Why the pencil is perfect | Small Thing Big Idea, a TED series
2018 ж. 2 Қар.
636 518 Рет қаралды
Why are pencils shaped like hexagons, and how did they get their iconic yellow color? Pencil shop owner Caroline Weaver takes us inside the fascinating history of the pencil.
Small Thing Big Idea, a TED original series, celebrates the lasting genius of everyday objects so perfectly designed that they changed the world around them. Check out more here: go.ted.com/STBI
Subscribe to our channel: / ted
“The blackwing 602” “the Dixon Ticonderoga” Y’all talk about pencils like cars
Welcome to the artist world.
The OG Black Ticonderoga with the black eraser 🤩
zach chatterley Car names are cool. So it makes sense to name them something cool.
@@serenen4630 white Ticonderoga with the white eraser ^_^
：０
The way she says "It's perfect" at the end just shows how deep in love she is with pencils.
I agree
Wut about the leftover eraser in the pencil🙄
@@andrewzhu5628 Get a spare :P
I replayed that a few times lmao
It makes me feel like she does more than write with them
Trending in pencilvania
Aryan AAAHHHHHHHH
😁😁😁
Penicillin vania😂
AH AHAHHAHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHA
🤼♂️
Give the sound engineer/designer a raise.
It's gorgeous!!
remember old jokes when NASA spent hundreds invented a pen that work in space, but russian uses pencil instead
in mother russia, the pencil uses you
Right up until the russias realised why the pencil was bad and bought the yanks zero grav pen
Yep. A pencil would create graphite dust and short out electrical equipment. It's just a story.
UH YOU DO REALISE, IF THE PENCIL BREAKS, THE GRAPHITE/ LEAD WILL SHOOT AND RICOCHET EVERYWHERE DUE TO ZERO GRAVITY.
Also finds this in three idiots
You forgot to mention that the design can perfectly fits in a cassette tape lol
Cassette what!!??? (I am 39)
No it can't. You are thinking of the Bic pens. Standard pencils are too small in diameter to rewind tapes easily.
Why are people always randomly dipping things in gold
Cause they forget that people are starving
Coz Gold penises are better to look at.
I meant pencils. I totally meant pencils.
Rishi Parashar Wow😂👏
It's shiny!
Point breaks easily and quickly becomes dull, makes a mess when sharpening which you can only do with a separate tool, is usually thrown away with more than half left because it becomes too awkward to use. Yer, apart from that, perfect!
John Doe hehehehe you funny guy.
Yeah, mechanical pencils are superior by far.
Don’t forget the attached eraser that is always flattened halfway through
Cldn't be used in space Mechanical still requires u to have got refills
I like the feel and sharpening styles of wood pencils more than any mechanical pencil (besides lead holders) so I jand made a pencil extender that uses those flat erasers on blackwing 602 pencils, and when the pencil gets too short you transfer it to the extender. I have a whole jar of little pencil nubs
This is the history of the pencil as we know it. Not why it is perfect.
@SuperNavatar aaaaaaaand disappointed haha
phantazein. She still doesn’t give any reasons in the last minute, she only say which pencils are good and or iconic
She literally explained the process of making the pencil better, also she made a conclusion: she thinks that pencils are perfect the way they are, just because she thinks there is no way you can upgrade or make better
Luoming Wu she explained how they made pencils better than the low quality graphite sticks she used, but the only argument they give is that it doesn’t break, and if you can’t improve something it doesn’t mean it’s perfect.
@@saul-wv7fk Arguable and I don't agree with the idea as I'm using that pen type which just needed to insert graphite inside. It's better and upgraded version of pencils also u don't need to sharpen it everytime u use it.
*thanks to the sharpener.*
Pencil tips for your enjoyment (the 11 pencil commandments): Don't drop a pencil (once dropped, it's over for the pencil - the core totally disintegrates), rotate the pencil to keep the point sharp longer, use a pencil sharpener with an integral box to keep the cuttings so you don't have to run to a bin, use a pencil extender to use even the last centimeter of the pencil, If you don't like the thinness of the pencils, try a slip-on pencil grip, don't use pencil with an integrated eraser, buy high quality erasers so that you don't run out of it - they alsoerase better (that one is also a point of taste) try pencils in the H numbers for longivity and point retention (had one of them for 2 years), be vary of lead on your hands and of imprints if you turn a written page over, if you want to scan/take a photo of pencil drawings/writings, don't use your phone light and only use indirect light sources (otherwise, the writings vanish in the photo), carry at least two thicknesses of pencil - normal (HB) and softer one for underlining/headlines or as back-up - it's also useful for drawing, buy pencils in bulk - I've found boxes of 50 for under 15€ - that's one of the most economic writing options out there.
