Tiddleywinks Strobed

Courtesy of the North American Tiddleywinks Association we have this glimpse of what really went on in MIT's Strobe Alley back in 13 December 1979 - a high speed captured game of tiddleywinks. Experimenter Richard Tucker explains:

"The primary aim of this project was to see what actually occurs in both successful and unsuccessful shots in the game of Tournament Tiddlywinks.  I tried to relate the various factors involved in making a shot with the results shown in photographs. The tiddlywinks shots I photographed were basic shots-- potting and squopping; also the commonly used Bristol and boondock ; and specialized shots such as the gromp and Good shot ."

Unfortunately, the above photo is the only one that is currently available to us, but the descriptions are, well, illuminating. Here, for example, a squopping moment:

"Squopping is storking a wink with a squidger, aiming to have the wink land on top of another.  Nearly all players squop with the squidger angled down (80° to 50° angle) toward the target.

"[@@@] Photo 3 (120 fps, f/11, .75 sec duration; printed at f/11, 10 sec) 1.5x enlargement.  Attempt to squop a wink an inch away.  Notice that the wink does not turn over, or bounce upon landing, although it achieves a 45° angle in the middle of the shot.  Shot lasts 1/8 sec.  A sharp squidger was used. "

There's something wonderfully funny, and deeply fascinating about his account of the study of the properties of tiddleywinks. It explains a lot about childhood and the remarkable depth within which we play.

For a more in-depth exploration of Tiddlespeak, see Rick Tucker's Lexicon of Tiddlewinks