Introduction: Turkish Toothpick Trick
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About: Tim Anderson is the author of the "Heirloom Technology" column in Make Magazine. He is co-founder of www.zcorp.com, manufacturers of "3D Printer" output devices. His detailed drawings of traditional Pacific I…
Yener, our host in Istanbul, taught us this nifty trick over a dinner of "Kokorech" which is spicy lamb tripe.
Here's Yener with the toothpicks, about to start out.
Step 1: Break But Don't Separate
Take 5 toothpicks and break them in the middle. Fold them over but don't separate the two halves. Make sure you don't break them apart. There need to have some slivers still connecting the two halves.
Step 2: Arrange Thus
Lay them out in an arrangement like this, with the broken ends inward. Like an "Asterisk".
Step 3: Just Add Water
Take a teaspoon of water and gently pour it in the center of the arrangement.
Step 4: Magic!
As soon as they get wet the toothpicks start moving!
They flex their little broken-splinter muscles and push against each other.
Step 5: Toothpickinetic Sculpture
They push and flex and the asterisk grows and morphs into a big Star!
27 Comments
7 years ago
Wow awesome! TYSM for taking the time to post.
7 years ago
That's REALLY awesome! I LOVE it!
7 years ago
wow cool:)
8 years ago
Goody goody trick
:D
9 years ago
great, practice a fue times. befor in a large crowd.
9 years ago on Introduction
This is so cool. I will show my father who has been using toothpicks for years.
9 years ago
Does it work????
9 years ago on Step 5
LOVE IT!!
10 years ago on Introduction
Nice! Will try it!
13 years ago on Introduction
That's nifty, like watch cereal assemble itself but way cleverer...
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
The coat backpack was a partial failure, some of the ideas from it were cool though.
Reply 11 years ago on Introduction
thomassabojewelry.co.uk
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
That's a shame, in hindsight a shoulder bag would have been simpler... you going to publish the results or let it lie?
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
I haven't decided. That would required me to take pictures and talk about how i made it. Just to make another failed instructable.
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
Eh it's been some time since I've been featured, despite both my writing and pictures improving immensely since then... I suspect there's a good project in it somewhere though...
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
Yeah.
11 years ago on Introduction
Rakı sofrası atraksiyonu :)
Reply 11 years ago on Introduction
:D
11 years ago on Introduction
this is a great bar trick... gotta do this.
11 years ago on Introduction
what a chance i am from turkey tootpick means: kürdan