# The Urinal Test **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 8, 2011, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910 "2011-03-08T12:02:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Otara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a88e4f/32.png) [@Otara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otara)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/21 "2011-03-08T20:19:29Z")
I just took the closest one to the door for all of them. Talk about overthinking things. Otara ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/22 "2011-03-08T20:35:26Z")
The answers they gave for five and six are wrong. For five, the correct answer if #1. Why? Because there are no isolated urinals so you can’t pick one of those. But if you pick #3 or #4 you run the risk that another guy will come in and take the other one - now you’re surrounded. #1 is an end urinal so you’ve got a secure flank. For six, the correct answer is #3 or #4 (whichever is closest to the door). The quiz may be about urinal etiquette but that’s just one part of men’s room etiquette. And a prime rule of men’s room etiquette is you don’t hang out in the men’s room. You go in, do what you came there to do, and leave. Hanging out while there are two available urinals is just wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/23 "2011-03-08T20:56:18Z")
Female, got 3 of 6. I missed #2 (picked 5 because I figured that I was counting off spaces to leave an even number between for guy #3 to fit in), 5 (I chose 1 because at least I’d be next to only one other guy), and 6 (it’s busy, better pee now rather than hang out and look weird). ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/24 "2011-03-08T21:26:41Z")
Not answering #6 is incorrect unless you’re a true neurotic. If the bathroom is that busy you’re at an event or in a brief intermission in a business meeting–you take what’s left (and avoid standing next to the VP) and get on with your life. ---
**Author:** ![A.Gwilliam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@A.Gwilliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.Gwilliam)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/25 "2011-03-08T21:28:48Z")
I started the test, but gave up on it. In real life, I think there are other variables, such as:[ul] [li]How the urinals are aligned in relation to the entrance.[/li][li]To what extent you have to walk closely behind others already using urinals, in order to get to a free one.[/li][li]Whether someone is following through the entrance door right behind me.[/li][li]To what extent other people would have to walk closely behind me to get to/from the other urinals.[/li][li]How close together the urinals are.[/li][li]Whether there are “partitions” between the urinals.[/li][li]Whether the urinal(s) at one end are designed for children.[/li][li]Cleanliness, etc. of the area around individual urinals.[/li][li]How sober I am![/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/26 "2011-03-08T23:27:00Z")
2 of 6. One I chose the appropriately homophobic one for my own comfort, one for the sake of others’. The rest I don’t care. Stupid “test” anyway. Were these guys raised in isolation or something? ---
**Author:** ![BigDadWolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@BigDadWolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigDadWolf)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/27 "2011-03-08T23:55:17Z")
I got 2 out of 6 but my man code says other than the obvious “avoid a urinal next to another guy if possible” just go to the first available; anything else is overthinking it in my humble opinion. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/28 "2011-03-09T00:34:58Z")
I got 3 out of 6, but I changed one that should have landed me 4 out of 6. Darn those tricky configurations! ETA: But I’m a woman though. Surely that helps my cause. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/29 "2011-03-09T01:16:48Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > I disagree with the answer to question 5. Stall 4 adds to the discomfiture of the guy in 5, since he’s now sandwiched. That’s what makes it the the right choice. _He’s_ discomfited, which means he’s not a threat. 🙂 I scored 4/6, but really, I got them all right. On number 2, if you’re confident, you line up one over from the occupied urinal. His choices are OK, if you’re a scared, girly man. Which brings us to his explanation for #6: > [@Scared Girly Man](#): > > You go to the mirror and pretend to comb your hair or straighten a tie until the urinals “open up” a bit more. If you have to go REAL, REAL BAD, for god’s sake! … use a doored stall. Yeah, I bet you’d do that, **Girly Man**. Grow a pair and man up to the stall. And for God’s sake, never go to a bar with a trough. You’d end up wetting yourself trying to hold it. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/30 "2011-03-09T01:23:41Z")
