Fingerboxes

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About

Fingerbox is an item fad that began on 4chan’s /b/ board sometime in the summer of 2010.

The fad involves someone posting a picture of a Fingerbox with a seemingly genuine question or remark, followed by other users acting as if they not only all know what the OP is referring to, but have owned one since childhood.

The common discussion points are the number of holes, the materials the box is made of, and different custom boxes and their merits.

Inevitably a user finally asks what a Fingerbox is, at which point they will promptly be laughed at and called a Newfag.

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Origin

Although used as a prank by 4chan users, Fingerboxes trace their origins to Japanese artist Ay-O.

Ay-O, a member of the Fluxus network, created and was well known for his series of Fingerboxes (one of which is pictured above), the set of which was created in 1964.

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Description of the Fingerboxes:

“Playing upon the subject’s irresistible desire to “touch,” Ay-O’s box features a finger-sized hole with various hidden materials placed inside (different in each, like nylon stocking, rubber or nails) to challenge tactile perception.1"

Troll Description of Fingerboxes:

“A finger box all though it may seem to be a relatively simple device, it is not on the contrary of being simple a finger box is more than a box with a hole in it, it is a massively complex device containing more than a thousand separate components per box, usually with nine boxes per set that makes over nine thousand separate components, but the device will work limitedly with just one box.

Finger boxing is also known as fingering and boxing and is a massive fad among teens aged 13-18, the device in a simpler form were first invented by William John Trolington over 100 years ago in Australia.

A Finger box basically simulates a feeling, originally this was accomplished with mechanical devices in the box with some extremely cruel pranksters putting item such as glass and nails in witch would often decapitate the finger, this led to a act of parliament in 1919 by the UK banning the devices, which was quickly followed by the rest of the world.

Although still banned the “underground market” off finger boxes saw a boom in sales during the 1980’s and was redeveloped into its current electrical module in the mid 1990’s buy an unnamed Chinese worker.
The device works on the same principals as electrical prosthetic limbs, an electrical impulse is shot up the nervous system that will make the hand think that it is feeling something; anything can be simulated such as stroking a cat or shaking a hand.

The finger box costs around 50 per box and are usually sold out within minutes they have reportedly have gone for over 200 per box on ebay.2"