[Q] Shower sensitivity

[paigetheoracle]

I've noticed that when having a shower, water falling on my back feels hotter than when it falls on the front of my body - is this to do with the back being more bony than the front or is it for some other reason?

[modest]

Get 3 bowls of water such that A is lukewarm, B is hot, and C is cold. Put left hand in B (hot) and right hand in C (cold). Leave them there for a bit then put both hands in A (lukewarm). Your right hand will think A is warmer than your left hand. This is not because of any physical difference between your hands.

 

Nerve cells get used to the environment they're in. After telling you that they are touching something hot for a while they will get over it and send your brain less and less "hey, that's hot" signals. Introducing a new part of the body to the hot thing will then relatively sense it as hotter. Imagine being waist deep in a cold ocean until your lower body is used to the temp. If a wave splashes your upper body it will feel colder than your legs.

 

It would seem you face the shower head more than you turn away from it.

 

~modest

[paigetheoracle]

Get 3 bowls of water such that A is lukewarm, B is hot, and C is cold. Put left hand in B (hot) and right hand in C (cold). Leave them there for a bit then put both hands in A (lukewarm). Your right hand will think A is warmer than your left hand. This is not because of any physical difference between your hands.

 

Nerve cells get used to the environment they're in. After telling you that they are touching something hot for a while they will get over it and send your brain less and less "hey, that's hot" signals. Introducing a new part of the body to the hot thing will then relatively sense it as hotter. Imagine being waist deep in a cold ocean until your lower body is used to the temp. If a wave splashes your upper body it will feel colder than your legs.

 

It would seem you face the shower head more than you turn away from it.

 

~modest

 

I know of this experiment, so tried putting my back to the shower at the start and keeping it there most of the time. The first time was inconclusive but the second time I noticed it didn't make any difference and the back still responded to feeling the heat more than the front. As the weather and ground temperature have improved, so has my overall body temperature, which I think was why I was noticing the effect more. The back being bone rather than muscle and flab, presumably this was why I noticed it more (less insulation).