Lap

This article concerns the area at the top of a person's legs; for other similarly named articles, see Lap (disambiguation).

A lap is a surface created between the knee and waist of a bipedal being when it is in a seated position. A lap only exists in this seated form, and not when a being is standing erect or when it is lying down.

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Consumer products for laps

There are numerous consumer devices created specifically for use with the lap. The laptop, for example, was designed for people who required the use of a computer when away from their usual work space. It was originally named after this prominent feature but was eventually renamed the notebook in reference to its small physical size, instead of its possible positioning during use.

An earlier consumer product designed for the lap was the lapdog. A small dog, usually a terrier, which was bred to sit in the lap of a wealthy or fashionable European woman.

In ship building, lapped joints refers to the fillet weld used to connect the plates. This should be avoide in strength members of a welded structure. As the fillet welds are in shear and when the plates are in tension the strength of the joint is very much less than that of the plate material or butt joint.

Also, a lap can be the covering of a closed course back to the beginning by means of walking, swimming, riding, flying, etc. A California lap is normally one half of the above and similar to the way Californians count deer and elk horns, i.e. a four point buck is an eight pointer in CA.

Laps in popular culture

In some forms of the Christmas tradition, young children sit upon the lap of Santa Claus to tell him what gifts they would like. Around the Christmas buying season each year, many malls, especially those in North America are known to offer an area where parents can bring their children to partake in this tradition.

Lapsitting, in general, can also be seen in every day life between relatives, couples, and friends. Lapsitting can occur between people of the opposite sex or the same sex--although same-sex lapsitting does appear to be far more common (and more readily accepted by society) among young women and girls, than in their male counterparts.

The lap and sexuality

A "lap dance" is an erotic dance and sexual act. It is commonly performed as a paid service by exotic dancers to their clientele. A lapdance is performed by one person straddling the lap of the other and gyrating their lower extremities in a provocative manner.