Why did nobody get the "wet" question correct?

Question

Water feels wet because it is highly evaporative. When you get out the shower, you feel cold even on a warm day because the water starts evaporating imeediately. Evaporation sucks heat out of you.

That is what feels wet.

I have bathed in persian Gulf on a humid day, when water temperature is near skin temperature. If you walk very slowly so as not to splash and close your eyes, you cannot tell when you are in ankle deep water. That is because there is no evaporation and the water is not cooling you at all.

Then water does NOT feel wet.

Sorry, but it is purely evaporation and the cooling effect it has on you.

Try it. get your bath water at exactly skin tempertaure. Lay in it almost wholly submerged (any exposed parts will get evaporation effect) and you will not feel wet.

Mercury is highly viscous, but does not feel wet because it doesn't evaporate.

Also, every cell in your body is 90% water. Because cells are closed there is no evaporation, so your body does not ordinarily feel wet. Any wetness from any fluid that evaporates under normal temp and pressure feels wet on your skin, if it is allowed to evaporate. If it doesn't evaporate, it won;t feel wet.

being wet with sweat on a humid Florida day is not the same thing. In that case it is a clammy sensation, quite different from feeling wet. The clammy feeling is your body wanting to sweat from the heat, but existing sweat on your skin is suppressing it because it is not evaporating.

Also, when you are fully submerged in the ocean (scuba diving), you do not feel wet, even though you might feel cold. It's simple - there can be no evaporation in that situation. You do not feel wet, yet you are surrounded by a huge mass of water.

It's only when you get out that you feel wet - when the water starts to evaporate off you.

Answer 1

actually you're incorrect.

the evaporation process is what makes our skin feel cold, not wet. if you don't believe this, throw some terpintine on your hands. it evaporates much faster than water, however your hands never gat that wet feeling. according to your logic, you should be feeling very wet from terpintine.

as far as humidity, you are correct in the description of what happens, but incorrect in the cause. you claim that you'll never feel wet, but in reality, you have been feeling wet for some time and you are used to it.

The persian gulf is a region of extremely high humidity, similar to florida. most people complain about feeing constantly wet and sticky when traveling to those places, however for those acclimated to the region, they don't notice the feeling. if one becomes used to so much water in the air, it's very easy to not feel a body of water. the difference between the humid air and the water is very small. that is why you don't feel wet.

Answer 2

water feels wet because your nerves interpret cooling as wet ( try it with an ice cube wrapped in foil ) I WILL NOTE that you do not feel wet underwater so there is a little of both theory's at work here

Answer 3

That's pretty interesting. So water technically could be considered "not wet" according to your description of what wet is.

Answer 4

water feels wet when...... i see it dripping of off me...when i hear it hitting the shower floor and also when I feel it wet especial when i don't dry off well enough...

Answer 5

I thought this was a forum to get answers to your questions, not to give tests.

Answer 6

i think i missed te question what was it?

Answer 7

Interesting. I didn't know that.

Answer 8

OK, thanks.