This spring, an 80-year-old Japanese chalk company went out of business. Nobody, perhaps, was as sad to see the company go as mathematicians who had become obsessed with Hagoromo Fulltouch Chalk, the so-called "Rolls Royce of chalk."
With whiteboards and now computers taking over classrooms, the company's demise seemed to mark the end of an era.
Being neither a mathematician nor a chalk artist, I heard about Hagoromo through my friend Dan, a mathematician finishing up his Ph.D. at Stanford. He recently appeared on a Japanese TV special about the demise of Hagoromo Bungu Co., where a TV crew came out to Stanford to interview mathematicians about the legendary chalk. One professor described hoarding enough of the stuff to keep him in chalk for the next 15 years. Dan is in the special too, calling the end of Hagoromo "a tragedy for mathematics."
Okay, he was obviously joking. But it is true that mathematicians are fanatics for this obscure Japanese chalk. Here you can see a long discussion online where mathematicians are hunting for Hagoromo chalk suppliers in the U.S. Satyan Devadoss, a Williams College math professor, even wrote a blog post calling it "dream chalk." He explained:
There have been rumors about a dream chalk, a chalk so powerful that mathematics practically writes itself; a chalk so amazing that no incorrect proof can be written using this chalk. I can finally say, after months of pursuit, that such a chalk indeed exists.
Similar reactions have been noted in the past from artists about the demise of Pearl Paints, or from photographers about Polaroid film. Any mathematicians care to weigh in?
[Editor's note: Here is a story link for those clamoring for one.. :) ]
Original Submission
(Score: 3, Informative) by WillAdams on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:38PM
I felt the same way about Blackwing pencils --- fortunately they came back.
They just need to work out what the demand / usage is, and how much it would cost to sustainably produce at that level.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Anne Nonymous on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:50PM
Have you tried the Blackwang pencils? They're similar to the Blackwings, but say "Welcome to Jamaica, Have A Nice Day" on them.
(Score: 0, Offtopic) by Dunbal on Thursday June 18 2015, @03:22PM
They also get any white women in your home pregnant.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by MrGuy on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:39PM
Um....is there a source anywhere for any of this?
(Score: 5, Funny) by Translation Error on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:46PM
(Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:47PM
A web search for the first sentence came up with this page [gizmodo.com] which I guess is the article the summary was intended to link to.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Thursday June 18 2015, @03:55PM
Yeah, that's it. Sorry.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by CoolHand on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:52PM
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job-Douglas Adams
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:50PM
Sounds legit. Now if it were "The Facebook of Chalk", then I'd be suspicious.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:54PM
oops, headline should be "The Rolls Royce of Chalk"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @03:47PM
Balsa is the coward of wood
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @04:09PM
It's like the calcium carbonate of chalk.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:54PM
Why Mathematicians Are Hoarding This Special Type of Japanese Chalk
Fuck knows, it sure isn't answered in the summary.
If it even is a summary, since there doesn't seem to be an article.
(Score: 3, Informative) by donkeyhotay on Thursday June 18 2015, @02:57PM
Photographers are missing Polaroid film? Kodak Kodachrome film, yes, but Polaroid film? I don't think so.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Thursday June 18 2015, @03:59PM
Well, you would think so, but there are enough crazy fans of the stuff that they crowdsourced restarting production [telegraph.co.uk].
I don't know what label you'd attach to them. I chose "photographer." Suggest another.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by looorg on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:13PM
But Polaroid is still a somewhat unique experience. You take a photo and soon after you are holding an actual physical artifact in your hand. Not just an image on a screen. That could be kind of powerful in a world that is going mostly digital and should not be underestimated.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Phoenix666 on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:21PM
Well, yes. I'm not a photographer. I have never fetishized photographs. I truly do not get the idolization of Cindy Sherman. I just don't get it. But when people who do obsess about Polaroids, I know enough to know that it's a thing. Especially when you learn that fans have gone so far as to restart production of a form of image capture that by all rights ought to be well and truly dead, then you ought to acknowledge that there's something there, even if you yourself don't get it.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by DutchUncle on Thursday June 18 2015, @08:03PM
Why ought it to be well and truly dead? I come to the question from the other side; when I was a kid, there was no instant photography and no consumer video. You took your pictures through a viewfinder, and hoped that the film had captured what you saw, and that the film didn't get damaged before you got it developed. (Of course, that meant a whole industry of both local and mail-order film developers and printers that has since vanished; but I digress.) The one exception was a Polaroid. You knew, right away, that you had captured a memento of a special event or special gathering that might never happen again. And for a child, watching that image appear was magic and science and engineering all woven together.
