Space Pens
When NASA began the launch of astronauts into space, they found out that pens wouldn't work at zero gravity - ink won't flow down to the writing surface.
In order to solve this problem, they hired Andersen Consulting (Accenture today).
It took them one decade and 12 million dollars to develop a pen that worked at zero gravity, upside down, under water, in practically any surface including crystal, and in a temperature range from below freezing to over 300°C.
The Russians used a pencil.