GeFlixes Thanks for sharing this golden pot of knowledge!
this comment goes right to the screenshot folder full of things I'd prolly never come across again
Or use a pen and don't be bothered with all of this
@@giacomo8875 Spoilsport! But a pen is as to a pencil as a cat is to a dog..Totally different beasts.
For the 4th commandment: "use a pencil extender to use even the last centimeter of the pencil", you forgot: If you cannot use the stump of the pencil anymore, carefully shave off the wood and use the left-over lead in a clutch pencil.
I love pencils. The kids and grandkids in my family always are excited knowing that they will be getting fun and unique pencils from me. I enjoy shopping and coming across new pencils. Never been a fan of mechanical pencils though. A few fun ones were made of recycled blue jeans, the long flex/ bendy ones that you can twist and tie, scented, scenes, ergonomic, monogrammed, the classic 12-18" tall x 1-2" wide jumbo pencil, so many great fun ones.
This was awesome to read. You seem like a wonderful and quirky person :)
Why no mechanical pencils? I dont understand the dislike. You dont need wood to use them. You dont make trash . All you need is to refill them with cores. And yea they are customizable too. So i see no difference. The only thing that is different is your feeling towards it.
@@Rithmy ,I have nothing against mechanical pencils. They are convenient. No mess when you toss them in a book or bag. And yes less wasteful. I use pencils all day, everyday. A short synopsis of my past and why I prefer original pencils...I grew up knowing artists (clothing and paper) , engineers, etc and still love the scratchy sound of a thicker pencil. And of course the mechanical pencil didnt exist yet when I was a kid. And fast forward, again short version..my hands do not behave like they should...they are not user friendly...even making a comment/email/text challenging and delayed. So, when I drop mechanical pencils, they break. No matter how strong the pencil material, (Ive tried thicker plastic and metal shell), things break.. The (to me) delicate lead breaks, even within the pencil. The top/eraser part breaks loose and wont stay on. Of course leading to extra lead falling out. And so on. Tip warps/breaks not holding lead Etc. As I write with mechanical, I break the lead. I break the lead on regular pencils if its too long or sharp. I quit trying to even load lead in mechanical about 15yrs ago lol. Quite a show that was 😂 Also, when mechanical pencils fall and bits fall off, I can't always find pieces before my dogs do..lol. Thats a concern for me. A regular pencil just needs sharpened again, and good to go. I have not given up. I recently discovered I am able to write with the bigger starter pencils and not break lead. Papermate "handwriting " designed for kids mechanical pencils. But I broke my granddaughters favorite color one when I dropped it. Not a happy 6year old. Odd? public school policies.. I have nieces and nephews in public Jr High and High Schools. A few years ago, many schools adapted a policy of "no mechanical pencils ". They were deemed as hazardous and potential weapons. To me, regular pencils are no less dangerous. During tests it would seem less irritating to hear a click click over a pencil sharpener, but thats just me. They are also only allowed the basic standard yellow pencil. My granddaughters and nieces school districts have adapted the "Only mechanical pencils. And solid colors only." No pattern/design as its distracting. The Jr high and high school should focus more on the dress code in my opinion.
Love this! Used to be obsessed with stationary. The smells, textures, sounds. Love it all
I'm more of a pen person. Lasts longer, you don't need a separate tool to sharpen it and it doesn't break while writing. There are also once that can be erased. Have in mind that I'm not an artist, but a student. I dont draw, I write.
Pens don't last longer
Khushal Khan It depends on the type of pen you use. I have one that lasts over 6 months per pen when used moderately.
I don't remember anyone asking you
Aashish Singh It’s just my statement.
I like the art of sharpening
This girl could sell sand to Egyptians.
