Is it impossible to perfectly divide an Oreo?
Ian Charnas has a question stuck in his head. Is it possible to perfectly split an Oreo cookie by twisting it? It seems simple enough. we've all tried it at some point, grabbing both cookie halves in each hand and twisting them for the creamy goodness. It never splits quite evenly, does it?
Turns out this problem is more common than you might think. In fact, it turns out to be a complex mathematical problem studied by scientists! Apparently, splitting an Oreo in half is impossible.
Saying something is impossible is a surefire way to get makers interested in DIY, so Ian set out to figure out how he could make it happen. He's tried heating them, cooling them, putting them in a vacuum chamber, building splitters, and all sorts of other things like building a little water jet cutter!< /p>
In the end, Ian ended up approaching this a bit like cutting glass. You see, when you cut glass, you usually don't cut it completely. You cause a crack, then point the crack in the direction you want to go. To do this with the Oreo, he scored it, froze it, then cracked it. It finally worked!
Crystal Owens points out that she thinks it's cheating. Basically, Ian just showed us that he can cut an Oreo mostly in half and then twist it all the way. You know what? His methods may not hold up to the scientific rigor demanded by MIT (or even casual observers) but it was really fun!
Ian Charnas has a question stuck in his head. Is it possible to perfectly split an Oreo cookie by twisting it? It seems simple enough. we've all tried it at some point, grabbing both cookie halves in each hand and twisting them for the creamy goodness. It never splits quite evenly, does it?
Turns out this problem is more common than you might think. In fact, it turns out to be a complex mathematical problem studied by scientists! Apparently, splitting an Oreo in half is impossible.
Saying something is impossible is a surefire way to get makers interested in DIY, so Ian set out to figure out how he could make it happen. He's tried heating them, cooling them, putting them in a vacuum chamber, building splitters, and all sorts of other things like building a little water jet cutter!< /p>
In the end, Ian ended up approaching this a bit like cutting glass. You see, when you cut glass, you usually don't cut it completely. You cause a crack, then point the crack in the direction you want to go. To do this with the Oreo, he scored it, froze it, then cracked it. It finally worked!
Crystal Owens points out that she thinks it's cheating. Basically, Ian just showed us that he can cut an Oreo mostly in half and then twist it all the way. You know what? His methods may not hold up to the scientific rigor demanded by MIT (or even casual observers) but it was really fun!
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