system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
What exactly causes the pain from a static spark?

Is it due to direct electrical stimulation of the nerve endings? Is it due to a change in temperature? Or is it something else?
gpt
The pain is actually a heat response. Static sparks are hot, that little zap you hear is from the air being super heated (like a lightning bolt). That heat will affect the tiny point of contact, giving a pain sensation.