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[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
Although you jest, recent examinations of the wreck suggest that the Titanic sank because faulty rivets popped open.

• Recent discoveries indicate that the loss of the Titanic -- the greatest maritime disaster ever -- may have resulted from nonconforming product, not collision with an iceberg (although the iceberg is still a culprit).
  
  In 1996, Polaris Imaging Inc. explored the Titanic wreckage using low-frequency sonar to scan the damaged hull. Instead of a 300-foot gash, six lateral openings equal to the area of a closet door were found. Studies of steel plates recovered from the ship suggest that the 2,000 plates used in the hull varied in quality.
  
  On Feb. 10, 1998, Tim Foecke of the National Institute of Standards and Technology published a paper concerning a metallurgical study of iron rivets recovered from the ship. His research indicates that the rivets' microstructure may have contributed to their failure on April 14, 1912. Theoretically, the rivets could have popped along the hull's seams where the ship collided against the iceberg.
  
  Foecke found that, unlike standard wrought-iron rivets containing 2 percent slag, the Titanic's rivets had up to 9 percent, which made them brittle. In addition, the streaks of slag in the rivets didn't follow the normal pattern, which also weakened the metal.

The guy's name might make you think this is a joke, but apparently not.

Don't underestimate the effects global warming had on the rivets......