We Are All Number 2 Pencils

How the global community works to create us all

Aaron McClure
2 min readAug 4, 2023
Number 2 pencil, global community
Cool Photo by Jenny Pace on Unsplash

I saw a meme the other day that was pointing out the fact that no one person in this world could make a number 2 pencil on their own. The main point was that it takes a global community to produce even the simplest of our tools.

As a mechanical brain, I endeavored to pull the argument apart and much to my surprise, I couldn’t. They were correct. A number two pencil requires quite a list of resources.

Just for the basics components you are looking at the following:

  • Lead
  • Wood
  • Rubber
  • Brass
  • Paint

On top of these basic ingredients, they need to have specific tooling in order to piece them all together. Things like:

  • Saws
  • Lathes
  • Metal working tools
  • Wood working tools
  • Rubber processing equipment
  • Lead refinement equipment
  • Paint producing equipment along with pigments
  • Final assembly tooling

If we go even a step further, you’d need to know the practices and processes of each of those. We won’t even…

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Aaron McClure

Project Manager, blogger, writer. I write about the struggles of life and how to grow as a unique person. I welcome all open discussions.