What term describes the transfer of heat through direct contact between materials?

Conduction is the transfer of heat through direct contact between materials, as when a metal spoon heats up in a hot pot of soup. Convection is heat transfer through the movement of fluids (liquids or gases), such as warm air rising. Radiation transfers heat through electromagnetic waves and needs no medium, like the warmth you feel from the sun. Insulation is a material that slows heat transfer, not a method of transfer. Distinguishing the three modes of heat transfer — conduction, convection, and radiation — is a frequent physics topic.