[CliffordK (OP)]

Thick skin, of course, is defined as that skin on your palms, fingertips, and soles of the feet.

I was just wondering today, with the number of cuts, scratches, scrapes, blisters, and burns that I have had on my fingers over the years, it is a wonder that there are any fingerprints left.  Yet, as the insults heal, there is essentially nothing left behind to tell that they were ever there.  The fingerprints (where there isn't a gouge) are essentially unchanged since I was a young child.

Is there something that gives the thick skin more resiliency than ordinary thin skin?

Are the creases pre-programmed, or a secondary result of the movement of the joints?

[RD]

Is there something that gives the thick skin more resiliency than ordinary thin skin?

Thick skin does have an extra layer ...

The stratum lucidum (Latin for "clear layer") is a thin, clear layer of dead skin cells in the epidermis named for its translucent appearance under a microscope. It is readily visible by light microscopy only in areas of thick skin, which are found on the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stratum_lucidum