Your throat is dry, and you want the last cough drop in the box to last a long time in your mouth. What should you do?
A) Break the cough drop into little pieces and put them all in your mouth. Since each little piece must be dissolved separately, the drop will last longer.
B) Keep the cough drop whole. This maintains the largest surface-to-volume ratio and slows the dissolution of the cough drop.
C) Break the cough drop into little pieces and put them all in your mouth. This decreases the surface-to-volume ratio and slows the dissolution of the cough drop.
D) It doesn't matter if the cough drop is in one piece or many pieces; the total amount of cough drop is all that matters.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Keeping the cough drop whole maintains the largest surface-to-volume ratio and slows the dissolution of the cough drop, allowing it to last longer in your mouth. Breaking it into smaller pieces increases the surface area, accelerating the dissolution process and causing it to dissolve faster.

Your Throat Is Dry, and You Want the Last Cough