, look at Japan, the people take care of things outside their homes, thus clean toilets that the cleaners maintain. In Singapore, they have to clean,' a commenter chimed in. Another had this to say about Taiwan: 'The ironic thing is in Taiwan, due to the constraints of their sewerage system, you can't throw toilet paper in the toilet bowl. Have to throw it in a bin next to the bowl, so even though their system is more backward, their toilet etiquette is excellent. Always find their toilets clean. Perhaps it's due to their education system where school children have to participate in cleaning up their school, and this includes cleaning toilets.' 'It's people not caring. Applies to both locals and long-staying foreigners. I went to a toilet/shower at ECP. A mom just showered her toddler and simply left the soaked diaper on the floor. Overlooked? Forgot? Maybe after dressing the child, they'd come back for the diaper. Nope. I used the toilet/shower again a couple of hours later. The diaper was still there,' contributed another. 'It takes less than an hour before toilets become filthy after cleaning,' a commenter observed. /TISG Read also: Singaporeans 'infuriated' with coffee shop toilets being the dirtiest in SG despite operators earning 'tons from drink sales'
Yahoo
15-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Maybe the television wasn't the greatest invention to come out of our state
It is Mark Twain to whom the quote 'Write what you know' is most often attributed. It's advice I try to live by — writing about my personal experiences, passions and areas of expertise. But there are times when journalism requires that I step beyond my own realm of comfort and knowledge to better understand the most pressing issues of our modern day. This week that step beyond was into a men's restroom. Metaphorically. I didn't actually walk into a men's restroom. Though I have before — a couple of times on accident and once when the line for the women's room was really long and I needed to change a baby's diaper immediately. On the latter occasion, a man walked in, saw me, shrugged, and proceeded to use the urinal. How nice it must be for men, I thought at the time, to have the ability to relieve themselves without having to wait in a lengthy line for a stall. How nice to not have to worry about the cleanliness of toilet seats or the bacteria that may be lurking on the stall handles and locks. Men have it so much easier, I concluded. What I didn't realize, though, is how much grosser men have it. Imagine my horror upon learning that an estimated 1 million liters of urine splashes onto public bathroom floors every day in the United States thanks to urinal splashback. And worse, that the urine sometimes splashes back onto the … um … urinator. I'll be honest, my initial reaction upon learning this frankly horrifying fun fact was to judge. To ask the entire male species, 'How can you live like that?' But then I remembered my hero, Jane Goodall, and the way in which she studies chimpanzees without judgment and advocates for conditions that would better their existence. Does she judge chimpanzees for baring their teeth when afraid? No. Instead, she works to create an environment where chimps need not feel threatened. So, too, am I refraining from judging men for walking out of the restroom with droplets on their pants or shoes, and am instead advocating for a better way. A better urinal, more specifically, and I have great news. There's a new urinal design in town. Move over, inventor of the television Philo T. Farnsworth, there's a new greatest invention to come out of Utah. Two, actually. Weber State associate professor Dr. Randy Hurd and his collaborator Zhao Pan at the University of Waterloo in Canada have created two new urinal designs — the Cornucopia and the Nautilus — that reduce splash back to 1.4% of the typical urinal model. 'I think anyone who's used a urinal has noticed that this is an issue,' Hurd said during our phone interview. 'Or just look around the floor in any men's bathroom,' he implored. 'There's pee all over the ground. It's clearly secondary droplets being splattered everywhere.' I'm going to refrain from looking around the floor in any men's bathroom and instead take Hurd's word for it. Because if anyone's qualified to understand this issue it's him. Hurd has a Ph.D. from Utah State University in mechanical engineering and his dissertation was on fluid dynamics, specifically impact events related to fluid dynamics. Together he and Pan discovered that the solution to the issue that has plagued male pee-ers for centuries came down to what Hurd describes as a 'simple' math problem. 'If we assume that the droplets are coming from an origin, we can basically figure out where the line will intersect at a defined plan at the given angle,' he said. Then, mercifully, explained, 'If you can't hit the porcelain at a bad angle, then you can't create splatter.' 'If a train of droplets is impacting a flat surface, as the angle between that train and the surface varies, so do the splash conditions,' he said, then explained that as that angle becomes more oblique then the splatter reduces and eventually goes away. The Cornucopia, which Hurd said looks like a urinal from Star Trek, is a three-dimensional solution to the splashback problem that reduces the angle of the stream. And the Nautilus is a more simple, two-dimensional solution that is both easier to clean and not height-dependent. The designs are pending a patent, which, for the sake of the men in my life, is a process I hope goes quickly. But in the immediate, Hurd can take satisfaction in knowing that he identified a solution to a problem that men have dealt with for, in my opinion, far too long. 'It's like the glass ketchup bottle,' Hurd said. 'Sure, you can get ketchup out of it, but it doesn't make it easy. Why not make an inverted plastic ketchup bottle? That solves the problem. So I guess my argument would be, why not make it easier?' And my argument would be, 'Why did none of you do this a long time ago?' But then I remember that Jane Goodall never asked such questions of the chimpanzees. She simply lived among them with respect and celebrated those things which would make their natural lives better. So, too, do I celebrate the Cornucopia and the Nautilus and the ways in which they will better men's restrooms and the lives of the men who use them.
