Why can you not fold paper more than 7 times?

The commonly accepted wisdom is that you can’t fold a single sheet of paper in half more than seven times. The problem with folding paper in half multiple times is that the paper’s surface area decreases by half with each fold. With the assistance of a forklift and steamroller, they get the paper to fold 11 times.

Can you fold a piece of paper more than 8 times?

Trying to fold an ordinary sheet of A4 paper suggests that even eight times is impossible: the number of layers doubles each time, and the paper rapidly gets too thick and too small to fold. Such ‘geometric growth’ effects are dramatic: in theory, 26 folds would make the paper thicker than the height of Mount Everest.

How many times can you fold paper in half?

What is the Seven Fold Limit? It’s commonly accepted that you cannot fold a single sheet of paper in half more than 7 times, no matter what paper finish, size, or basis weight you’re using, for two main reasons: Every time you fold your sheet, you reduce your total surface area by half, so eventually you simply run out of surface area to fold.

How thick is a piece of paper if you fold it?

It would seem quite plain at a glance, but if you take a piece of paper that is only 0.1 mm thick and fold it in half, the new thickness is 0.2 mm. This thickness goes on increasing exponentially, as does the height of the paper. If you fold the same piece of paper 7 times, it would be as thick as 128 sheets of paper.

How many folds of paper would it take to reach space?

30 folds will get you to space, because your paper will be now 100 km high. 42 folds will get you to the Moon. 81 folds and your paper will be 127,786 light-years, almost as thick as the Andromeda Galaxy.

Can you fold paper in half with a hydraulic press?

The aptly named Hydraulic Press Channel on YouTube has attempted to fold an A3 piece of paper in half seven times using a hydraulic press to achieve the final folds, and let’s just say the results are pretty weird. Things go perfectly fine until we get to that infamous seventh fold.