Book excerpt: A fascinating design history and field guide to one of modern life's everyday conveniences, with 200 full close-up photographs and patent designs. A fun look at how the genius of design is often hidden in plain sight. Ever wonder about how everyday objects come to look the way they do? The disposable coffee lid is a design paradox of the modern era. It must simultaneously open and close to allow for drinking on the go while protecting against unwanted spillage. See your coffee cup lid for what it really is: a magical design artifact that contains fascinating variations. The premier guide for take-out coffee drinkers everywhere – Learn more about the mechanics behind your morning cup of joe. Impress and stump the coffee-aficionados in your life with your expansive knowledge of slosh-drainage systems, ergonomic drink apertures, foam accommodation techniques, and sensory enhancement features. From the world's largest coffee lid collection – Louise Harpman and Scott Specht have collected over 550 of these triumphs of industrial design for decades, creating what Smithsonian magazine calls "the world's largest collection of coffee cup lids."