There is another explanation that occurs to me: A lot of lab chemists (like me) have learned the hard way not to store sodium hydroxide solutions in glass bottles with ground-glass stoppers, since a bit of basic solution between the stopper and the bottle can cause the two to chemically bond with each other. (Safety note: Trying too hard to resolve this situation can result in splashed hydroxide solutions and chemical burns.) Perhaps some basic chemical (in, maybe, dish soap?) promoted a similar bond?
Although we might not know the sticking mechanism, the nice thing here is that there is a resolution. Unlike, say, the "monolith" in the Utah desert, or mystery seeds arriving in the mail.
There is another explanation that occurs to me: A lot of lab chemists (like me) have learned the hard way not to store sodium hydroxide solutions in glass bottles with ground-glass stoppers, since a bit of basic solution between the stopper and the bottle can cause the two to chemically bond with each other. (Safety note: Trying too hard to resolve this situation can result in splashed hydroxide solutions and chemical burns.) Perhaps some basic chemical (in, maybe, dish soap?) promoted a similar bond?
Although we might not know the sticking mechanism, the nice thing here is that there is a resolution. Unlike, say, the "monolith" in the Utah desert, or mystery seeds arriving in the mail.