BBC News
06-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
How di simple habit of removing your shoes wen you enta house fit contribute to your good health
My mother always get one rule: no shoes inside her house. E no mata who you be. Family member, neighbour or guest, you gatz comot your shoe bifor you enta house. Wen I dey small, I bin tink say na one of di many manners. But as I grow older (and wiser), I realise say no be obsession wit cleanliness. Na about health, safety and hygiene. Cleanliness dey often associated wit dirty wey eye fit see. But wen, if na shoes, wetin dey under di surface dey microscopic and dem dey far more dangerous dan mud or dry grass. Outdoor shoes dey carry bacteria, allergens, and toxic chemicals, e dey lead to serious health problems. Tink about wia your shoes go evri day: public restrooms, sidewalks, hospital hallways, and lawns wey dem don treat wit chemicals like herbicides and insecticides to control weeds and pests. According to one study by di University of Arizona in di United States, 96% of shoes test positive for coliform bacteria, wey dem dey commonly find inside poo poo. And even more worryingly, 27% contain "E. coli," one bacteria linked to various infections, some of dem dey potentially deadly. While some strains of E. coli dey harmless, odas dey produce Shiga toxins, wey fit cause bloody diarrhoea and lead to hemolytic uremic syndrome, one potentially deadly condition wey fit cause kidney failure. Children under five dey at risk due to dia developing immune systems and di fact say dem dey always put dia hands for dia mouths. But E. coli no be di only germ wey dey enta your living room. Shoes dey also collect clostridium, one bacteria wey pipo know to dey cause painful and sometimes severe diarrhea, and Staphylococcus aureus, including MRSA, one drug-resistant "superbug" wey fit cause deep skin infections, pneumonia, or even deadly bloodstream infections. No be only germs Di health risks go beyond bacteria. Shoe also dey act as carrier of chemicals and allergens. Studies don show say outdoor footwear fit contain pesticides, herbicides and heavy metals like lead, e dey pose serious health risks, especially for young children and pets. Exposure to lead, wey dem find inside dust or soil, dey harmful for children becos e fit affect dia brain development and cause lifelong cognitive problems. In addition, allergens such as pollen fit stick to di di soles, causing allergies and respiratory problems. Even more alarming, di asphalt sealants wey dem dey use on roads contain carcinogenic compounds. One U.S. study reveal say di dem fit find dis chemicals indoors and e go dey for in di indoor dust, sometimes at levels 37 times higher dan di one wey dem find outdoors. And e dey spend di most time for ground. Children and pets. Children crawl, play and dey often put dia hands to dia mouths. Pets dey lick dia paws afta dem walk on contaminated surfaces. Wearing outdoor shoes indoors fit increase dia exposure to harmful substances. Clean floors, healthy homes Based on my evidence, my mother rules no dey bad anymore. In fact, na one of di simplest and most effective public health measures you fit adopt for your house. Comot your shoes wen you enta, no be only dirt you dey prevent from staining di carpet, but you also significantly reduce your family exposure to germs and harmful chemicals. And e no dey difficult to do. Leave one space for shoes near di entrance. You fit also put shoe rack or basket, or even comfortable slippers for guests. To tell pipo to comot dia shoe before dem enta your house fit dey somehow at first, but e dey easy to forget say sometin as routine as to enta di house fit carry hidden risks. *Manal Mohammed na Professor of Medical Microbiology at di University of Westminster, UK. We publish dis article in The Conversation and reproduce am here under di Creative Commons license.
