Today's Crab Is: Turning The Other Cheek

Prince Rupert's drops are toughened glass beads created by dripping molten glass into cold water, which causes it to solidify into a tadpole-shaped droplet with a long, thin tail. These droplets are characterized internally by very high residual stresses, which give rise to counter-intuitive properties, such as the ability to withstand a blow from a hammer or a bullet on the bulbous end without breaking, while exhibiting explosive disintegration if the tail end is even slightly damaged.

In nature, similar structures are produced under certain conditions in volcanic lava

Prince Rupert's drop - Wikipedia

Don’t mess with Olivia Marie

Palácio da Vila

Azulejos 

século XVIII

Sintra/Portugal

photos cjmn

The Ion Tail of New Comet SWAN via NASA https://ift.tt/3bNGnov

Ebbegebirge

SOCEMA Grégoire, 1952. An experimental gas turbine-powered, highly aerodynamic coupé created by French automobile engineer Jean-Albert Gregoire. Powered by a single rotor kerosene-fuelled ‘cematurbo’ engine developing 100 bhp at a 25,000 rpm. The lightweight aluminium frame and bodywork and the aerodynamic shape – a Cx of just 0.19 – enabled a 200km/h top speed which placed it among the fastest cars on the planet in 1952. The project went no further than a single prototype due to the high cost of construction and braking issues; a gas turbine doesn't generate any engine braking effect upon deceleration.

photographs by Perico001 on Flickr