why does your tongue get stuck if you try to lick to a cold metal pole?
In: Physics
The water in the saliva on your tongue freezes to the pole like ice sticking to your car. The ice forms into the tiny cracks and crevices of the metal and all the dimples and bumps on your tongue creating a lot of friction, effectively “glueing” your tongue to the pole
The reason your saliva freezes so quickly on metal in particular is that metal conducts heat very well. Your warm saliva dumps some heat into the nearby cold metal, then the heat redistributes within the rest of the pole, and your tongue is still on cold metal. A large metal pole is as good as an infinite heat sink at freezing temperatures, compared to the small amount of saliva on your tongue.
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