The Density of Space

Scientists Seek Space Diamonds - JohnOneFive @ Truemors

It doesn't surprise me one bit that there are more diamonds in space than there are on Earth. The extreme pressures needed to create the crystalline structures of a diamond are far more common in certain regions of the cosmos than they are on this planet. Other planets and asteroids may play host to a whole range of minerals, metals and materials that are rare on this planet due to its relative lack of large pressure regions. It's even surmised that the center of Jupiter holds a core of metallic hydrogen--that's hydrogen that has not only been pressurized to phase change into a solid but form the crystalline structure of a metal as well. I wonder though, since there are diamonds on this planet that are harder than other diamonds (albeit not by much) if these diamonds dense cosmic regions are significantly harder than Earth-created ones?

A Diamond for Vandels

Weaponized Diamond Engagement Ring - Cory Doctorow @ BoingBoing

Now that is cool, but not surprising considering how hard a diamond is. But what I think people don't realize that if you hit a diamond in just the right way, you can shatter it. So while this might look cool, it's impractical and actually dangerous to the stone. There's a reason why the old European cuts have a dot in the center when you look at the stone from the very top; people were afraid of breaking that point, the culet, off.