If you're used to "taking a picture" being capturing an image that you ALREADY SAW on your screen, and you can display it at full resolution instantly, and you have complete control over adjusting and modifying and printing it . . . . well, then, yes, I can imagine that you don't get it, because you don't have that contrast to have made it special.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by mtrycz on Thursday June 18 2015, @06:39PM
As an amateur photographer: the answer is hipster.
In capitalist America, ads view YOU!
(Score: 3, Interesting) by mechanicjay on Thursday June 18 2015, @03:55PM
I feel this way about the Pentel p205. If they ever go out of production, I will stock pile them. Thankfully, they tend to last a hella long time, so 10 of them should be an adequate lifetime supply, assuming the consumables are still available.
http://www.pentel.com/store/sharp-mechanical-drafting-pencil-config/ [pentel.com]
My VMS box beat up your Windows box.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @04:55PM
You should try the GraphGear 500 http://www.pentel.com/store/graph-gear-500tm-mechanical-drafting-pencil [pentel.com] . You may take back that statement. 8-D
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:15PM
This is a question that will arise more as waves of innovation compress. How do you work such that it will make you more productive?
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 3, Informative) by DECbot on Thursday June 18 2015, @11:12PM
I share your feelings, but for the Pentel Quick Clicker [pentel.com]--the 0.5mm transparent black version. I have one that's at least 15 years old that still works fine. Having replaceable erasers is a bonus too. Though losing the eraser cap is why I generally replace this pencil, aside from when a loaned pencil is never returned.
If pentel ever discontinued the Quick Clicker, I'd probably convert over to this guy for everything, not just drawing: Staedtler Mars Technico 780 Leadholder [staedtler.us].
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 3, Informative) by RedBear on Friday June 19 2015, @02:37AM
Ha! I loved that side-clicker style pencil. Picked one out in black for school in 1990 and still have it 25 years later. I think. I know I've seen it around here somewhere.
I had a tendency to twiddle my pencil back and forth rapidly between thumb and forefinger in class and that plastic eraser cover would go flying. I found that cutting a foam pencil grip [amazon.com] in half and sliding it over the plastic end cap would keep the cap on quite effectively. Never had mine come off accidentally after that. Try it.
Also inherited a Staedtler Leadholder and a Pentel Sharp that are both probably much older than I am.
¯\_ʕ◔.◔ʔ_/¯ LOL. I dunno. I'm just a bear.
... Peace out. Got bear stuff to do. 彡ʕ⌐■.■ʔ
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @03:58PM
Nostalgia for chalk is one thing, but the dust it produces is rather bad for your health. I remember being tasked at primary school to give the blackboard dry sponges a good whacking to get the dust out of them. Lots of fun with those big butts you'd make. But really bad for you.
Tip for future: Also include a link to the article that is being summarized :Di
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:40PM
Lots of fun with those big butts you'd make.
You need to turn off your "cloud-to-butt" translator when you post...
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @10:53PM
I like big clouds and I can not lie.
(Score: 3, Funny) by DECbot on Thursday June 18 2015, @11:21PM
I like big clouds and I can not lie.
You other Admins can't deny
That when a saleman walks in with a itty bitty device
and a big cloud thing in your face
you get Sprung, wanna pull out your tough
'Cause you notice that cloud was stuffed
Deep in the php its wearing.
I'm hooked and I can't stop swearing...
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 2) by looorg on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:08PM
This must be some very niche mathematicians and math-departments that horde chalk. Hoarding chalk seems like something really old geezer or math-hipster would do. I don't think there has been a chalkboard in use here for over a decade. Last time I saw and used one was in the mid 90s. It's all whiteboard and smartboards (the once you can hook up to a computer) now. If there even is a chalkboard around it's down in the storage-dungeon where old things go to die.
There might be people that like chalk, it makes a distinct sound -- there is a smell. They might like the tactile feeling of holding it. This would/could be just like people that use typewriters instead of computers. We all have our little quirks. In this case it might be some kind of math nostalgia. I never felt that tho.
(Score: 2) by KGIII on Thursday June 18 2015, @08:03PM
I have my PhD in Applied Mathematics so, I suppose, you could call me a mathematician. I can confirm that I have absolutely no preference for any brand of chalk, I have no love of chalk, and I am allergic to chalk dust (though it is not too terrible).
On the other hand, you will pry my slipstick from my cold dead hands.
As an aside, my career involved maths but was not, by any means, exclusively maths. I suppose I am technically a mathematician but, really, I do not prefer the title. If anything I prefer the term 'mathemagician' because it is enjoyable using numbers to mess with someone's head. (Un)Fortunately, it is good that few understand my humor.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
(Score: 2) by richtopia on Thursday June 18 2015, @08:08PM
Where is "here"? When I was at school at the University of Michigan everything outside of the new Computer Science building was chalkboards. I graduated from there in 2010 and went to Oakland University, where the Engineering department was still all chalkboards.
