Heat transfer when a warm hand touches metal or ice is called what?

• A. Conduction
• B. Convection
• C. Radiation
• D. Evaporation

Answer: (A)

Conduction is heat transfer through direct contact between objects. When a warm hand touches metal or ice, heat moves from the hand into the other object via molecular interactions at the contact surface. In metal, this happens quickly because electrons move energy rapidly, so you feel warmth or cold immediately depending on the surface’s temperature. With ice, energy still flows by contact, which can cause melting and a rapid feel of cold as heat is drawn away from the skin.

The other modes don’t apply here: convection requires moving fluids to carry heat, radiation transfers energy through space as infrared waves without contact, and evaporation involves a liquid changing to gas to absorb heat. So the mechanism at play in direct touch is conduction.