>>> tuples = [
... ('cobra', 'mark i'), ('cobra', 'mark ii'),
... ('sidewinder', 'mark i'), ('sidewinder', 'mark ii'),
... ('viper', 'mark ii'), ('viper', 'mark iii')
... ]
>>> index = pd.MultiIndex.from_tuples(tuples)
>>> values = [[12, 2], [0, 4], [10, 20],
... [1, 4], [7, 1], [16, 36]]
>>> df = pd.DataFrame(values, columns=['max_speed', 'shield'], index=index)
>>> df
max_speed shield
cobra mark i 12 2
mark ii 0 4
sidewinder mark i 10 20
mark ii 1 4
viper mark ii 7 1
mark iii 16 36