One nice thing about chalk is you know how much is left. I swear the dry erase markers have unionized and decide to all run out of ink at the same time!
(Score: 3, Interesting) by timbim on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:13PM
Can someone tell me about the mechanical properties and why someone like a mathematician would prefer this chalk over another chalk?
(Score: 5, Informative) by BananaPhone on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:56PM
According to this:
Picture of the box!
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-tuesday-edition-1.3115584/mathematicians-snatch-up-last-boxes-of-the-rolls-royce-of-chalk-1.3116153 [www.cbc.ca]
-the chalk has a thin wax coating to keep your fingers clean.
-It's thicker than regular chalk. (easier to hold)
-you can press hard on it without it breaking
-you don't need to press hard for it to write (like the really cheap stuff)
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Thursday June 18 2015, @09:50PM
So how hard is it to manufacture this by oneself? I assume the department of chemistry etc might also be somewhat interested.
(Score: 5, Informative) by KBentley57 on Thursday June 18 2015, @06:16PM
I still prefer a GOOD chalkboard over a whiteboard. However, a good smooth chalkboard and smooth writing chalk are becoming more hard to find. Here is the difference. The crayola chalk (or whatever it is from the big box stores) may as well be a stick of nothing. It literally has no mass to it, and if you're lucky, you might get a faint, dusty line of translucent white, after trying to carve your way through the board into the next room. It breaks when you look at it, and despite not being able to make a visible mark on the board, it cannot be erased! Try as you might, you'll need the janitors floor buffer to get back to a clean state.
Good chalk on the other hand, feels like something in your hand. Without much pressure, you can leave a thick bright line on the board. It doesn't wear down or break quickly, and can be erased with as little as a quick swipe of the shirt sleeve. I've got a box that will last me until I die, and it's worth 10x its weight in printer ink.
That is the difference.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @05:42PM
But it is true that mathematicians are fanatics for this obscure Japanese chalk
/EVERYBODY/ knows about /that/ chalk... Now I have some very obscure chalk... but it's so underground you've probably never even heard of it!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @07:25PM
Pshh, these new chalk trend followers.
Last night I was listening to Sidewalk Chalk [youtube.com] while actually being underground in Chełmskie podziemia kredowe. [ wikipedia.org (Warning: Unicode in URL) ]
(Score: 3, Interesting) by zafiro17 on Thursday June 18 2015, @06:37PM
I'm amazed by the amount of grief folks are giving here, given this is probably the crowd that (like me) won't even use a computer that doesn't have that perfect, niche text editor or whatever. Hey, scientists and the rest of us usually wind up feeling pretty strongly about the tools that make us productive. If that's chalk and a chalkboard, so be it. I happen to be pretty serious about fountain pens, and if I can't find the right pen for the job, I find I don't bother to write.
I happen to also prefer chalk over whiteboards, although I don't use much of either. Whiteboards are horribly environmentally uncool, if you think about all the plastic that goes into those markers and is probably not recycled; same goes for the chemicals that make up the ink. Chalk is just chalk: wash it off, it goes back into the earth. There's something satisfying about it. Also, as a former teacher who used tons of white boards 'back in the day,' didn't it always seem like whichever marker you grabbed off the tray had little or no color left?
Dad always thought laughter was the best medicine, which I guess is why several of us died of tuberculosis - Jack Handey
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @07:05PM
I agree - I hate whiteboards and, having spent many late nights ruminating over stuff with chalk and blackboard, I feel something a lot more than nostalgia over the demise of the technology.
BTW - chalk isn't chalk, it's gypsum. Chalk hasn't been used for the manufacture of chalk for a long time.
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 18 2015, @10:11PM
According to the manufacturer, this chalk IS chalk, or possibly synthetic CaCO3
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday June 18 2015, @07:14PM
That's until you want to make a small correction somewhere: use you hand or a dry wiper and it's messy, wet the wiper and you can't write on the board until you dry it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 19 2015, @11:10AM
You mean no one on this forum has ever left a big white crayon in the chalk tray just to annoy the teacher?
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday June 19 2015, @11:21AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0
(Score: 2) by penguinoid on Friday June 19 2015, @05:02AM
When you make something nice, the world should be your oyster. Maybe if the mathematicians shell out some cash, they can clam up this talk of going the way of the dinosaurs.
RIP Slashdot. Killed by greedy bastards.
(Score: 2) by Jerry Smith on Friday June 19 2015, @09:49AM
I only can properly math (or any numerical writing) with a 6B pencil, obtuse sharpened.
All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.