Strata Gem

October 2003

 

The President’s Message

 

I was so glad to see so many people at our meeting Tuesday night I do believe we are going to have a great show like we always do. This paper won’t go out till after the show, so the show will be over when you get this.

 

Larry Wilson truck caught on fire after the meeting, so we had a lot of excitement, fire trucks and police. I’m sorry there was so much damage done to his truck. But he says he might be able to repair it.

 

I appreciate all the help from our members, we can’t put a show on without the help of everyone. Thanks for all you do.

 

Good Luck & Good Health to everyone

 

Your President

Ruth Smith

 

Tooele Gem And Mineral

Tooele Senior Citizens Center

September, 9th 2003

 

The meeting was called to order by president Ruth Smith everyone was welcomed, the minutes of the last meeting was read and approved. The treasurer’s report was read and approved. It was reported that Leona Adams daughter has passed away, there will be a grave side service Thursday the eleventh at eleven AM. at the Tooele city cemetery, the club sent Leona a plant. Leona Ruth and Don took a fruit basket in to Lida Chapman, we also sent a fruit basket to Ruth Shinkle she had hip replacement surgery. Janet Nix reported on the show, the advertising is complete, and we have the TV Janet has been able to get all our advertising this year for a lot less than we spent last year. Janet wanted to know who wanted to reserve a showcase, some cases were reserved at the meeting, if you need a show case call Janet Nix and reserve one. Ruth mentioned that our show date was not in the Rocky Mountain Federation newsletter. Janet discussed the work schedule for the show, we think we will have it covered. Jay talked about demonstrators for the schools, and a schedule was worked out. Ruth reminded us to bring our door prizes for the show, Don will be doing the electrical wring starting at seven and all other workers should be their at 9 AM. the vans will be brought down Wednesday. Henry has scheduled the prisoners to help set up and tear down. David Chapman will be our security person for the show.

 

John Semone reported that the National Guard would like to bring out some equipment and set up a display, Ruth stated that she didn’t think we would have room for them, and they would have to ask the Chamber of Commerce for a site to set up. The nominating committee has nominated the following Ruth Smith for president Dennis Chapman for vice-president Larry Wilson for secretary Mary Lynn Titus for treasurer. Ruth recommended that we pay our editor Dennis Chapman a stipend of twenty-five dollars a month it was moved and seconded that we should do this. Dennis won first place for Strata Gem newsletter in the Rocky Mountain Federation.

 

John Semone invited the club members to try out gold prospecting this will be in American Fork Canyon, if anyone is interested in this get with John to set up a date and time, he also invited the members to come to the next meeting of the Gold Prospectors club this will be next Tuesday the 16^th of September at seven PM. at the West Valley Recreation Center. Ruth announced that there is a benefit for a cancer patient that is being held this Saturday at the Tooele city park their will be food music and a silent auction to raise money It was brought up their might be a Federation Show in the Provo area in 2005 if this happens they will be asking for door and wheel prizes we should be thinking about this. Janet Nix won the door prize. Donna Chavez will bring the treats next month. The meeting was adjourned.

 

Minutes submitted by

Larry Wilson

Secretary

 

Boiling Water

Makes Rocks

by Ed Montgomery, American Opal Society

 

Water is a solvent if it is hot enough or acidic enough. In the acid scenario, rainwater meets carbon dioxide, seeps down, encounters sulfides and bingo, sulfuric acid.

 

This liquid roams and dissolves minerals and puts in motion mineral substances to travel and interact with other substances. Malachite is formed this way. The bumps on turquoise indicate dissolved minerals flowing in cool water

 

In the hot water scenario, rainwater seeps into the ground and goes deep enough to be heated by magma or already boiling water Now heated, this water moves back up by a process of steam and condensation - dissolving minerals and re-depositing their constituents along the way. Cooled, the water sinks, encounters again the heat source, moves upward, and repeats the dissolving and depositing. This repetition gives agate its layered look. Amethyst crystals can form once the silica content of the water thins out sufficiently.

 

Perhaps the oldest, certainly for jewelers the most fortuitous, case of raindrop to rock is the formation of opal, in yet another scenario.

 

In a dry desert area, the rainwater goes down through permeable rocks rich in silica. The down going water carries silica to the underground water table, raising it. Being raised, it spreads out to fill fissures and such. The rain stops, the dry desert eventually drops the water table down by evaporation, but the ledges and fissures are left high. and not completely dry. Within these fissures, the silica-rich water gets richer by evaporation. When the silica-to-water ratio is just right, spheres form (bubbles). These spheres are what make opal. With further evaporation the spheres become gelatinous, eventually harden, and like adding ball bearings to a cup, they layer the cavity in an orderly fashion. Water is trapped between the spheres

 

The orderly arrangement of the spheres diffracts light (segments and moves it around). This light movement, in combination with the varying amount of water inclusions, gives the light play of precious opal. Water here acts as a sort of music to the spheres.

 

Yes, water is a solvent. Find enough opal and many of your financial problems will be solved.

