Assignment: Thoughtless Acts

Collaborators:

Shelved behind.  You are in the grocery store and decide that you do not want to purchase an item in your basket.  Do you leave it on the shelf in front of you, return it to its original location, or bring it to the checkout and tell the person working there that you do not want to purchase it?  A good design solution would be to have an area at the checkout where you could place unwanted items from your basket or cart.  This could be as simple as a basket placed underneat the conveyor belt.  Shoppers would know they could put their unwanted items here at checkout, alleviating the stress of hiding the unwanted item amongst unlike things; and the people working in the store would know that all of the items to be reshelved were consolidated in this one place.

Book marked. I've used a pencil here, to mark my place in a book.  I usually either leave the book open to the page I am on, which tends to damage the spine, or I use any object I can find nearby.  A solution better than a pencil is any piece of paper -- it stays in place much better when the book is moved.

Ready for the Race, lacking a pocket Before a bike alleycat race, a rider tucks her manifest under her backpack strap. A solution for this problem -- include a pocket on the strap -- a small zipper or snap-shut pocket could serve as a pocket for paper or small things like a tire patch kit.

Replate (replate.org).  This thoughtless act is featured on a website.  It is the common practice of leaving uneaten food on top of a trash receptical for another person to eat.  A solution could be a box provided next to the trash can like a newspaper box; or a space near the door at a restaurant where people can leave leftovers they do not wish to take with them.

Chopstick perch: Many times when eating at a restaurant with chopsticks, I will fold the paper that they came in and will rest them on this.  I do this to prevent the part of the chopsticks that I touch to the food and to my mouth from touching the table.  A solution is a pre-made chopstick rest; or, since this paper serves as such a good rest, the chopstick company could draw folding directions on the packaging to indicate that this is an accepted and encouraged use of the wrapper.