  As a model of composite materials, we choose a bundle of fibers with
stochastically distributed breaking thresholds for the individual fibers. the
fibers are assumed to share the load equally and to obey Hookean elasticity
right up to the breaking point. We study the evolution of the fiber breaking
rate at a constant load in excess of the critical load. The analysis shows that
the breaking rate reaches a minimum when the system is half-way from its
complete collapse.
