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3,600-year-old disposable cup shows even our ancestors hated doing dishes
- Kaibeezy 7y agoWith ceramics being a higher status material to us now, it seems strange to throw them away after just one use. But like plastic today, clay was readily available, cheap to acquire, easy to mold. But also like plastic, clay stays in the ground for many, many years.
- daddylonglegs 7y agoThose cups remind me of this piece on the radio on disposable clay cups in modern India. Apparently the clay cups were being replaced in India by plastic at the time of the report (2011). http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/9385244.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspon... Edit: reportedly the unglazed clay cups return to the earth quite quickly.