I don't know how useful this will be. I think being made from crushed gneiss in a jammed configuration, it should be fairly strong in pure compression. Bending

I don't know how useful this will be. I think being made from crushed gneiss in a jammed configuration, it should be fairly strong in pure compression. Bending stress would probably cause failure quite rapidly, and I think it would steadily weaken with vibrations of sufficient amplitude, especially if it wasn't loaded. That said, I really don't care just how useful or practical this is because it's already so damn cool. That trick with the string is very clever and I would love to see the mathematical model they use for planning its path.