Why does this have ten likes
The Egyptians actually by lots of sand. There are different kinds of sand, the one in the desert has been shaped by the wind, and for some reason is as a result not as useful in construction as sand from ex a beach. Believe it or not but they by and even steal sand nowadays.
More like red lipstick to the Egyptians.
The impressive Caroline Weaver! Her pencil shop in NYC was amazing and legendary. Unfortunately, it closed in 2021.
Dixon Ticonderogas and blackwings are my favorites. I used to be into mechanical pencils but there’s something about wooden ones that I love
Wood is just so classic
And then you realise that you're a lefty. So pen is better at that point.
What's the difference? Pencils are symmetrical.
@@Jo_Es_Chess_Channel we write left to right, so the graphite gets all over the side of your hand/smudges as you pass your hand across the page to write. gel pens are way worse then pencils, I started writing from the bottom because it was so annoying lol
Yeah, certain pens are better than others
I feel you
@@grass666 You can write in another language, like Farsi or Arabic.
Pencils can be improved with an eraser that both doesn’t smudge and lasts longer than two lines
According to wikipedia, Hymen L. Lipman is credited with registering the first patent for a pencil with an attached eraser in 1858.
The expression on the presenter's face when she closes with "it's perfect," is the greatest expression of something that's akin to embarrassment crossed with envy crossed with love. Great video. Thank you.
I didn't even knew the pencil is perfect and now you're explaining why it's perfect.
sound design on point throughout the whole video...love it😍
5am, I wake up in 2 hours and I watch a video about why pencil is perfect
Ted bro you're high
get out
pencil is a small object and so normal that i never realize it's importance. Thank you for telling me the history and other information about pencil.
Honestly, The first time to feel the importance of Pencil, it is really a great innovation as we are used to use it so we don't feel of its importance .. Great Video
This is such a satisfying video to watch and listen to
Well we can add a cap on top like pen so that the sharp head of the pencil won't break when it stays in our bag.......
Or use a mechanical pencil.
SuperNavatar You must be using dollar store mechanical pencils then if that's the case.
And they say its perfect
What language is your username? It looks very interesting
"I once saw him killed three men in a bar. With a pencil. With a f***ing. Pencil"
Welcome to the continental :))
John Wick?
"everything can be a weapon, if you are brave enough" -AbrahamLincoln
Never thought I could be interested in a video about pencils - mindset is changed now
“Every pencil has a story.” lol
The new Toy Story knock-off.
Don't laugh. My pencil has been through a lot.
A minute and 37 seconds in: the editing and b roll of this video is top notch.
I like stationary so this really appealed to me.
Do you mean to spell that "stationery"? Or are you saying that you like to remain very still?
@@seanseanseanseansean Epic comment! I was thinking the same thing, but you beat me to it. LOL
Being stationary°
This is so interesting! I've never thought about pencil's history or it's importance. I honestly prefer wooden pencils to mechanical pencils and now I want to use the Blackwing 602 and the Dixon Ticonderoga 😄
i almost forget this wonderful one, thanks ted
I remember looking for a Staedtler 2B when the shop owner was like “but have you tried a Blackwing?”.... Gave away all my Staedtlers that day.
I was obsessed with Faber Castell. Then one day my husband was in the shop with me asking to give a go with the Blackwing 602. A new obsession began. 😂 (I know it's not Eberhard but it's still SO SMOOTH).
This video is amazing. Everything about it. Thank you.
Most underrated invention.
Blackwings may be the best ever but for me the new Ticonderoga enviro stick is the ultimate for the common person like me. They write almost as smoothly as the blackwings , almost as dark and only a fraction of the cost and are "environmentally friendly" and I like the look of natural wood.
The quality of the eraser is trash and half of it is unusable. "It's perfect"
Ikr
@SpaceX - KSP they're talking about that little eraser attached to the end of the pencil xd
Also the lead in it breaks so easily and If u don’t have a sharpener u can’t use it.
Also the last bit of the pencil can't be used when it gets smaller than your palm.
Why is this video so hypnotizing? Quirky information I didn't know I needed to know 💛💛💛
Absolutely perfect video. Can only be made better if the "lead" rumour is explained.
