Hooked on science: Tasty science

Does food taste different when your tongue is hot or cold? Here's an experiment that will put your taste buds to the test.

Materials

• Ice cube
• Salt
• Sugar
• Lemon juice

Instructions

STEP 1: Rub the ice cube on your tongue.

STEP 2: Taste the sugar, salt and lemon juice to see if each ingredient taste differently when your tongue is cold.

Explanation

Your taste buds should have a difficult time distinguishing the taste of each ingredient. You get a fresh batch of taste buds about every 10 days. Basically your taste buds will repair themselves. You taste best when the temperature of the food is between 72 and 105 degrees.

Jason Lindsey is a Science Outreach Educator with Hooked on Science. Check out his website "Hooked On Science" at hookedonscience.org for webcasts and experiments that might get you hooked on science. Send him your science questions at jlindsey@hookedonscience.org. More science experiments can be found at www.semissourian.com.