Japan's Really Concerned About Messy Burgers

Picture this: You're on a date, scanning the menu, stomach rumbling, when a certain scent drifts through the air. The waiter passes by your table and places a plate down in front of your neighboring diner. And there, sitting open-face in all of its glory, is a beautiful, juicy hamburger. While many daters may play it safe and go for something more dainty like a grilled chicken entreé or dinner salad, we'll always be proponents of eating like a champ on a first date — and now you don't even have to worry about making a mess. Japanese scientists have invented the perfect way to eat a burger, no napkins required.

A Japanese television show "Homna Dekka!?" recruited three researchers to decipher the most optimal way to simultaneously hold and eat a hamburger. Kotaku reported that it took the researchers four months to figure this out. And this is what they came up with:

As shown in the image above, the pinkies and thumbs act as forklifts under the bottom bun while the middle fingers support the top bun. All fingers should be equally spaced a part, as specified by the red arrows. This apparently prevents spillage from the front and back of the burger. Some flaws in this otherwise groundbreaking design would be recreating your perfect position as the burger becomes less circular the more you eat. This also requires both hands, so the fries will have to wait their turn.

Images: Fotolia; Brian Ashcroft/Kotaku