How many licks does it take to get to the center of a lollipop? Science now has an answer to the famous question asked in the iconic Tootsie Roll Pop commercial: about 1,000. And you can take that number to the bank — it's based on a sophisticated mathematical model of how flowing fluid dissolves solids. Researchers at New York University arrived at the number by custom-making their own candy spheres and cylinders to test how materials dissolve in a flow. But this seemingly simple process is actually quite complex, said study leader Leif Ristroph, a physicist at NYU. First, the presence of the solid disrupts the flow, forcing it to bend and change directions, he said. Read more http://www.livescience.com/49787-how-many-licks-to-reach-center-of-lollipop.html
