Comments by "Victoria Eads" (@victoriaeads6126) on "Bullet vs Prince Rupert's Drop at 150,000 fps - Smarter Every Day 165" video.

  1. Yes. A vernacular way to put this is that the tail is where the stresses are greatest. Unless the glass is properly annealed, trying to melt the tail will have the same effect as shooting the drop with a bullet.
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  2. It has to do with the internal stresses in the glass created by cooling it so quickly. Unless glass is annealed, or cooled slowly at specific temperatures for specific periods, it retains stress. If you even lightly tap stressed glass at the correct point, it will shatter. This glass is weakest at the thin spots, thus, the tail. When the tail is disrupted, the piece shatters instantly. Glass is amazing.
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  3. If there was a way to truly isolate the drop without vibration through the whole, perhaps this could work. Unfortunately, that's pretty much impossible. Similarly, even if you managed to melt off the tail without exploding the drop (extremely unlikely), the stresses within the drop would mean that without the tail, it would be considerably more fragile.
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  4. This is a very interesting idea. I don't know whether you could ever convince the powers that be to try melting glass in the ISS, but THAT WOULD BE SO COOL... hot....I mean, there's science to be had. No, really, I think that would be a fascinating materials science experiment. If only I had sway with NASA, I'd tell them your idea. DESTIN??
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  5. Oooohhhhhh, cool idea! I'm pretty sure the result would be the same, but hey, maybe not! DESTIN! PLEASE??!
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  6. 5:45 Glass is amazing. High purity glass is even more amazing.
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  7. It has little to do with the string. Even if the drop was in free fall, the stresses within the glass would produce the same effect.
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  8. I'm frankly fangirling over Keith, the Royal Society Librarian. Sir, you're very cool.
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