Why did the room temperature water feel warm when your finger was cold and then

Question

Why did the room temperature water feel warm when your finger was cold and then it felt cold when your finger was warm?

thermoreceptors can only detect slight temperature differences

thermoreceptors do not register temperature, merely heat flow

the thermoreceptors in your finger are not very accurate, as they are not critical to the function of the body

thermoreceptors are only good at detecting painful (or potentially harmful) temperatures and therefore are not accurate for room temperature

thermoreceptors can only detect slight temperature differences

thermoreceptors do not register temperature, merely heat flow

the thermoreceptors in your finger are not very accurate, as they are not critical to the function of the body

thermoreceptors are only good at detecting painful (or potentially harmful) temperatures and therefore are not accurate for room temperature

Explanation / Answer

Thermoreceptors are sensory receptors that code absolute and relative changes in temperature. They are the receptive portion of a sensory neuron. We feel the room temperature water warm when our fingers are cold and the same will be felt cold when our fingers are warm.

Heat receptors are closer to the skin's surface, while cold receptors are found deeper in the dermis. This shows that sensitivity to hot temperatures will be higher than lower temperatures based on the location of the receptors.

Thus, thermoreceptors can detect even slight temperature differences. They not only detect a temperature change, but also can detect a newly created heat flow.

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