Deeper Thougths by Horse Nation [Updated]

Fisher spent millions of dollars developing a pen for NASA that could write upside down, under water, and in zero gravity. What did the Russians do?

Answer in the comment section, we’ll update this post with an explanation shortly.

9:53pm Update: Trust me, I miss Lesie just about as much as you do right now. As the legend goes, NASA spent a ton of money developing the Space Pen and then the Russians used a pencil. In reality it was the Space Pen developer, Robert Fisher, who invested millions and then NASA bought the pens it from Mr. Fisher.  As the oracle of all knowledge, Wikipedia, explains “Russian cosmonauts used pencils, and grease pencils on plastic slates until also adopting a space pen in 1969 with a purchase of 100 units for use on all future missions.”  The message of the original legend–that the pragmatic Russians saved a bunch of money by using a simple solution to a complex problem–is only slightly amended to–the pragmatic Russians saved a bunch of money by using a simple solution to a complex problem and then purchasing an even better solution at a discount price once.