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A possible series that asks questions you almost surely never thought to ask. Often with a tad of research to spur you on to greater understand and enhance your curiosity.
Today: Why Is Toilet Paper (Rolls) The Width It Is?
Perhaps running out out the wrong time, most of us have, at one time or another, wished a roll was longer. But what about the width? Haven't you ever wished it was wider? More interestingly, why is it the width it is?
Now I don't look for the simple answer that it's sized to fit the various dispensers; many are built into the wall tile and they their options are limited. But, again, why this particular width?
Checking out the Wikipedia, I discovered it's been around, in some form or another, for over two thousand years and an industrial commodity in ancient China for most of that period. As for it's sizing, no . . . it's neither an illusion nor are our backside openings getting wider . . . it's been shrinking:
Quote: Manufactured toilet paper sheet in the United States was sized 41/2" × 41/2".[12] Since 1999 the size of a sheet has been shrinking; Kimberly-Clark reduced the length of a sheet to 4.1".[13] Scott, in 2006, reduced the length of their product to 3.7". The width of sheets was later reduced giving a general sheet size of 3.7" long and 4.1" wide. Larger sizes remain available.
Even the patents drawings show a roll apparently of the current size - and are quite specific, by the way, that the paper should unwind over the top and NOT from underneath.
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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underneath if you have cats. Otherwise they can unroll it.
When I was growin' up, I was the smartest kid I knew. Maybe that was just because I didn't know that many kids. All I know is now I feel the opposite.
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Greg Utas wrote: Also toddlers.
Why would anyone want to unroll a toddler? 
/ravi
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You don't have any siblings do you?
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Jörgen Andersson wrote: You don't have any siblings do you?
Only an older brother. And as far as I can recall, he never unrolled me. As far as I can recall. 
/ravi
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W∴ Balboos wrote: Why Is Toilet Paper (Rolls) The Width It Is?
I think it has something to do with either "why is the sky blue", and/or "why are manhole covers round?"
".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
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You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
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When you pry the gun from my cold dead hands, be careful - the barrel will be very hot. - JSOP, 2013
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There is a good reason that manhole covers are round!
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Actually, triangular would have served as well.
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Not at all , q.v.[^]
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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Sky is blue, if I recall correctly, do to Raleigh scattering of sunlight. Oxygen, a ground-state triplet, is polarize and is probably responsible form much of aforesaid upper-atmosphere interaction. There's also ozone.
Manhole covers are round to make them easy to (re)place as they don't have to have corners/sides aligned with the hole. Others believe they are so shaped to fool hobbits into thinking it's a doorway to someone's home.
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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The current shrinking size phenomenon is associated with the "less for for" style of profit. They give you less, and charge the same/more. They now get to charge even more for the "larger size" because it's a "larger size", irregardless of that fact that a few years ago, it was the standard size.
".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010
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You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010
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When you pry the gun from my cold dead hands, be careful - the barrel will be very hot. - JSOP, 2013
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Not only are you correct but it's done with great imagination. One I remember, in particular, is the "Charmin" commercials - "Please don't squeeze the Charmin".
It was based upon the now softer rolls which were puffed up because some realized the technology to minutely wrinkle the paper would make the sheets stay further apart: less paper in the same volume. This was actually continued to the point where a roll was something like 160 sheets (vs. the ever reliable Scotties rolls of 1000 sheets at the other end). It's no accident that, thanks to this technology, ordinary supermarkets sell wipes in packages of 20 rolls - for Charmin user's, about a weeks worth.
Now, of course, there's the new 'larger rolls' - fitting in exactly as you described.
My favorite TV ad was the one that held the wipes up to a candle and noted you could see through the competitor's sheets. A certain time of genius is involved and I admire it.
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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The width should be at least > than ***hole diameter.
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To be on the safe side I think there is a need to define a minimal "ɛ" which garantues (width > a**h_diam + ɛ)
It does not solve my Problem, but it answers my question
modified 19-Jan-21 21:04pm.
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Hmmm,
can't recall ever being in the toilet with a measuring device and using it on the toilet paper.
Message Signature
(Click to edit ->)
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You need not trouble yourself - the dimensions of each sheet are written on the package, and if the roll is wrapped in its own wrapper, often on there, as well, along with the ply-count.
(ditto for nose-wipes, paper towels, etc.).
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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Reading this thread, I'm pretty sure we're doomed...  
Charlie Gilley
<italic>Stuck in a dysfunctional matrix from which I must escape...
"Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
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Dare I say . . . wipe that tear away?
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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you may dare!
Charlie Gilley
<italic>Stuck in a dysfunctional matrix from which I must escape...
"Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
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Sunday morning. All the time in the world to have sume fun with the computer. And let's see what's on TV. No Adam West today. Not even William Shatner. It's Airwolf. Ok, why not? The Bell Triple Two[^] always was a sight.
Just in time to see Airwolf saving a civilian Huey from another Vietnam style Huey. Boom, splash one bad Huey. But the good Huey went into a dive and both pilots were desperately pulling back the cyclic sticks and ignoring the collective control entirely.
Guys, you do know what kind of aircraft you are flying? Pulling back the stick may work with an airplane, with a whirlybird you are in for a stunt of which I'm not sure a huey would even survive.
So what would happen? The helicopter would do a backflip, Salto Mortale backwards, and I'm quite certain that a Huey's semirigid rotor head was not constructed to deal with the forces that come into play when flying upside down. What an impressive stunt, if they had really tried that and the stuntmen had survived it.
There is a reason why there are not many pilots around who have the training and the license to do such things: Flying Bulls Bo-105 @ TANNKOSH 2011 - YouTube[^]
This one makes it actually look as if it was slow and easy. 
I have lived with several Zen masters - all of them were cats.
His last invention was an evil Lasagna. It didn't kill anyone, and it actually tasted pretty good.
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As they say in Hebrew, "the paper suffers everything".
This is why any half-decent series or film will employ consultants - to ensure that what they are producing isn't complete male bovine excrement.
(They often don't listen to the consultants in order to tell a more "dramatic" story, but that's not the consultants' fault)
Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.
-- 6079 Smith W.
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That's how it goes!
Writer: "So we want the heli to do a backflip."
Consultant: "Yeah, that's not going to work."
Writer: "But it looks hella cool though! We doing this!"
Consultant: 
Fans: "Hell yeah, that helicopter was hella cool!  "
I mean, I'm watching an action movie, not the news or a documentary.
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Sure, but I don't just watch silly movies. It's too late to charge batteries and get out on the field, but I'm going to practice some backflips right now on the simulator. How hard can it be? 
My first loops involuntarily became backflips because I pulled back the cyclic way too hard. How about doing half a backflip and then roll back to a normal position while flying forward? Timing is everything, but on the simulator I can crash as many helicopters as I like. Where is the USB cable?
I have lived with several Zen masters - all of them were cats.
His last invention was an evil Lasagna. It didn't kill anyone, and it actually tasted pretty good.
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