I love this small format
The ideal number for me is always HB-2. Not too hard and not too soft. Perfect for writting.
This is very interesting and is why I love this series
A pencil is a kind of writing equipment that is also used to draw, usually on paper. Most pencil cores are made of graphite powder mixed with a clay binder. So, a pencil is usually made with a piece of graphite mixed with clay that has a wood case around it. The shape is usually a hexagonal prism but some pencils are square or cylinder. Colored pencils are a kind that do not use greyish silver graphite. Instead, the core is colorful. Colored pencils or crayons are usually meant for drawing rather than writing. The important difference between pens and pencils is that the tip of a pencil is made of solid graphite (or other material) which is rubbed off onto the paper. A pen has a tip, usually made of metal, with liquid ink coming out and onto the paper. Writing with a pen can smudge when it is still wet. Writing from a pencil can be erased, but writing from a pen usually cannot, unless it uses a special type of ink and eraser. An early writing tool was the reed pen used by ancient Egyptians, who wrote with ink on sheets of papyrus paper. Another early writing instrument was the stylus, which was a thin metal stick, often made from lead. It was used for scratching onto black wax that covered white wood, a method used by the Romans. The word pencil comes from the Latin word pencillus which means "little tail". It is an invention of the 16th century in England. Some time before 1565 (it may have been as early as 1500), an enormous deposit of graphite was discovered in Borrowdale, Cumbria. The locals found that it was very useful for marking sheep. This particular deposit of graphite was extremely pure and solid, and it could easily be sawn into sticks. This is still the only large scale deposit of graphite ever found in this solid form. Chemistry was in its infancy and the substance was thought to be a form of lead. Consequently, it was called plumbago (Latin for "lead ore"). The black core of pencils is still referred to as lead, even though it never contained the element lead. The value of graphite was soon realized, mainly because it could be used to line the moulds for cannonballs. The mines were taken over by the Crown and guarded. When sufficient stocks of graphite had been accumulated, the mines were flooded to prevent theft until more was required. Graphite had to be smuggled out for use in pencils. Because graphite is soft, it requires some form of holder. Graphite sticks were at first wrapped in string or in sheepskin for stability. The news of the usefulness of these early pencils spread far and wide, attracting the attention of artists all over the known world. England continued to have a monopoly on the production of pencils until a method of reconstituting the graphite powder was found. The distinctively square English pencils continued to be made with sticks cut from natural graphite into the 1860s. The town of Keswick, near the original findings of block graphite, has a pencil museum. The first attempt to manufacture graphite sticks from powdered graphite was in Nuremburg, Germany, in 1662. It used a mixture of graphite, sulphur, and antimony. Residual graphite from a pencil stick is not poisonous, and graphite is harmless if consumed. The Italians first thought of wooden holders. In 1560, an Italian couple named Simonio and Lyndiana Bernacotti created the first blueprints for the modern carpentry pencil to mark their carpentry pieces. Their version was instead a flat, oval, more compact type of pencil. They did this at first by hollowing out a stick of juniper wood. Shortly thereafter, a superior technique was discovered: two wooden halves were carved, a graphite stick inserted, and the two halves then glued together-essentially the same method in use to this day. English and German pencils were not available to the French during the Napoleonic Wars. France was under naval blockade imposed by Great Britain and could not import the pure graphite sticks from the British Grey Knotts mines - the only known source in the world for solid graphite. France was also unable to import the inferior German graphite pencil substitute. It took the efforts of an officer in Napoleon's army to change this. In 1795, NicholasJacques Conté discovered a method of mixing powdered graphite with clay and forming the mixture into rods that were then fired in a kiln. By varying the ratio of graphite to clay, the hardness of the graphite rod could also be varied. This method of manufacture, which had been earlier discovered by the Austrian Joseph Hardtmuth of Kohl-l-Noh in 1790, remains in use. In England, pencils continued to be made from whole sawn graphite. Henry Bessemer's first