A ductile steel shows its strength: Many industrial applications require materials to have high strength while remaining pliable, or ductile. However, the microstructure that increases strength tends to reduce ductility. He et al. used a processing mechanism to create a “forest” of line defects in manganese steel. This deformed and partitioned steel was produced by cold-rolling and low-temperature annealing and contained a dislocation network that improved both strength and ductility. Science , this issue p. 1029

Strong and tough steel: Ultrahard materials often do not have similarly impressive fracture toughness. Liu et al. discovered a processing route for medium manganese steel alloy in which ultrahigh strength accompanies high fracture toughness. The steel relies on both transformation-induced plasticity and delamination toughening to boost the fracture properties. The steel is composed of less expensive elements, making it a potentially inexpensive material attractive for structural applications. Science , this issue p. 1347