Are their limits to paper folding?

I always thought so. I remember being told in elementary school by a girl I had a crush on that I couldn’t fold a piece of paper more than seven times. In a child-like effort to win her affections, I attempted the paper-folding, and failed several times.

So for years I believed the myth to be true, that no matter the size or weight, a piece of paper could not be folded over more than seven times.

You know the old quote, “We’re going to need a bigger boat?” Well, that sort of applies here.

A Google search reveals plenty of advice on how to fold paper up to ten times. And the first thing they recommend is getting your hands on a large format paper.

Nowhere was that more apparent than in the 72^nd episode of MythBusters. The Discovery Channel show depicts the MythBuster gang using a large format paper the size of a football field, a forklift, a cement-smoother, and two dozen individuals to “bust the myth” by folding the paper nearly a dozen times.

You can watch a clip of the show below, depicting the 11-fold piece of paper.

I’ve already sent it to the girl from elementary school.