Comments on: Why Does Hot Water Sometimes Feel Cold?

By: Iris

Iris — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:22:52 +0000

Wow……..cool!!!!!!!!!
Yup i’ve experienced all of this and had wondered bout it 2 and now that i’ve the answer, guess i need to thank all of the above fellows………..
But the ? i was looking for was “why do cold things when exposed to room temperature turn hot and hot turn cold or rather lukewarm?”
Well…kept thinking bout it and came to the conclusion that perhaps it has something to do with the fact that things(at extreme points-hot or cold) tend to seek a state of thermal equilibrium or stability with the room temperature(hot or cold).
If some1 has got an idea of it please let me know the reason for it and also whether my theory is rite or wrong……….thanks
Mail me at rs.yousaf@gmail.com

By: Gavin L.

Gavin L. — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:09:58 +0000

This is pretty sick i tried the knuckle thing and it worked and so did the sharp and blunt pressure thing. I was looking for a science question involving high and low kinetic energy and his showed up.

By: Steven

Steven — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:18:03 +0000

Hot water is good for other itchiness related instances though, such as mosquito bites. hot water tends to relieve the itchy sensation that the mosquito saliva in your skin is doing to you. cold water is good for burns. and finally, cold gradually progressing to warm is good for areas of the body that have been exposed to cold temperatures and is starting to turn red/blue/abnormally dark (the last one you might want to phone up a doctor).

By: Tamsyn

Tamsyn — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 20:46:00 +0000

GTFO- Get the F$#% Off!

By: Melissa

Melissa — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 19:41:00 +0000

Actually in my college anatomy class we learned that you sometimes feel hot water as cold because you have cold receptors, hot receptors, and extreme receptors that sense both extreme cold and extreme hot temperatures which is how they messages get crossed.

By: trlkly

trlkly — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:42:00 +0000

bob: It’s because the nerves/skin in your hands are themselves cold, and the hot water takes a bit to warm them up and make them active.

By: Azaurmyth

Azaurmyth — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 06:11:00 +0000

Going on a chicken, what is GTFO?

Back to the subject, I’ve done that before. It sucks hard.

By: Elvisc

Elvisc — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 07:07:00 +0000

I just tried it, and the hot water felt hot, and cold felt cold. Didn’t work! Perhaps it doesn’t work on all.

By: Tom

Tom — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 07:06:00 +0000

I suppose I’m normal yet unusual at the same time.. When I put my hand under hot water, it’s hot.. Cold is cold.. Maybe Hell will freeze over now?

By: Motoko

Motoko — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 06:46:00 +0000

Psychologically speaking, I think you are right Rini. If I am remembering correctly from my psychiatry studies (no I’m not a psychiatrist, I’m studying to be one) then I think that yes we are hardwired to respond more quickly tp pain and heat because both have a good chance of harming us. So, from an Evolutionary Psychiatry standpoint, I do think you are correct.

As for the putting your hand in freezing cold water then just running cold water over it out of the faucet, I think the same stimulus applies, but in a different way. We are wired to notice certain things, but when it comes down to it I think physically the lowering of the temperature of the hands causes them to be more receptive towards warm objects. Just like in physics, the cold doesn’t transfer, it uses the energy of the heated objects to warm itself back up to a functional level. So, if we pretend that we are just physical beings, then when we have a cold hand, it more readily absorbs the warmer temperature of the “cold” water, and the speed at which it does this causes an information overload to your brain which says, “Hey! GTFO man!”

So, I think all of the above theories are correct, I just felt the need to somewhat explain them through physics and Psychiatry…sorry if I bored anyone.

~Motoko~