A playful yet informative look at one of humanity’s simplest tools
A true pencil typically consists of a core made of graphite (not lead!) encased in wood, plastic, or metal. It leaves a mark by transferring tiny particles of graphite onto paper.
If it writes without ink, can be sharpened, and erases cleanly—it might just be a pencil!
✏️ The average pencil can draw a line about 35 miles long—or write roughly 45,000 words!
🌍 The first wood-cased pencils were made in Nuremberg, Germany, around 1662.
🚀 Astronauts used mechanical pencils in space—but NASA actually preferred grease pencils early on due to cost and safety!
Not everything that looks like a pencil is one. Some “pencils” are actually: