Why are your hands slippery when dry, get “grippy” when they get a little bit wet, then slippery again if very wet?

Question

Why are your hands slippery when dry, get “grippy” when they get a little bit wet, then slippery again if very wet?

In: Physics

Answer 1

I’ve always said that certain things are slippery when they’re too dry, but also slippery when they’re too wet. A lot of systems on earth balance on the correct amount of water. Slipperiness is no exclusion.