A hot cup of tea is placed in a fridge at 4°C. In which direction does heat flow?

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Multiple Choice

A hot cup of tea is placed in a fridge at 4°C. In which direction does heat flow?

Heat flows from hotter to cooler. The tea is hot and the fridge is at 4°C, which is cooler, so heat moves from the tea into the fridge. This cools the tea while the fridge’s cooling system absorbs that heat. The idea that heat would go from the fridge to the tea would only be true if the fridge were hotter, which it isn’t, and there is indeed heat transfer here because there’s a temperature difference. Heat going directly to the kitchen isn’t the primary path—the cooler destination is the fridge.

Heat flows from hotter to cooler. The tea is hot and the fridge is at 4°C, which is cooler, so heat moves from the tea into the fridge. This cools the tea while the fridge’s cooling system absorbs that heat. The idea that heat would go from the fridge to the tea would only be true if the fridge were hotter, which it isn’t, and there is indeed heat transfer here because there’s a temperature difference. Heat going directly to the kitchen isn’t the primary path—the cooler destination is the fridge.

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