Prince Rupert's Drops are small glass structures resembling tadpoles that can withstand the blows of a hammer and yet burst into powdery dust if their threadlike tails break. They have been a source of fascination and mystery since they were discovered in the 17th century. Now an international research team has pinpointed the source of the bizarre shatter-resistant behavior behind Prince Rupert’s drops. The work was a collaboration of researchers from Purdue University, the University of Cambridge in the UK and Tallinn University of Technology in Estonia. Full Story: http://bit.ly/prince-ruperts-drops Featured Purdue Engineer: Srinivasan Chandrasekar, Professor of Industrial Engineering & Materials Engineering Special Thanks to Sharon Owens at Inspired Fire http://inspiredfire.com/ for making the Prince Rupert's drops used in this video. Photo credits: The Art of Glass, Christopher Merrett, 1662 Micrographia, Robert Hooke, 1664 Philosophical Magazine, 1994 Applied Physics Letters, 109, 231903 (2016) Trevor Malhmann Music: "Vibe Drive" by Podington Bear via freemusicarchive.org Purdue Engineering: http://engineering.purdue.edu/ Facebook: http://facebook.com/PurdueEngineering Twitter: https://twitter.com/PurdueEngineers @PurdueEngineers Contact us about this video: purdueengineeringvideo@gmail.com Purdue University's College of Engineering is among the largest in the United States and includes 13 academic programs. U.S. News and World Report ranks Purdue Engineering in the Top 10 nationwide.