The Misappliance Of Science

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Finely spun UL, courtesy of NASA

Debunked: NASA sent some very thin threads of gold to watchmakers in Switzerland, to show off some manufacturing technology. The watchmakers sent them back drilled with holes.

A lesson in hubris, this legend has it that NASA, in a fit of insecurity, decides to "boast" of its ability to make something very small, specifically a mind-bogglingly thin thread of gold. They choose to boast of this accomplishment to some unnamed Swiss watchmakers, so chosen one presumes due to the reputation of Swiss watches for fine craftsmanship. NASA sends some wire to the watchmakers, and the Swiss reply to this crude taunt with essentially, "We have drills smaller than this, bucko. Get with the program." NASA is presumably inconsolable.

It has also been told as occuring between NASA and some guys in Japan. It is a recent variation on an older UL involving an American steel company, a German steel company, and four feet of very thin steel wire that the Germans managed to hollow out in less than five minutes.

It's a UL that finds a foothold whenever the US feels insecure about the technological primacy of another country. Brunvand discusses it in The Baby Train.

References:

• The Baby Train