Origins?

 The root of this physics phenomenon are hazy at best. While the Mythbusters appear to have popularized this urban legend, the origin appears to be from another source. At the start of the episode, Adam and Jamie cite this video. Posted in late 2007 as a contest entry, It seems to be the earliest manifestation of the myth. The processes seems simple enough; by interweaving pages of two phone books one at a time, it creates a single inseparable entity. The strength of the cars used in "Timacious"'s video may not have been enough to separate the books, but the Mythbusters have been know for doing everything it takes to prove that something can be done, often to the point of overkill. In the next post, I'll look at what happened when the Mythbusters took their crack at it, as well as share my own experience with this urban legend.

    



http://polwig.com/kids/phone-book-friction/. ND. Oct 17, 2012

• "Discovery Mythbusters - The Phone Book Myth." YouTube.com. Timacious. Nov 29, 2007. Oct 17, 2012
• "Phonebook Friction." Mythbusters. Discovery Channel. Sept 10, 2008.