Tanibanan returns with a famous drawing toy.

This week I have chosen to feature another toy developed to tap into the imagination and creativity of children: the Etch-A-Sketch. An Etch-A-Sketch is composed of a gray screen and a red frame, with two white knobs along the bottom. Aluminum powder is deposited on the underside of the screen when the knobs are turned, creating lines.

The knob on the right makes vertical lines; the left, horizontal. The Etch-A-Sketch has been featured on the Toy Industry Association's list of the greatest toys of the 20th century, as well as History's Best Toys, a list made by Time. But just how did this drawing pad of sorts become so popular?

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This week's Whyvillian in the Spotlight is . . . Leprosy!

Few people in this world would be comfortable badgering someone to make an article dedicated to them, but even fewer people would actually receive an article. Leprosy, or Axel as many of you may know him, has been around on here since he was eight-years-old, and has had various accounts through those years. In the five years I've known him, he's definitely been . . . interesting . . . but there's more to him than meets the eye.

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