Writing utensils have existed since 3000 BCE, a credit to humankind’s long standing need to pass notes in class. Graphite was used for centuries, along with quills and ink, for writing and drawing. Pencils evolved around the 18th century when Italian wood carved surrounded graphite with, shockingly, wood. Erasers weren’t attached until the mid-19th century. John J Loud filed the first patent on what would evolve into the ballpoint pen in 1888. It took another 50 years when László Bíró invented a working ballpoint pen and licensed his creation to the British Royal Air Force.