I have noticed that when currys or chillies are frozen to eat later, they 'mature' and become noticeably hotter.  Can anyone expain this?

I wince at the thought, but is it possible, given a low enough temperature, for urine to freeze instantly into an icicle if you're caught short in Arctic conditions. If so, how cold would it have to be? and could it be dangerous for an intrepid explorer? 

I've just read your excellent book and have enjoyed it thoroughly

However the answer to the title question left me wondering a little as to be honest the answers given were more of a "why doesn't a Penguin lose too much heat through it's feet."

I've worked in a frozen food vendor and I know that on Mondays when the freezers were right down to temperature of near -30 I would stick to surfaces if I was daft enough to touch them (it had to be tried - not that I'm recommending it!).

I know really cold snow is powdery, but still that layer of cells in contact must be -30 or so on one side and above freezing on the other. Why are they not killed ?

Many animals have dead cells "fur etc." in contact, but not Penguins as far as I know

So if it's OK can I ask it again please

Regards

Andy

Water molecules are slightly polarised so they should line up in a strong electric field.  I was always taught that they form hexagonal structures when they freeze though.  Which of these effects is more powerful?  Does the water freeze with a different structure?  What happens if I subsequently remove the electric field?

By trapped i mean, for example, enclosed in an otherwise solid metal cube with no air spaces. would it stay a supercooled liquid or become a compacted solid, or some medium in between?

The photos are from our bird bath in the back garden in Bedford this week. There was a hard frost overnight and the water in the bath froze over. This protuding piece of ice was there in the morning. There is nothing overhanging the bird bath in the vicinity and the nearest tree is a long way away. It looks as if something disturbed the water but it surely was not cold enough (around -4 to -6C) for this amount of water to freeze instantly I would have thought. 

I refilled my ice cube tray, put it in the freezer.  When I came back a couple hours later, I noticed a slender vertical spike protruding from the center of the ice cube.  What would cause the water to freeze in this manner?

The cold snap we're experiencing in Britain at the moment has made me ponder this.  Answers from my friends and relations so far have included:

Because the water is moving (But how does this stop it from freezing?)

Because the water is under pressure

Because the temperature is above zero underground

Beacuse of the otters that the water companies keep swimming around in the pipes (I think this one was a joke)

So...why doesn't the water in the mains pipes freeze when it is below freezing point outside?

After visiting Iceland last year you could see frozen waterfalls coming down from the cliffs? How do these freeze since surely they have too much kinetic energy?

I made a sauce for lamb from blueberries and cassis, but made too much so put some in the freezer.

It wouldn't set solid and spent a month being malleable at -7 °C. It tasted OK when we used it later.

Why wouldn't it freeze solid?

Tom Lyndhurst, Pinner, Middlesex