Above: St. Mark’s students folding 10 miles of toilet paper earlier this month (photo via St. Mark’s)
Try this experiment. Go get yourself a length of toilet paper. Now fold it in half crosswise. Fold it in half again and again. It won’t take long – maybe three or four folds – before the paper won’t stay folded anymore. Now try taking 53,000 feet of toilet paper and folding it in half over and over. That’s exactly what a group of students from St. Mark’s did last week.
The students were attempting to break the paper-folding record of 12 folds set back in 2002. They tried last April with 13,000 feet of toilet paper, but the thirteenth and final fold flopped open. Now with their latest attempt, they think they’ve succeeded.
The feat took place in MIT’s Infinite Corridor, a 853-foot long hallway. Students led by St. Mark’s math teacher James Tanton taped rolls of toilet paper end-to-end to create a piece that was 10 miles long. After 13 folds, the piece was down to just 5 feet long and 2-1/2 feet high.
Tanton told the Metrowest Daily News he’s proud of the effort. “It’s hard, grueling, miserable, horrible work. You’re literally crawling on your hands and knees on a hard-tiled floor for hours…I’m incredibly impressed with the spirit of these kids,” he said. “I love the quirkiness of it, and I love the fact that the school supports me doing something totally whacky with toilet paper.”
But not everyone is impressed. Former record-holder Britney Gallivan has challenged the results, saying they’re not valid because the toilet paper was taped together instead of being one continuous length of paper.
Wondering what it’s like to fold 10 miles of toilet paper? Check out this YouTube video of the feat. It’s pretty fascinating. You can also see lots of photos on the St. Mark’s website.
