An interesting concept: the bathroom effect (via):

(...) Pixar’s CEO, Steve Jobs. “He thought it was really important that there only be one bathroom in the building, for all 700 people who work here,” Greenberg says.(...) Here’s the “bathroom effect” theory, as Greenberg explains it: “If you have bathrooms that are scattered throughout the building, you use the bathroom nearest to where you’re sitting. If there was one bathroom, all kinds of people would come together and talk with one another all the time […]. It would enhance communication […]. The atrium also [aside from eight restrooms] boasts [a café], break rooms with an unusual number of toasters, the mailroom, conference rooms, pool and foosball tables, and an open area for the occasional concert or lecture. (Pixar University, the department where Greenberg works, arranges talks and classes for employees to broaden their expertise.)

Why do I blog this? because it's a relevant example of the use of third places, a trigger for social awareness in companies, as coffee/vending machines.