Origami paper-folding has been a hobby of mine ever since I folded my first paper airplane. Coincidentally, origami is a rich source of all kinds of math problems in areas as diverse as geometry, algebra, calculus, and topology. One problem results from trying to fold a piece of paper into thirds. It's easy to fold a piece of paper in half, all you need to do is line up the opposite sides of the paper and crease. From there, it is easy to fold a paper into fourths, eighths, sixteenths, and so on, just by lining up different creases and folding. But what about folding a piece of paper into thirds? If you don't have a ruler handy, folding paper into thirds must be done by eye, which can lead to error. If only there was a way to reach 1/3 by only folding paper in half repeatedly. Can you think of a way? My friend Luke Nimtz did. See if you can figure it out. Answer is below.
