The toilet paper shortage in the United States and worldwide is causing plenty of stress as stores have been swamped with panic buyers and hoarders. The empty shelves pose a gnawing fear -- how much will my current supply of two-ply paper last?
Fear not. There is a website that can calculate how long your supply of toilet paper will last through the coronavirus pandemic.
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Ben Sassoon, a University of Birmingham student software developer, has teamed up with artist Sam Harris, to create Howmuchtoiletpaper.com, CNN reported. More than 5 million people have already used the calculator, according to the British men’s website.
One of our students - Ben Sassoon from Computer Science - has created a website to calculate how long your loo roll will last! It's being used by people all around the world and helps encourage us to only buy what we need. Well done Ben! ❤️ 🧻 https://t.co/eSCAHsjHZf #panicbuying
— Uni of Birmingham (@unibirmingham) March 20, 2020
The website is easy to use. People calling up the site enter the number of rolls of toilet paper they have, and how many times a day they use the restroom. For users who want more detailed information, they can scroll to an “advanced options” section, where the number of sheets on the roll and people living in the home can be used to create a more accurate figure.
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Sassoon and Harris note on the website that the average user has 500% more toilet paper than they need. The duo came up with the idea for the calculator when they had a discussion about how much toilet paper they used on a daily basis, and how that number would be affected during the pandemic.
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While the website is a handy and fun tool, Sassoon and Harris did make a plea to shoppers to help wipe out the toilet paper shortage.
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“Not everyone is able to get to a store and stock up on toilet roll. Don’t be selfish,” the website said.
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