This Class Requires Tongue

I took a geology/environmental sciences class for a required part of my degree, and one of our first tests was identifying specific rocks by structure, color, and how it reacts to a drop of acid we were provided. One of the rocks is Halite – aka rock salt (this one I identified because it did have a distinctive salty smell).

The next time we meet, our professor looks at us and announces:

Professor: “I am very disappointed none of you tried to identify the rocks by licking, as one would have been immediately identifiable that way.”

We all stared dumbfounded as the college had only started letting us have in-building classes a few months ago (it was 2021).

Classmate #1: “Uh. Professor… you’re asking us to lick rocks.”

Professor: “Yes, it’s a tried-and-true method in geology.

Me: “I think most of us know that, but you remember last year, right?”

Classmate #2: “Yeah! I don’t think it’d keep any germs on for long, but excuse us for not wanting to lick anything after everything.”

Professor: “Oh… uh.”

Classmate #3: “I only thought about it after using acid on every sample, and I’m not licking acid.”

Classmate #4: “EEEW! You mean I touched stuff other people licked?!”

Professor: “Okay… I guess that’s understandable, but really, this is the one science where licking the subject is acceptable; you should take advantage of it.”