Toilet seats: U-shaped in public, O-shaped at home. Why?

Our efforts to dispel the mysteries of the modern visual landscape come to a head this week. For previous columns, click here; to submit your own suggestions, email us.

What are the chances you’re reading this in the bathroom? Pretty good, apparently. Where else in this hectic world are you going to find the peace and quiet to read Slate, plan your social life, or check if you’re the first person to consider pitching a show called The Real Housewives of King’s Landing?

You’re especially likely to be in the bathroom if you’re an Android user, according to a 2012 study, which found that 87 percent of such people regularly engage in what’s been called “bogging,” compared with a mere 77 percent of iPhone users. (Got a better term than bogging for going online in the bathroom? Let me know in the comments.) Half of all water-damaged phones are damaged by, um, eau de toilette. I haven’t seen any data on what percentage of Americans clean their phones after bathroom usage—but a recent study concluded that 16 percent of our phones “have poop on them.”

Lovely. But where were we? That’s right: on the can. So, look down. Is the toilet seat U-shaped, like a horseshoe, with a gap in front? Or is it a continuous, O-shaped ring?

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