system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Why do knives cut better when you slide the blade across the thing you're cutting?

You can't really push a knife through something. Most often it cuts a heck of a lot better if you SLIDE the knife (almost like sawing, but only in one direction.)

For example, cutting raw chicken. If you try to just press your knife down against it, it doesn't really work, but if pull the knife back as you're cutting, it cuts great.

Another example... You can press your finger against the sharp edge of a blade without hurting yourself, but as SOON as you slide your finger across the blade, you get a cut. Why?

Of course, this is all related to how sharp the knife is, but the question still stands.
gpt
Because a good knife really is a microscopic saw, all these tiny serrations hook the plant fibers. This is why the best knife is always carbon steel, while stainless has difficulty cutting for example a tomato. Carbon steel has a crystalline structure with all these microscopic serrations that hook like a chainsaw. Stainless is relatively smooth and may just slide on a tomato.