Ponderings over Styrofoam

 

Our nation now suffers a shortage of Styrofoam. The lack of sufficient amounts of Styrofoam is serious. So far, we haven’t found a solution to the problem. One manifestation of the predicament is the lack of 44 ounce drink cups. The Pandemic has caused people to buy to-go food. Also, we don’t have enough employees to wash dishes. With the stalling down of imports, restaurants cannot purchase cups with brand imprints from other countries. Suppliers within the United States have not been able to fill the orders for Styrofoam cups. Styrofoam shortage impacts restaurants nationwide (msn.com)

The trend in restaurants is to serve beverages in glass. Convenience stores have developed campaigns to encourage customers to bring their own containers. 

 My new interactive language reference book, Brilliant, https://www.amazon.com/Brilliant-Essential-Mary-Lou-Cheatham/dp/1888141980 contains a brief but valuable reference to the word Styrofoam. The “Quick Pronunciation Guide” on page 123 shows how some folks mispronounce the word and how it should be pronounced. The technique of saying the word correctly involves pronouncing each of the three syllables with some emphasis. Recognized authorities scoop over the middle syllable, but I don’t because some dear ones in the lower half of my beloved native state of Mississippi leave out the middle syllable entirely and thus make it a two-syllable word—STY FOAM.

I was visiting my sister, who lived in Laurel, MS. “Mary,” she said, “would you please bring in the styfoam [sic] cooler from the front doorsteps. I traveled southward toward the Gulf Coast and visited a friend who brought me a glass of Coke in a styfoam [sic] cup.

During our shortage of Styrofoam, I feel a compulsion to give the word some much needed attention. Besides observing the way to pronounce the word, we need to observe that it starts with a capital letter. Why?

Confusion over what Styrofoam is explains the capitalization of the S. Styrofoam as a trade-marked brand was patented in 1944. A product used in construction, it is often called Blue Board. <Styrofoam - Wikipedia>   Sometimes Styrofoam manifests itself as insulation panels.

What we usually call Styrofoam is a foamed lightweight, white, polystyrene we use for food packaging in fast restaurants. While some of us worry about the disappearing Styrofoam cups, others rejoice about the decline of the cup supply.

“Many environmental groups want to abolish foam entirely because if it ends up as litter, it can break down easily into small pieces, harming fish and animals that ingest it. For humans, plastic fibers have been found in everything from drinking water to table salt, though the long-term health consequences are still being studied.”Your Foam Coffee Cup Is Fighting for Its Life - The New York Times (nytimes.com)