Here's a video that explores an often-used but often-ignored genius of design: the disposable coffee lid, aka the device that allows our culture to drink hot beverages on-the-go. New York University professor Louise Harpman, who co-owns the world's largest collection of "independently patented coffee lids," explains why, unlike the paper clip, there isn't one "best designed" coffee lid — yet. (According to Fast Co., Harpman's collection includes 550 different disposable plastic lids, so safe to say, she's an expert.) In the video, Harpman also shows off some coffee-lid innovations from Taiwan and elsewhere, the latter of which is a Band-Aid-like apparatus that helps cover germs. Go, gawk at some coffee lid innovations.
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Watch the Owner of the World's Largest Coffee Lid Collection Talk Design
What disposable coffee lids tell us about design culture.