How Hard Can It Be?

We first shared this with our Starlink readers in February 2006. We think it’s worth revisiting, because it still makes us smile. :)

Astronauts quickly discovered ballpoint pens would not work in zero gravity.

To combat this problem, NASA scientists spent a decade and $12 billion developing a pen that writes in zero gravity, upside down, under water, on almost any surface including glass and at temperatures ranging from below freezing to over 300C.

… The Russians used a pencil.

Tagged as: Complexity, Problem Solving, Simplicity