Ask Ollie
The Three Bowl Temperature Trick
Here's one to try together!
Can the very same water feel cold and warm at once? Ollie bets your hands will argue!
Reviewed by our team.
Safety first
- warm water must not be hot, so test it on a wrist first
- wet floor or table from spills, so keep a towel handy
- very cold water and ice may be uncomfortable on hands if left in too long
What you need
- Water, cold, room temperature, and warm
- Ice cubes, a few cubes
- Bowl, 3 medium
- Towel, 2
- Jug, 1
- Phone, 1, as a timer (or a clock)
How to do it
Grown-up prep: Set the three bowls on a table with a towel nearby. Have warm tap water ready that is comfortable, never hot.
- Line up three bowls in a row on the towel.
- Fill the left bowl with cold water and a few ice cubes.
- Fill the right bowl with warm tap water.
- Fill the middle bowl with room temperature water.
- Put your left hand in the cold bowl and your right hand in the warm bowl.
- Now move both hands into the middle bowl at the same time. Ask: What do you think the middle water will feel like to each hand?
- Notice how each hand feels the same water differently. Ask: The water is the same, so why do your hands disagree?
- Swap the cold and warm bowls, then try it again.
- Now trick a friend, or try new bowls! What surprising temperature mix will you test next? Ask: Who in your family do you want to fool next, and what do you think they will say?
Play it again
- Swap sides: start with the other hands in the cold and warm bowls and see if the feelings flip.
- Longer soak: try 30 seconds, then 2 minutes, and notice how the trick changes.
- Guess the number: use a thermometer to measure each bowl, then guess the middle water before you check.
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