Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

Cohabitation with a member of the opposite sex is always a tricky proposition. I’m not married, but I do happen to have a fantastic female roommate with whom I’ve lived since I moved to Florida two and a half years ago. Living in a house with someone produces all sorts of dilemmas, the type that can lead to conundrums when it comes to deciphering people’s personal tastes and generally staying out of their way. There’s also Title XLVI, Chapter 798 of the Florida Statutes that makes Jennifer and I criminals (cohabitation is a second-degree misdemeanor in this state) but I’ve done worse things in my life, and I’m not exactly sweating it.

I hope no cops are reading this.

I’ve been fortunate to have someone who can put up with my personal quirks while having few of her own. Yet one of the biggest questions that can arise in a mixed-sex household is one that has puzzled men since Thomas Crapper popularized the flush toilet in the late 19th century. Should the toilet seat be left up or down?

Fortunately, Jennifer and I have our own bathrooms, so the issue only arises when we have guests. Yet I imagine for couples that share a bathroom the “up or down” issue can be a contentious one. Certainly, my mother taught me to always leave the toilet seat down, but is that matter of courtesy a waste of time in the long run?

Fortunately, we have people to answer that question. They’re called economists. Dr. Steve Levitt of the University of Chicago is my favorite economist, and occasionally he sends me an email regarding poker or some other similar area of research between us, to which I squeal like a teenaged girl and go running around the house screaming about getting another email from Levitt. Certainly Levitt’s a rock star of the economics community, having a worldwide best-selling book, but there are others in his vein, which brings us to Dr. Jay Pil Choi of Michigan State University.

Dr. Choi in 2002 studied the economics of toilet seat etiquette in this essay (.pdf file). I encourage you to read it, as it’s fascinating. If the math scares you away, here’s a breakdown of the conclusions:

1. The “down rule” is inefficent.
2. The “selfish rule” (leaving it in the position used) is preferable in the vast majority of conditions, assuming the inconvenience costs are the same.
3. This is particularly true in the possibility that consecutive users are of the same sex (maybe you pee more often than your partner/roommate).

So there you go! Feel free to leave the toilet seat up, fellas. Don’t come crying to me or Dr. Choi if it puts you in the doghouse, though.