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Body Armor Designed from a Snail's Shell

Crysomallon squamiferum, also known as the scaly-foot gastropod, was discovered at the bottom of the Indian Ocean in 1999 at a depth of 2420 metres. Its shell is remarkably strong because it is flexible, allowing it to absorb blows from predators and dissipate their energy, rather than shatter:

For example, the shell's outermost layer consists of strong particles of iron sulphide created in the hydrothermal vents, each around 20 nanometres across, embedded in a soft organic matrix secreted by the snail. This structure is designed to crack when hit, but in a way that absorbs energy.

Cracks spread only by fanning out around the iron sulphide particles. This "microcracking" not only absorbs energy, it also ensures that larger cracks do not form. What's more, the particles of iron sulphide may blunt and deform intruding claws, the study suggests.


Scientists who have studied the creature suggest that it might be possible to duplicate the structure synthetically for armor or pipelines.

Link via Popular Science | Photo: JAMSTEC

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A geologist’s hammer for simultaneously examining eleven different specimens of rock, (or to simultaneously examining eleven different locations of the same rock)

Never grow up ladie’s fit 2xl suggested colour
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Its an early paper shredder. Documents to be shredded were pinned with clothespins to outdoor laundry lines. Then, someone would run down the rows, berserker style, swinging the instrument and shredding docs.

grand central village ladies large
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It's an 18th century toothpick quality control device. Built by Jebediah Yonkermayer who had a bad case of OCD. This tool ensured that all acceptable toothpicks were of the exact same length. Everytime!
Respect the chemistry Men's Large
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That is a guitar pick for 'Inner Core' heavy metal. The heaviest of heavy metal, played by men in six inch rubber suits on Nickel Iron guitars charged with 10,000 volts. The most famous of these extreme metal bands; 'The Daisys' usually suffers one fatality each performance.

T Shirt: Jinkies fellows, look at that! Blue XL
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A fossilized Wile E Coyote sign. On the other side I am sure you'll find some sort of cartoonish expletive, yelp, or free birdseed.

Diagonal in parallel world, navy xl
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Back in the day, we used to have to make those little dotted lines on the movie tickets by hand. Three to four minutes carefully punching those little perforations--then the usher would rip the ticket in half. All that work gone in a split second.
But the head ticket seller at the Odeon Vaudeville and cinema, came up with this handy device. one whack and yer done! How about that, you little monkey suited usher boy! You know where that flashlight fits too!

Troll Security Service 2XL please.
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It's the first version of the nail gun. You swing this contraption like a hammer and whenever a nail sticks into the wood, it comes un-attached from your "nail gun". The only problem was, in order to make the nails properly dislodge from this tool, they had to be loosened. Sometimes, the nails would come off on the up-swing instead, poking their wielder in unwanted locations.

I Heart Science, XL, Black
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It's a nose sweep. In the early 20th Century, chimney sweeps attempted to use their chimney-cleaning experience to develop this new grooming device. This tiny product was inserted into the nasal cavity and rotated until the passage was free of blockage. Early prototypes, like this, were made of metal, besmirching the reputation of the chimney sweeps. Later, softer, models never made it into the production phase because this first version turned off the customers.

I Heart Science, XL, Black
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It's called a Naxe. Swung like an axe, this over-sized hand tool was used as an aerating tool for lumberjacks. Around the same time that blood-letting was popular in the medical sciences, lumberjacks took the same idea of "sap-letting" to the trees. When a tree was damages, they would swing this implement into the tree, puncturing it in many places. The tool successfully released the sap, but it didn't heal the tree at all.

I Heart Science, XL, Black
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It's a Targaryen dragon claw trimmer, fashioned to match the Iron Throne. Soon to be in use again, according to rumor...

Sailor Art Nouveau, 2XL Navy
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Actually, I know what it is, because I found such a thing in my backyard and always wondered what it is. Someday at some kind of renaissance fair, there was a stonemason and he had such a thing and I asked him what it is. It's called a "Krönel" and it is to cut grooves in soft stone like sandstone.
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Neatorama's Ban Hammer.

"Noble Gasses" XL

BTW, this was reused from a previous What Is It Blog. I am surprised it took so long for someone to get the right answer.
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Did you ever play as a kid the game where you try to slap your opponents wrist with a comb to test your agility & speed? It stung when you got hit. This double sided, metal comb can inflict some serious damage & it HURTS!
Han Am, 2x, Grey
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Thor was very proud of Mjolnir, until one day he started giving Bruce Banner a bit too much lip. Suffice to say, that's what's left of Mjolnir after "HULK SMASH!!"

Call Daddy XL - Black
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Now this, this is something special! It's close to the ban hammer, but earlier, and more aggressive. This was used by young women who wanted to make sure that whoever had pissed them off knew who they were beaten with. Each of tips of the spikey parts has a letter that can be changed out to spell different names.

Doctorama 2xl
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It's an axe, for large clumps of tiny trees. In the case that couldn't use their regular axe for their tree chopping needs, they would use this which would not in fact cut them down, but simply bash them into oblivion. Also used for wood chipping.

A prosperous long life, Medium,
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