Why do ice cubes crack in drinks?

Answer: Outside warms faster than inside

Drink pressure breaks ice — Wrong. Liquid pressure isn't strong enough to crack ice. The cracking sound comes from thermal stress as ice heats unevenly.

Outside warms faster than inside ✓ — Correct! When ice hits warm liquid, the outer layer heats and expands rapidly while the inside stays frozen and contracted. This creates internal stress that cracks the ice—you can hear it snap! It's thermal expansion causing fractures.

Ice melts from the middle — Wrong. Ice melts from the outside in (not inside out). The cracking happens before significant melting, caused by temperature differences creating stress.