Max had half a mind to turn and flee for what good could come of engaging beasts of that size near a fire of that strength?

NEWYORKER: Max at Sea

And even though steel and concrete are still the most cost-effective materials, new combinations of these substances provide greater strength and fire retardance, says W. Gene Corley, senior vice president at Construction Technology Laboratories in Skokie, Ill.

FORBES: They Will Rise Again

He said archers were the elite athletes of the Tudor age, requiring great skill and strength to fire up to 12 arrows a minute, holding a heavy bow in one arm.

BBC: Mary Rose skeletons studied by Swansea sports scientists

Lovingly nicknamed Anna Konda (no explanation necessary), the Norwegian bot was assembled using 20 hydraulic motors powered by a regular fire hose, whose 100 bars of pressure give it enough strength to break through walls and even lift a car right up off the ground.

ENGADGET: Anna Konda: the firefighting snakebot

The Distinguished Flying Cross was given to Flt Lt Alexander Duncan for his "consummate professionalism and strength of character while recovering an aircraft and pressing ahead with an air assault in the face of intense fire".

BBC: UK soldiers honoured for bravery

That afternoon, while Private First Class Svehla and his platoon were patrolling a strategic hill to determine enemy strength and positions, they were subjected to intense enemy automatic weapons and small arms fire at the top of the hill.

WHITEHOUSE: President Obama Awards Medal of Honor to Korean War Heroes