  The properties of cosmic strings have been investigated in detail for their
implications in early-universe cosmology. Although many variations of the basic
structure have been discovered, with implications for both the microscopic and
macroscopic properties of cosmic strings, the cylindrical symmetry of the
short-distance structure of the string is generally unaffected. In this paper
we describe some mechanisms leading to an asymmetric structure of the string
core, giving the defects a quasi-two-dimensional character. We also begin to
investigate the consequences of this internal structure for the microscopic and
macroscopic physics.
