Prince Rupert's Drops (or Rupert's Balls) are a glass curiosity created by dripping hot molten glass into cold water. The glass cools into a tadpole-shaped droplet with a long, thin, tail. The water cools the molten glass in such a way that it becomes tempered glass. In fact, the head of the drop can be hit with a hammer without breaking, but the drops disintegrate explosively if the tails are scratched. The internal stress within these objects can be demonstrated through the use of polarizing filters. The physics definition of a glass is a uniform amorphous solid material, usually produced when a suitably viscous molten material cools very rapidly, thereby not giving enough time for a regular crystal lattice to form. ... The physics definition of a glass is a uniform amorphous solid material, usually produced when a suitably viscous molten material cools very rapidly, thereby not giving enough time for a regular crystal lattice to form. ... Drinking water This article focuses on water as we experience it every day. ... Ten-day-old tadpoles A tadpole (also known as a pollywog) is a larval frog, toad, salamander, or newt. ... See also drop (telecommunication). ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... For the sport, see Hammer throw. ... This article treats polarization in electrodynamics. ... The term filter may refer to: Filter (chemistry) — a device to separate mixtures, e. ...

The drops were supposedly invented by Prince Rupert of the Rhine, grandon of James I and the nephew of Charles I of England. Legend has it that the king would often used the drops as a practical joke in his court. He would give a drop to a courtier and then break the tail, causing a small explosion in the hand of the surprised person. for the city in British Columbia, see Prince Rupert, British Columbia Prince Rupert of the Rhine (1619-1682), soldier and inventor, was a younger son of Frederick V, Elector Palatine and Elizabeth Stuart, and the nephew of King Charles I of England. ... See James VI of Scotland and I of England James I of Scotland James I of Aragon James I of Sicily James I of Cyprus This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Charles I ( 19 November 1600– 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland and Ireland from 27 March 1625, until his death. ... This article is about courts of law. ...

As these were invented in the Netherlands, the French term for these creations is larme Batavique. They are thought by some to be an early precursor of bulletproof glass. The Netherlands (Dutch: Nederland) is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Dutch: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden). ... French (français, langue française) is one of the most important Romance languages, outnumbered in speakers only by Spanish and Portuguese. ... Bulletproof glass is usually transparent material, such as polycarbonate thermoplastic (i. ...

External links

• Instructions for making Prince Rupert's drops (http://www.dbooth.net/mhs/ap/rupertsdrops.html), from a Middletown High School chemistry teacher's personal website
• Prince Rupert's Drops in a physics class (http://faraday.physics.uiowa.edu/mech/1R20.70.htm), from a University of Iowa website
• Video showing the making and the breaking of Prince Rupert's Drops from the Museum of Glass (http://www.museumofglass.org/VHS/video/rupert_drop_demo_bb.html)