The tippe top is a top consisting of slightly more than a hemisphere resting on a cylindrical stem (concentric with the rotation axes) which served as a handle. The surprising thing about this top is that upon spinning on the hemispherical portion, it spontaneously turns itself upside-down and begins spinning on the stem. Furthermore, if the tippe top is originally spun in the direction of an arrow painted upon its hemispherical portion, upon flipping, it spins opposite the direction of the arrow (Hart 1959).
References
Braams, C. M. "The Symmetrical Spherical Top." Nature 170, No. 4314.
Braams, C. M. Physica 18, 503, 1952.
Braams, C. M. "The Tippe Top." Amer. J. Phys. 22, 568, 1954.
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Hart, J. B. "Angular Momentum and the Tippe Top." Amer. J. Phys. 27, 189, 1959.
Hugenholz, N. M. Physica 18, 515, 1952.
Isaeva, L. S. J. Appl. Math. Mech. 23, 572, 1959.
Kuypers, F.; Meyer, G. P.; Freihart, J.; Friedl, C.; Gerisch, M.; Kraus, H. J.; and Seidel, K. ZAMM 74, 503, 1994.
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Pliskin, W. A. "The Tippe Top (Topsy-Turvy Top)." Amer. J. Phys. 22, 28-32, 1954.
