Maybe no one wants to know how often their dish is in use, or who used it before. As a momentary possession, as something intimate, it can be an unpleasant surprise to figure out that the shade of lipstick marking the glass doesn’t suit the one drinking from it. But of course the former customer will not have been the only one. Dishes in restaurants are not used just once or twice, except at places where fast food is served in disposable tableware. Still, even when dishes are used for a single meal, counting the use of the material becomes complicated because of recycling. It seems unlikely that a plate would turn into a plate again, rather than into an ashtray, drawing paper or...