Have you ever tried counting how many licks it takes to get to the center of a T

1. 88

   MomsTreasureChestposted 12 years ago

   Have you ever tried counting how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?
   
   

   replyreport
2. 74

   EuroCafeAuLaitposted 12 years ago

   Only one way to find out!  Gathering by your name that you are a MOM, get a kid or two (or neighbor kids) to do the competition.  There will need to be a judge, whistle, and Begin! Bibs might be a good idea if gets to be messy.  Start licking while the judge counts and find out just how many licks it takes to get to the chocolaty center of a Tootsie Pop!  (I am curious myself).  The whole procedure sounds like a great topic for a Hub.

   replyreport
   1. 88

      MomsTreasureChestposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Great idea EuroCafeAuLait especially for a rainy day activity!

      replyreport
3. 99

   Docmoposted 12 years ago

   Legend ( and the popular advertsement) has it that no one will ever know as you end up crunching. However in various studies conducted by universities and other academic 'lickers' the 'median' number of licks range from  250 - 450 . Lowest being 70 ( a vigorous licker! ) and highest around 600 ( a gentle flicker! ) all these tootsie pop lick talk is making me shiver. Perhaps conducting your own study as euro- cafe-au-lait is suggesting is another idea!

   replyreport
   1. 88

      MomsTreasureChestposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Docmo!  What a great advertising campaign this turned out to be for the Tootsie Roll company that so much research has been done on the subject!

      replyreport
4. 64

   bizzymomposted 12 years ago

   Yes!  I used to try doing that all the time as a kid and my daughter actually did it a couple of years ago.  It was 1,580 (for her).  This is a great and fun question!

   replyreport
   1. 88

      MomsTreasureChestposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Wow, that's a lot of licks!

      replyreport
5. 58

   mio cidposted 12 years ago

   YES it took me one thousand three hundred and thirty seven licks to the point where i touched the center .

   replyreport
   1. 88

      MomsTreasureChestposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Congrats for sticking with it and reaching the center!

      replyreport
6. 77

   flacoinohioposted 12 years ago

   My son took 213 licks before he bit into it.  My daughter took two minutes worth of sucking on it before biting into it.  My dog licked it 3 times before she chewed it up stick and all.  Who licks a lollipop?

   replyreport
   1. 88

      MomsTreasureChestposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      LOL I'm quick to bite into the pops with the bubblegum center!

      replyreport
7. 71

   lburmasterposted 12 years ago

   Yes. As a child I was obsessed with Tootsie Pops and counted the licks to four different Tootie pops. Each pop had a different number of licks to get to the center so I figured it depended on the sizes of the licks, how wet your tongue was, and the spaces between licks.

   replyreport
8. 71

   Silver Fishposted 12 years ago

   I would answer if I knew what a Tootsie pop was- is it an American thing?

   replyreport
9. 88

   Chuckposted 12 years ago

   I haven't had a Tootsie Pop since I was a child and I don't recall ever counting my licks.  In fact as best I can remember I usually sucked on it until it got thin and then bit down and chewed the remainder of the shell and center.  The center was good and worth the time it took to get there.
   
   While your question is intriguing, I find it difficult to believe that universities would get involved in trivial research like this as Docmo states in his comment.  On second thought, such research is not that unbelievable as I have been around academia long enough to have seen researchers studying and government grants funding equally trivial topics.
   
   Good question.

   replyreport
10. 62

    Annabelle Tylerposted 12 years ago

    Ha ha ha! Yes, I have. I was on a long car ride when I was twelve, and did one trial with orange, red, chocolate, and grape flavors. I got an average of 743. I don't remember the individual results for each flavor though, but I remember reaching the center of the chocolate one with 500 something.

    replyreport
11. 60

    ElleBeeposted 12 years ago

    Yes. But then I got sick of counting, and took a bite out of it instead to get to the tootsie roll.  So yes I've tried. But no to the getting an answer part

    replyreport
12. 65

    msLarayneposted 12 years ago

    Of course! What kid didn't want to imitate the commercial and see if they could figure out the right answer.  I don't remember where exactly I stopped, but it was pass 3, but the thing definitely got bit before the licks ended! lol

    replyreport
13. 74

    moonfairyposted 12 years ago

    I've tried (many years ago!) but the tootsie roll in the middle just enticed me too much so I failed miserably.

    replyreport