Our solution only requires the forks, the cork and one match. Push the end of the match into the cork and then put one fork in each side of the cork, with the forks pointing downward. Carefully balance the match on the rim of the glass. Voila! The challenge is solved.
How the solution works
We use the cork because we need some way to hold the forks together on the rim of the glass. We need the match to keep the forks clear of the rim of the glass so that our structure can balance properly.
Without the forks, the cork would just fall off the glass. That is because its balance point or centre-of-mass is sitting above the rim of the glass. The cork is unstable and wants to fall off.
When we put forks in the cork, bending downward, we lower the balance point. If we point the forks downward enough, the balance point of our cork and fork combination is actually BELOW the rim of the glass. It is what we call "hanging"! Even though all of the cork is above the rim, most of the weight is below the rim, seeing as the forks are the heaviest part of the model.
This is just like a tight-rope walker using a long pole. The pole lowers the balance point (centre-of-mass) so that the walker is more stable. If the pole is long enough and bendy enough, the tight-rope walker plus pole would be "hanging" from the tight-rope!
If you have a different solution to the challenge, email us to let us know how you did it.