How many licks to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?
Readers of a certain age may recall a popular television commercial prevalent when they were young. In the (animated) commercial, a young boy approaches a turtle and asks, “Mr Turtle, how many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?” The turtle answers, “I never made it without biting. Ask Mr. Owl.” He then approaches an owl and asks, “Mr. Owl, how many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?” The owl takes the Tootsie Pop, takes three licks, then bites the Tootsie Pop off the stick. His answer? “Three.” A certain reader (certainly of a certain age!) had the audacity to ask The Casual Observer how many licks it takes to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop. This question is a bit problematic for several reasons. What constitutes getting to the Tootsie Roll center? Is it actually seeing the center? Tasting the chocolaty goodness? Licking your way all the way to the stick in the middle? What about fractures in the T
