Mondo Knows Facts
Post-it notes use low-tack microscopic adhesive spheres
Weak microsphere adhesive permits sticky paper strips to peel cleanly without damage
3M chemist Spencer Silver created a weak, reusable adhesive in 1968 made of tiny elastic spheres that touch surfaces lightly. Years later, colleague Art Fry applied the pressure-sensitive compound to paper strips to bookmark choir hymnals, creating the famous yellow sticky notes launched globally in 1980.
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Tags: stationery, adhesives, inventions
Post-it notes use low-tack microscopic adhesive spheres: the short answers
- Where does this come from, and can I check it?
- Weak microsphere adhesive permits sticky paper strips to peel cleanly without damage. The figure is taken from Smithsonian Institution, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
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