 

Reference:            "Gemstones and Their Origins,” by Peter C. Keller

 

From The Opal Express 2/00

Via The Glacial Drifter 5&6 02

Via T-Town Rockhound 7/02

 

Kids Corner

Minerals

 

Unscramble the following letters to reveal some common, or maybe not so common, minerals. Time yourself and see how fast you can do this.

 

AIECCLT___

EIPRTY____

AANELG___

AEGNRT___

EIOUFLTR__

STYMETHA_

OOEIDLMT

AEEIHLPRST

EIOOOCDHRRST________

IACM______

AEIOCCHLRPTY________

EIOUUQRST

UUFLSR____

AAEICHLMT

EILRSV____

AAEIOGNRT

IEEUFNLTW

AIODDNM_

 

Adapted from ESCOMO 10/92, Junior Page, and taken from T-TOWN ROCKHOUND 1/99

Via The Glacial Drifter Feb./Mar. 2002

Answers To Scrambled Mineral Names

Calcite, pyrite, galena, garnet, fluorite, amethyst, dolomite, sphalerite, rhodochrosite, mica, chalcopyrite, turquoise, sulfur, malachite, silver, aragonite, wulfenite, diamond.

 

What is a Mineral?

by Sandy Riekeman – WGMS

 

“A mineral is a naturally occurring homogenous solid, inorganically formed, with a defi­nite chemical composition and an ordered atomic arrangement” (Mason et al, 1968)

 

Silica (chemical name for the mineral quartz and a synonym for silicon dioxide): is a colorless or white, variable, black, purple, or green crystal. It is odorless and will not burn.

 

Silicon compounds are one of the most significant components of the Earth’s crust, comprising 25.7% of the earth’s crust by weight. It was discovered in 1824 by the Swedish chemist Jons Jakob Berzelius. Silicon is a non-metallic, but has several of the metallic characteristics, with an atomic number of 14.

 

Silicon is recovered from an abundant resource: sand. Most pure sand is quartz, silicon dioxide (Si02). Since sand is plentiful, easy to mine and relatively easy to process, it is the primary ore source of silicon. Some silicon is also retrieved from two other silicate minerals, talc and mica. The metamorphic rock, quartzite, is another source (quartzite is metamorphosed sandstone). All combined, world resources of silicon are plentiful and will supply the demand for many decades to come.

 

It is used in the manufacture of glass and refractory materials; ceramics; abrasives; water filtration; it is a component of hydraulic cements; filler in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, paper, insecticides; rubber reinforcing agent, especially for high adhesion to textiles; anti-caking agent in foods; flatting agent in paints; as well as a thermal insulator. Fused silica is used as an ablative material in rocket engines, spacecraft; silica fibers used in reinforced plastics.

 

Silicon is considered a semiconductor. This means that it conducts electricity, but not as well as a metal such as copper or silver. This physical property makes silicon an important commodity in the computer manufacturing business.

 

Silica is in human connective tissues, bones, teeth, skin, eyes, glands and organs. It is a major constituent of collagen, which helps keep our skin elastic, and it helps calcium in maintaining bone strength. Silica dust in mines has caused silicosis or a lung disease in miners. Wetting the area being mined and application of good ventilation has reduced the danger of lung disease. Quartz silica is an occupational CANCER HAZARD - it can cause cancer.

 

Source

http://www mii.org/Minerals/photosil.html

http//www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/chem_ profiles/quartz_silica/basic_qua/html  

 

via Quarry Quips 4/03

 

Minerals Of The

Wrong Feather Don't Flock Together

 

Most rockhounds know that minerals are identified by their physical and chemical properties. Many also know that in important clue in mineral identification is association--certain minerals are often found together. For example, malachite often is found with copper and gold is often found embedded in quartz. Whit many don't realize is that another important identification clue is that many minerals are NOT found together. For example, lazurite, sodalite, and corundum ire never found associated with quartz. As another example, beryl does not occur with dolomite in our local limestones. Well, why not? Doesn't that seem a bit arbitrary? Isn't it never" sort of a strong term to be used by a scientist? It turns out that there ire good chemical reasons why this is so.

 

In some cases, it is simply a matter of a particular rock type not having the needed chemicals to make the minerals. There is no chemical compatibility between dolomite and beryl in limestone. Why not? In order to make beryl, you need to hive beryllium, a chemical present in, at best, trice amounts in most limestones. By analogy, you can't make a chocolate cake with no chocolate--no matter how hard you try. The fact that chemicals tend to segregate in certain places in our earth leads to the commonly observed mineral associations. Certain granites have a lot of beryllium in them--its in element that tends to accumulate in such magmas. Thus beryl is found in granites, along with the typical quartz, feldspar, mica and tourmaline.

 

In other cases the mineral won't form because the proper temperature, pressure or other geochemical conditions (such is acidity) were not achieved in the rock. For example, diamond won't form in a rock, unless certain conditions are met.

 

In yet other cases there is a true chemical incompatibility. It is because of this that quartz is never found with olivine, corundum, sodalite or lazurite. These minerals are just not chemically stable together. Does this mean if you put a piece of corundum next to a piece of quartz that they'll explode? Of course not. The point is that the two minerals will simply not form together in the same environment. If corundum forms, quartz won't form and vice versa. This reason is that corundum forms only in a low silica environment, but quartz only in a high silica one.

