system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
How does glue work at an molecular level?

Does it bond with the contact material or is there a more simple 'sticky' explanation? If the glue does not bond with the contact (as I assume is does not because of the relative ease of separation) then how does it stick in the first place while losing it's initial stickiness when hardening?
gpt
Two main words: Adsorption and Chemisorption.

Adsorption is kinda like the surface tension of water.  Molecules spread over the surface of an object and adhere to it through a bunch of small magnetic attractions (van der Waals forces).  This surface will now adhere (stick together with) another surface using this same van der Waals force.  No chemical bond, it's just acting like a bunch of tiny, weak magnets that add together to make a relatively strong attraction between the two surfaces.

Chemisorption is a bit different.  This is when the substance that causes this adhesion actually chemically reacts with the surface and forms a new compound, joining the two surfaces together into (almost) a single thing.