<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Ballpoint_pen" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Ballpoint_pen</a> -- Wikipedia suggests that the ball point pen was first invented in the late 19th century, but that they didn&#x27;t catch on until after WWII because they need &quot;modern chemistry and precision manufacturing capabilities&quot;, which sounds consistent with the claims in this article.