Old Library Gets New, Uh, Reading Room

Want to visit a nice public restroom? Try Japan

(NEWSER) - Toilet habits are a taboo subject for most of us, but not for Harvey Molotch. Salon spoke to the sociology professor, who co-edited Toilet: Public Restrooms and the Politics of Sharing, about the bathroom fixture. Highlights:

• We should be using water, not toilet paper, to clean up: It's more eco-friendly, and also offers "more complete cleansing," Molotch says.
• Public restrooms should be unisex: Segregated bathrooms are inefficient, make no sense for LGBT people, and are not as secure as unisex bathrooms would be, he argues.

Field Museum facilities offer 'calming' art' and areas for kids

(NEWSER) - If you’re ever in Chicago and you really have to go, stop by the Field Museum—its restrooms are officially the best in the country. The natural history museum’s bathrooms have won the 10th annual “America’s Best Restroom” contest, run by restroom-supply company Cintas. So what’s so great about these toilets? Well, they’ve got environmentally-sound faucets and driers and are cleaned hourly—but that’s just the beginning, the Chicago Tribune reports. More»

It has great conveniences, but maybe too many gizmos: New York Times review

(NEWSER) - The New York Times enters the world of toilet reviews today, but this is no ordinary toilet. It's the ultra-luxury Numi from Kohler that costs $6,400 and brings hygienic extravagance to a new level. Shaped like a white rhombus, the Numi is controlled with a touch-screen remote that allows the user to flip on the radio or MP3s, heat the seat, perform an eco-flush, and thoroughly wash oneself with an adjustable water nozzle located inside the bowl. Writer Sam Grobart tested one for a month in his home, and while enamored with its extravagant amenities, he did find a few technological pitfalls such as the Numi's rather slow automatic seat-lifting and lowering and an annoying jingle it played every time it turned on (until he dismantled it). More»

Toto's Washlets win over once disgusted Japanese

(NEWSER) - A toilet company that took a chance on a spray-and-wipe system is flush with success. Some 30 million once-squeamish consumers have scooped up a toilet that delivers a crotch-washing spray for cleanliness. The Washlet by the Toto company is a kind of bidet-toilet combo now found in some 70% of Japanese homes and several others around the world. Consumers were outraged by the first TV ad for the gadget in 1982 when a young Japanese woman stuck out her bottom and rubbed black paint on her hand to demonstrate the problem of using toilet paper to clean up gooey messes. More»

Old federal buildings don't contain enough ladies' rooms

(NEWSER) - A couple of male lawmakers struck a blow for women's rights yesterday—the right to equality in bathrooms, that is. The “Potty Parity Act,” introduced in the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is the work of chairman Edolphus Town, who says he’s bothered by the “exasperating lines” and generally poor restroom accommodations women across the government face.The bill would require all federal buildings to have an equal number of restrooms for men and women, the Washington Post reports. More»