The yellow cylinder inside this automatic pencil rotates ever so slightly every time the pencil is lifted from the paper. That way, the lead will always hit the paper at its sharpest angle. Japanese innovation at work. · Flickr Backup

The yellow cylinder inside this automatic pencil rotates ever so slightly every time the pencil is lifted from the paper. That way, the lead will always hit the paper at its sharpest angle. Japanese innovation at work.