successful invention (1838) was a method of compressing graphite powder into solid graphite thus allowing the waste from sawing to be reused American colonists imported pencils from Europe until after the American Revolution. Benjamin Franklin advertised pencils for sale in his Pennsylvania Gazette in 1729, and George Washington used a three-inch pencil when he surveyed the Ohio Territory in 1762. It is said that William Munroe, a cabinetmaker in Concord, Massachusetts made the first American wood pencils in 1812. This was not the only pencil-making occurring in Concord. Henry David Thoreau discovered how to make a good pencil out of inferior graphite using clay as the binder; this invention was prompted by his father's pencil factory in Concord, which employed graphite found in New Hampshire in 1821 by Charles Dunbar On 30 March 1858, Hymen Lipman received the first patent for attaching an eraser to the end of a pencil. In 1862 Lipman sold his patent to Joseph Reckendorfer for $100,000, who went to sue the pencil manufacturer Faber-Castell for infringement. In 1875 the Supreme Court of the United States ruled against Reckendorfer declaring the patent invalid. The metal band used to mate the eraser with pencil is called a ferrule. The first attempt to manufacture graphite sticks from powdered graphite was in Nuremberg, Germany in 1662. They used a mixture of graphite, sulfur and antimony. Though usable, they were not as good as the English pencils. English and German pencils were not available to the French during the Napoleonic wars. It took the efforts of an officer in Napoleon's army to change this. In 1795 Nicholas Jacques Conté discovered a method of mixing powdered graphite with clay and forming the mixture into rods which were then fired in a kiln. By varying the ratio of graphite to clay, the hardness of the graphite rod could also be varied (the more clay, the harder the pencil, and the lighter the color of the mark). This method of making pencils is still used today. Today, pencils are made industrially by mixing finely ground graphite and clay powders, adding water, forming long spaghetti-like strings, and firing them in a kiln. The resulting strings are dipped in oil or molten wax which seeps into the tiny holes of the material, resulting in smoother writing. A juniper or incense-cedar plank with several long parallel grooves is cut to make something called a slate, and the graphite/clay strings are inserted into the grooves. Another grooved plank is glued on top, and the whole thing is then cut into individual pencils, which are then varnished or painted. A few common brands of colored pencils (among other items) are Crayola, RoseArt and Cra-Z-Art.
That’s interesting!
*this is me having a TED talk except with more emphasis on Koh-i-Noor being a Czech company named after a diamond... wait that was that paper I had in school in 7th grade!!*
Pencil: basking in the glow of, "nothing can be done to make it better". Mechanical Pencil: smiling, waiting around the corner.
Every pencil has a story best quote of 2019
Much more interesting than i thought it would be
I love this. Fantastic video. Thank you for sharing. ✏️✏️✏️
This so weirdly fascinating. Like you don't think it would be. And yet
A candle is pretty much the same concept. So simple, so brilliant.
Mechanical pencils are better. The standard pencil can leave a mark of graphite on your finger tips and if you leave a pencil in a pencil case it makes everything else (especially the rubber) “dirty”. • A mechanical pencil would only expose the amount of graphite needed for a certain time period of writing • Arguably, the Pilot Frixion Erasable pen is perfect-er. It is a pen with the added luxuries of a pencil (rubbing out) and you can put a cap on it when not in use. *+* for convenience, there is a tip on the lid to attach the pen to e.g. ur shirt pocket
I love the Pilot Frixion pens! I agree about mechanical pencils. I also like gel pens (Pilot G-2).
The title of this video is incredibly brilliant.
I'm obsessed with stationary.
Something we take for granted that we use everyday!
Krebs cycle.
I guess your creativity is small Pencil can be improved in quite a lot of ways
Monika Chuttani lol how
How then?
1)Add a cap to prevent hurting yourself with the pointed tip 2)add rubber grip 3)add magnets to the sides to make it clip to the compasses easily or any metal surface 4)shiter pencils are difiicult to use so make the back side of the pencil from some kind of hollow structure that can be replaces to othe pencils making them easier to use............ There can be many more.....
@@monikachuttani6645 i think it ruins the simplicity of a pencil. There are many ways to overengineer things that should be left the way it is.
Me, looking at my mechanical pencils: You're a dishonour to the family...
