Someone Invented A REAL Version Of That Viral Chopstick Trick

Earlier this year, some twisted individual posted a "mind-blowing" chopstick hack to Imgur that implied the tops of disposable chopsticks are meant to be broken off to serve as a little stand.  

Those who tried the "hack," however, had a very different experience -- and more than a few chopsticks were harmed in the process: 

While the original chopstick hack led to a splintered mess, one real genius was hard at work creating a pair of chopsticks that actually break off at the ends, creating a sleek and simple utensil holder.

Yep, Cropsticks, as they are called, are the real deal.

The idea for these new chopsticks came to Mylen Fe Yamamoto in April 2015 -- nearly a year before the chopstick hack went viral -- after she noticed that her chopsticks kept rolling off her tray during a flight to Asia.

Frustrated with sticks that would not stay still, Yamamoto designed a pair with a crescent-shaped tip which, unlike the fake hack, would break off cleanly from the sticks and act as a holder.

She was forced to publish her patent-pending prototype on Kickstarter earlier than scheduled after seeing the "mind-blowing chopstick trick" flood the Internet in February -- but the timing turned out to be perfect.

Cropsticks were fully funded just one month later.

While the Cropsticks' holder isn't a totally new concept -- people have been making make-shift stands out of paper wrappers for a long time and you can buy reusable chopstick rests on Amazon for $1 -- it does make for a super convenient and surprisingly simple utensil.

They're also better for the planet, according to Yamamoto.

An estimated 45 percent of disposable chopsticks are made from wood. Every year in China, the equivalent of 3.8 million trees are destroyed to manufacture those chopsticks, the New York Times reported in 2011.

Cropsticks, on the other hand, will be made with 100 percent bamboo which, according to a 2015 World Wildlife Foundation's New Generation Plantation study, is a more sustainable option since bamboo grows quickly and only takes up to four years to harvest.

If you want to try the Cropsticks for yourself and missed the Kickstarter campaign, you'll have to wait for this summer when they're available for purchase on the Cropsticks website.

Until then, you'll have to get really creative with those chopstick paper wrappers or you can go all in and commit to a pair of fancy reusable sticks.