Logging on for the first time in forever to share exciting work done by my husband and his colleagues. 18 million year old enamel proteins from the Turkana Basin, Kenya.
I didn’t have anything to do with it, but it’s very cool.
Elizabeth V
@Geolizzy
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Geologist with a specialty in ore deposits. Interested in mining, ore deposits exploration, climate change, and pretty much all of geology. Also interested in fossils and paleoproteomics.
Today’s matchup between calcite and mercury is a difficult one for me. Not because I can’t choose which is my favorite (I love calcite), but because there a part of me that just wants to vote for mercury because it upsets so many people that mercury is on a mineral list 😈 #MinCup23 https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/campaigns/campaigns/round-2-match-5
Vote in Round 2 Match 5 — Mineral Cup
It’s a legendary pair of minerals with a unique set of properties: quicksilver Mercury that tests the definition of a mineral, and double-refracting effervescent Calcite. One is found within thermometers, the other can be used to track the temperatures of ancient seas. Which will rise to the occasio
I love both topaz and corundum, but today I’m rooting for corundum because I’ve always loved rubies and sapphires more and my husband has given me two pieces of jewelry with sapphires, including my engagement ring https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/campaigns/campaigns/round-2-match-4
Vote in Round 2 Match 4 — Mineral Cup
If you thought last round featured some hard battles, we were just getting started! But being the standard for Mohs Hardness only scratches the surface of the ways these gorgeous gems are valued every day. Who wins in the battle of beauty and brawn between Topaz (Mohs 8) and Corundum (Mohs 9)?
Having a difficult time deciding today for #MinCup23. It’s my favorite teal copper mineral vs my favorite goth girly, Vivian. I’ll probably go with dioptase because of my attachment to my little dioptase friend I found in my car, but I won’t be mad no matter which wins. https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/campaigns/round-2-match-3
Everyone likes showing photos of clear quartz, but I love #quartz because it can be purple (and other colors)! Just look at this amethyst! Stibnite is cool looking, but it isn’t this lovely color. #MinCup23 https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/campaigns/round-2-match-2
Photos from Mindat.org
Kaolinite gets my vote today for #MinCup23. It’s used to make paper, ceramics, paint, and lots of other things. In some places in the US you can go into a convenience store and buy a bag to help with tummy troubles. Go team anti-diarrheal!
Providence Canyon in Lumpkin, GA (USA) was formed by bad farming practices in the 1800s. It’s 150 feet deep and one of the exposed formations contains lenses of kaolin. It was one of my favorite geology field trips!
Easy vote for me today. My choice is the absolutely gorgeous pink #rhodochrosite which I fell in love with as soon as I saw samples from the Sweet Home Mine in Colorado. #MinCup23 https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/round-1-match-16
Photo from Mindat.org
Tough choice today for #MinCup23 Both are gorgeous and no matter which one wins, it’s a blue mineral! My choice for today is trusty index mineral #kyanite which always gives me a clue to how a rock was formed. And it has different hardness depending on which direction you scratch it (insert your own naughty joke about hardness here). https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/round-1-match-15
Photo found on Mindat.org so check out more photos there
Oops, forgot the link to vote https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/round-1-match-14
Round 1 Match 14 — Mineral Cup
This match is all about friendship: Arsenuranospathite flirts with danger by wrapping radioactive uranium, poisonous arsenic, and touchy fluorine in its watery embrace, while tall, dark, and opaque Neptunite lurks in the shadows with its BFF, 2019 MinCup contender Benitoite. Do you prefer a glowing
I’m going with #Neptunite for today’s #MinCup23 matchup. It has beautiful crystals, is friends with Benitoite, and it’s named after the Roman god of the sea because of its close association with aegerine (named after the Norse god of the sea) at its type locality.
Photo from Mindat and by Fabre Minerals (www.fabreminerals.com)
