Paper Trivia

I learned an interesting bit of trivia the other day while preparing for a lesson in the art of Japanese Paper Folding, a.k.a. "Origami". This may not change your life, but it does make a great conversation starter and I guarantee your students will not be willing to just take your word for it!

So, here it is.... did you know that it's impossible to fold a piece of paper (any size) in half more than eight times??? It doesn't sound that hard, but give it a try and you'll see.... no matter how big or how thin the paper is, after eight folds (if you can even get that many) it will be too small and too thick to fold again. I tried it with all kinds of different papers, even tissue, and it's really true....try it for yourself!

(Special thanks to Anne Akers Johnson, author of (Klutz) Origami for this fascinating information! And by the way, this is a great book with about ten really fun, and not too frustrating, projects that look more complicated than they really are.... the directions are well written and easy to follow.)