… man up to **a urinal**. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/31 "2011-03-09T02:19:22Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > I disagree with the answer to question 5. Stall 4 adds to the discomfiture of the guy in 5, since he’s now sandwiched. Stall 1 leaves the two of you no worse placed than the 5-6 pair. 🆒 It’s not because 5 was very very wrong when he choose his spot that you’re allowed to do the same. The answer to this question is correct. You don’t pair, damnit! Got 5 out of 6, by the way. I would have a very good urinal etiquette if I used them (which I avoid as much as I can). ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/32 "2011-03-09T02:26:47Z")
> [@ZenBeam](#): > > I scored 4/6, but really, I got them all right. On number 2, if you’re confident, you line up one over from the occupied urinal. . I agree. I gave the correct answer on this one because it was in the “easy” section, so I guessed it was the expected answer. But I disagree with your choice of 3. The real correct answer was 4, leaving as much space as possible on both sides. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/33 "2011-03-09T02:45:47Z")
> [@A.Gwilliam](#): > > I started the test, but gave up on it. In real life, I think there are other variables, such as:[ul] > [li]How the urinals are aligned in relation to the entrance.[/li][li]To what extent you have to walk closely behind others already using urinals, in order to get to a free one.[/li][li]Whether someone is following through the entrance door right behind me.[/li][li]To what extent other people would have to walk closely behind me to get to/from the other urinals.[/li][li]How close together the urinals are.[/li][li]Whether there are “partitions” between the urinals.[/li][li]Whether the urinal(s) at one end are designed for children.[/li][li]Cleanliness, etc. of the area around individual urinals.[/li][li]How sober I am![/li][/ul] Also, where are the stalls and is the a break in the stall partition that allows eye contact with a person sitting on the toilet. Also, without going into too much detail (because I’m not going to go back and look at the test again to argue what I say here), I don’t agree with several of the answers. For example, on #5, if you go to Urinal 4, you run the risk of someone else going next to you, why not go to the one next to the wall? ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/34 "2011-03-09T02:47:58Z")
Got 4/6 and agree that it was _them_ who got the last two wrong. Same rules apply to bathroom stalls, pretty much. ---
**Author:** ![TravisFromOR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cc9497/32.png) [@TravisFromOR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TravisFromOR)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/35 "2011-03-09T08:11:24Z")
I took this test before, on another site. The test I took was longer–ten questions, if I recall, but also gave about three rules beforehand. It turned into a logic problem after that. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/36 "2011-03-09T08:35:33Z")
I got 5 of 6 (I missed #5; my logic was that the guy at U#5 already had a guy on one side of him, and it would be rude to surround him. Better to cause 50% discomfort to 1 guy than escalate someone’s discomfort to 100%, I figgered.). Every chance I get, I make sure that I let people know about this little video that teaches [Male Restroom Etiquette](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzO1mCAVyMw). ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/37 "2011-03-09T08:50:38Z")
I got 4 out of 6, missing the last two. For both 5 and 6, I just considered getting to one end of the line or the other to guarantee no more than 1 guy was standing next to me. If I have to go, I’ll take any open spot because I need to take a leak. ---
**Author:** ![Roland\_Orzabal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@Roland\_Orzabal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roland_Orzabal)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/38 "2011-03-09T14:31:23Z")
5 out of 6 (missed #5). Having a shy bladder sufficed for me to get the rest of them correct, but it led me astray on that question, since I’d much rather be able to reliably cast my gaze leftward at open space. That, and, as others have mentioned, the “no pairing off” rule is B.S. anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Azeotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/0ea827/32.png) [@Azeotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azeotrope)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/39 "2011-03-09T16:11:14Z")
3/6. Much easier being a gal in this situation (if I’m drunk enough to stumble into the men’s room, I’m gonna pee in whatever urinal I want, dammit!) ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910/40 "2011-03-09T16:20:55Z")
I got 5/6 “missing” number 5 which actually should be urinal #1. You’re better off only peeing next to one person than two. In both 5 & 6, the only option is to use a stall really. My question about urinals is that, in an albeit less and less homophobic society, why are there urinals without partitions? Or worse, the “trough”? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-urinal-test/573910.md?page=3)