Ted Series Why the pencil is perfect: Small thing, big Idea Ted Talk May 2, 2020 • Things that are as small as pencils are big ideas that have changed our would for the better. • Think innovatively • Pencils have an interesting history: 1. People found a new material in mountain. 2. People mad primitive pencils out of that material. 3. One person took that material, pulverized it, mixed it with clay and water, and cooked it which as an outcome, the led core was made. 4. People automatized the process 5. The hexagon shape was chosen as it was the least wasteful shape 6. A grading system was developed (less or more clay) 7. Finally, they added the yellow color and the eraser.
Meanwhile John Wick shouting: "It's not how it should be used"
I like pencils too but I haven’t seen one who fell in love with pencils like this person
"Pencil is perfect" especially the eraser
cinematography and editing 😍😍😍😍😍
Well, that was neat. I never thought I needed to know that though.😆😄
3:21 When I think of pencil, I think of John Wick automatically.
Love this reflections
Thank you, really very interesting. Just a pencil🖍, and how much useful information!👌👍
The guy that wrote Walden came up with the grading system? That's interesting. Guess he had a lot of time in that cabin.
Just as perfect as this video ✏️
Interesting relic of history.
Two benefits I get for pencils: The move slower than a pen so my writing is my legible. I think better. Somehow, maybe back to my first grade teacher, but I just think better with a pencil in my hand.
You know your video is good when you get an audience of 500k people to want to learn more about pencils. Heck, even become passionate about them!
Clicked so fast to being one of the first peoples watching this, realised youtube send me the notification a couple hours late... There should be more videos about this errors(I call them errors) in youtube; why does this happen ? Why recommandation system is bad ? Why algorithms does this ? If someone that has power of giving video(research) ideas to Ted, please, give this to them :) Also great video, now I will feel much different at school when I use my pencils. Edit1: grammar.
That was really interesting. Thanks
Love this small thing, big idea
WAIT WHY IS THERE 3 VIDEOS AT ONCE
They need to ralk about the left handed pencil about 99 percent of all pencils are right handed.
aaron Salentine excuse me
@@aaronsalentine7876 oh cmon, the pencil is perfect for left-handed too
@@aaronsalentine7876 i hate it how chopsticks are mostly for right handers too
The problem is not the pencil, it's how you have to use it when you are left-handed. You have to start at the end of the line and move from right to left ;p
thanks 4 coming to my ted talk
The hexagonal shape also helps that your pencil won't roll away.
Loved it👍👍👍
Graceful!
As a kindergarten teacher, I really wish the eraser ends were different. Kids go through the eraser (by rubbing, breaking, or eating) 20 times faster than they go through the graphite.
Good video, thank you!
England students be like: Dixon ticodergo reminds you lot of school? WHere's my man staedtler (which no one can pronounce correctly) and that iconic black and yellow colours!?
🙏 It's amazing many of the Great Designs & Products were already created by our Forefathers & Foremothers before us ... 🕯🌎🌷🌿🕊
Improvements: fix the bug where dropping a pencil from 1 foot shatters it all the way through such that sharpening it gives you a wobbly tip which you have to pull out, so you can sharpen it again so the same thing happens repeatedly. Also make them triangular for e r g o n o m i c s.
Bug fixes and performance improvements! Introducing The Pencil 3.0 Mega
Just use a mechanical pencil so much nicer and with more consistent line thickness
@@hylageo lead still 🅱️reaks
Any pencil with decently bonded lead won't do that, and triangular pencils have been on the market since the 1950s. Next?
I never knew pencils could be this interesting until now
I too love the pencil as an object and the history behind it is amazing, but I hate when the point gets dull and I have to sharpen it, so that's why I use mechanical pencils.
beautiful
amazing speech
I love pencils and tend to take them from various trips! :)
I enjoyed this way too much
A pencil is absolutely a perfect tool for writing.
I like the triangular the most
Why the pencil is perfect? Ask John Wick.
I want someone to love me as much as this girl loves pencils! :D
Using a 2 or 4B pencil and your writing will glide along, increasing your writing speed and pleasure of writing. Faber-Castell pencils, their 9000 'Jumbo' are absolutely fabulous. They were invented by (the sadly late) Count Anton von Faber-Castell.
Whenever I think of a pencil, I think of Staedtler
there was another tedtalk that mentioned pencil, in giving an example on how to make better and better products, but I can't find it anywhere, it drives me nuts