If I add water to a glass of whiskey and dilute it, why don't I get twice as drunk?

qsera 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

But you can drink a lot more that way and get way more drunk!

Assuming the original dilution is adequate, further dilution will slow the consumption, making one less drunk.

	▲	qsera 35 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Try drinking a pint dry, and try drinking it diluted with water. And let me know what was easy...

OutOfHere an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

Because the amount of total intoxicant is the same.

Let:

A = amount of ethanol

V = initial whiskey volume

W = added water

Initial concentration: c₁ = A / V

After dilution: c₂ = A / (V + W)

If you drink the entire diluted glass: ethanol consumed = c₂(V + W) = A

Intoxication ∝ ethanol consumed

Therefore: drunkenness ∝ A not ∝ (V + W)

Adding water changes concentration, not the total ethanol: A = constant ⇒ drunkenness = constant (ignoring effects of drinking rate).