Yes, quite a few parameters can be adjusted, friction, bending, etc. For bending I used an arbitrary value, too much and it looked like string, too little and it looked like a stiff rubber tube; not a scientific approach I admit. Primary goal was to see if I could do the fork twist and lift with noodles physics interaction at scale; still a challenge with today's physics engines.
Surprised this made BlenderNation's blog. I find it interesting that simply rendering with SLG and SATtva's environment takes a plain technical test and turns it somewhat into eye candy; with little additional effort on my part, although my PC huffed and puffed

. I'll point out there are no texture or bump maps in this scene, didn't even bother UV mapping. Basic materials, two colors: reflective fork, transparent glass, glossy bowl and noodles; ground didn't even have a material (default white). Yeah, I really have to credit SATtva's environment, rich with warm colors and light, for the look (no other lights/emitters in scene); it really is the scene's global texture, especially when you look at the fork or glass.