KISS—Keep It Simple, Stupid!

A New York plumber of foreign extraction with a limited command of English wrote the National Bureau of Standards and said he found that hydrochloric acid quickly opened drainage pipes when they got clogged and asked if it was a good thing to use. A Bureau scientist replied: “The efficacy of hydrochloric acid is indisputable, but the corrosive residue is incompatible with metallic permanence.”

The plumber wrote back thanking the Bureau for telling him that the method was all right. The scientist was a little disturbed and showed the correspondence to his boss, another scientist. After talking with his boss, the scientist then wrote the plumber: “We cannot assume responsibility for the production of toxic and noxious residue with hydrochloric acid and suggest you use an alternative procedure.”

The plumber wrote back that he agreed with the Bureau—hydrochloric acid works fine. The scientist’s boss broke the impasse by eliminating the technical terminology and responded: “Don’t use hydrochloric acid. It eats the heck out of the pipes.”