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These resources have been reviewed and selected by STEM Learning’s team of education specialists for factual accuracy and relevance to teaching STEM subjects in UK schools.

Misconceptions about heat

This video shows the types of common misconceptions people have about heat.  A book and a metal object, that are the same temperature, are held by people.  They all say the metal object is colder. Using an IR thermometer, it is proved that a cake and its metal container are the same temperature as they are removed from an oven. 

The explanation is that metal conducts heat away from your hand faster than the book.

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