ArticlesWhat is it?
It’s a magic puzzle.
It’s a very simple origami template.
It’s astounding and will amaze your friends and family!
It’s an experiment in producing IKEA-worthy assembly instructions and tear marks in PhotoShop
It’s simple to assemble, and the result is a strangely-disquieting “impossible poster”.
It’s inspired by Gecko and Fly on a Wall.
It’s based on a trick I was taught about ten years ago.
Let me know if the instructions are unclear.
Comment by Aristotle Pagaltzis on December 3, 2005
“Twist top edge 180°â€ is unhelpful.
Comment by Julian on December 3, 2005
Drats. I was hoping to avoid convoluted-sounding instructions, but here goes…
You need to rotate the top-third of the page, around the axis that runs from the middle-top of the page to the middle-bottom of the page. The cut and rips should all just reach this axis.
After the rotation, the top right corner will be where the top-left corner used to be, and vice-versa.
The bottom-half of the stationery remains stationary!
After the twist, the section of paper with the writing on it should be sticking out, and able to flap in the breeze. It may take some judicious creasing (between the tips of the rips) to make it stick out properly.
Comment by Aristotle Pagaltzis on December 4, 2005
Okay; I might have understood now. Or I might not. I still have no idea what the intended end product looks like.
Comment by Julian on December 4, 2005
Aristotle,
Did you try making a prototype? It’ll take one minute and one sheet of paper, and it is geeky-cool… Okay, not cool like the gecko, but cool enough to waste a sheet of paper.
Comment by Aristotle Pagaltzis on December 5, 2005
Now I have. The instructions are still clear as mud.
I think a colourised or outlined indication of what constitutes “the top-third of the page” and which way it is to be “twisted around the axis” would be of great help.