Prince Rupert's Drops are created by letting a drop of molten glass fall into cold water. The glass cools into a tadpole-shaped droplet with a long, thin, tail. The water rapidly cools the molten glass on the outside of the drop. When the glass on the inside eventually cools, it contracts inside the already-solid outer part. This contraction sets up very large compressive stresses on the surface, while the interior of the glass is placed under tension. The very high stress within the drop gives rise to unusual qualities, such as the ability to withstand a blow from a hammer on the large end without breaking, while the drops will disintegrate explosively if the tail end is even slightly damaged. Recently an examination has revealed that the "crack front" which is initiated at the tail end, propagates in a disintegrating drop within the tensile zone towards the drop's head at a very high velocity, up to ~4,200 miles per hour.

The Industrial Revolution, was based on the availability of coal to power steam engines. International trade expanded exponentially when coal-fed steam engines were built for the railways. Coal was cheaper and much more efficient than wood in most steam engines. Around 1800 it became the main energy source for the Industrial Revolution, the expanding railway system of countries being a prime user. Coal remains the cheapest energy source by a factor of 50% and even in many economies (such as U.S.) it is the primary fuel used in electricity generation.

WD-40 stands for "Water Displacement, 40th attempt". WD-40 was invented in 1953 and was first used by Convair to protect the outer skin of the Atlas missile from rust and corrosion. Another random WD-40 fact is that WD-40 dissolves cocaine.

5.9 million years ago the Strait of Gibraltar closed and the Mediterranean Sea evaporated forming a dry basin that was at some locations as deep as 2-3 miles (3.2-4.9 km) below sea level. The area underwent repeated partial flooding and desiccation at least 8 or 10 times over hundreds of thousands of years. The drop in water level caused the rivers emptying into the Mediterranean to turn into waterfalls that eroded their shelves. The Nile cut its bed down to 8,000 feet (2,400 m) below sea level under Cairo. The water that evaporated from the Mediterranean would have been redistributed in the world's oceans, raising global sea levels around 30 feet(9-10 m). About 5.4 million years ago, at the start of the Pliocene period, the barrier at the Strait of Gibraltar broke, permanently re-flooding the basin. Even now the Mediterranean is saltier than the North Atlantic because of its near isolation by the Straits of Gibraltar and its high rate of evaporation.

In 1992, 29000 rubber ducks fell of a Chinese freight ship in the Pacific ocean. Thousands of them washed up on the shores of eastern Asia and Australia. Some even made it as far as the western shores of Noth & South America. But some have travelled even further; After a few years at sea they floated north into the Bering Straight where they became trapped in the polar ice cap. The ducks and the ice then migrated east. A few years ago they emerged from the ice in the northern Atlantic. From there they traveled down the eastern Canadian & US coastline before be swept into the gulf stream. They are currently on their way to England, and are expected to land sometime in the summer of 2007.