 

Let's consider a hot magma. There ire no minerals in the magma--only loose atoms darting around. As the magma cools these atoms begin to bond together to form minerals. Let's suppose this is a low silica magma. There ire lots of other chemicals, such is aluminum, around. The aluminum likes to link to whit silica there is around to form feldspars. But since this is a low silica magma, there isn't enough to go around. The extra aluminum his to go somewhere, so, when it gets concentrated enough it forms corundum. Now, let's suppose this is a high silica magma. All this aluminum finds silica and mikes feldspar. Now there i.e. silica left over, so quartz eventually forms. In the first case, you have a rock formed consisting of feldspar and corundum, in the second case you hive a rock formed consisting of feldspar and quartz. You can never get a rock with quartz and corundum forming together in it. There are similar relationships between quartz and sodalite, olivine and several other minerals.

 

So if someone offers you a specimen of corundum crystals embedded in quartz, start looking for the glue!

 

by Dr. Bill Cordua, Univ. Wisconsin-River Falls, in Leaverite News, via The Glacial Drifter, 10/02. From www.uwrf.edu/.=wc0l

via The RockCollector 2/03

 

Did You Know?

 

There is a stone that can tell you the weather. It is called Lepidolite, a.k.a. the “weather stone”, and can tell us whether the weather will be rainy or fair. It is one of the Lithia minerals and is usually a pale gray-blue color, at least on fair days. If this Lepidolite specimen is beside an open window, it will turn a pink-lick shade, if a rainy period threatens. Then when the air clears, it will change back to gray-blue again.

 

Rock rollers, 3/97 via Rock Chip Reporter 10/00

Via Golden Spike News 2/02

 

Scholarship Foundation Resolution

from Dee Holland, Scholarship Foundation President-elect

 

The sentencing phase of the trial against ban McClennan, former Treasurer of the AFMS Scholarship Foundation is now over and the fund can continue with a clean slate. Dan was sen­tenced on Wednesday August 20, 2003 to one year and a day in federal prison for his embezzle­ment of funds from the Scholarship Foundation. He was told to pay restitution in the amount of $72,000 which is the amount taken that falls within the five year statute of limitation.

 

Sincere thanks to Lewis Elrod and Arlene Burkhalter for their continued efforts in this case. Arlene believes that the judge might have reduced the sentence further if it had not been for the eloquent testimony of Lewis Elrod who spoke before the judge telling him that tan had embezzled the money from scholarships for stu­dents and that the scholarship fund was having a hard time now coming up with the money needed for the students.

 

If it had not been for Arlene who worked closely with the banks and brokerage firms we might not have been able to get the documenta­tion needed to prosecute. With the background as an accountant that Jon Spunaugle has, he was able to get a handle on what monies had been taken. Three cheers for these hardworking vol­unteers, who spent many hours and days on this unpleasant task.

 

Now we must go forward and work to build up the scholarship foundation so we may help more students. Were able to continue awarding two scholarships of $2,000 each for two years to students in the participating Federations, but with the interest from investments being down, plus our loss of income from the embezzled funds, we need to contribute more than ever. This is where all of you come in. We need your continuing sup­port in making this fund GROW.

 

Be assured that something like this will never happen again. Both the Scholarship Foundation and AFMS have revised their Bylaws to ensure more safeguards are in place.

 

And speaking of contributions and safeguards, the Northwest Intermountain Faceters Guild held their annual stone auction this summer. They voted to donate a portion of the proceeds to pay for the bonding of the Scholarship Foundation for this com­ing year. The extra money was turned over to be placed in the Scholarship restricted funds so it can begin to draw interest for the future.

 

Thanks to Arlene Burkhalter for staying on as Treasurer and Ruth Bailey as Secretary for and knowledge to forge ahead.

 

Contributions to the Scholarship Foundation are always welcomed and encouraged. Send all contributions to your regional Scholarship Foun­dation Coordinator.

 

From AFMS Newsletter 10/03

 

Jade

 

A diamond will scratch and easily cut jade, but a jade hammer can, in turn, crush a diamond to powder. It is the cross matted structure of jade that makes it nearly impossible to break if you drop a solid jade cabochon on cement. The Chinese used jade for anvils, just as we use steel. Sometimes the same anvil was used for several generations.

 

via PGGS Petrograph,

via The Glacial Drifter 1/02 & others

 

Smile a while

 

Two men are waiting in line at the Pearly Gates when Saint Peter asks them what they did on Earth.

 

The first one says: “I was a taxi driver in New York City.”

 

The second one says: “I was a minister for 40 years.”

 

St Peter gives the taxi driver a golden staff and the minister a wooden staff to use in heaven.

 

Seeing the perplexed look on the holy man’s face, Saint Peter says. “Here we work on results. You preached and people slept; he drove and people prayed.”

 

Fort Hamilton Gems via Dusty Rocks 10/01

Via Golden Spike News 12/01

 

Inca Indians Used Solar Power To Cut Stones

 

An Earth Science professor who has visited and done research at several sites in Peru, where the Incas lived 1000 years ago, believes he has the answer to a mystery that has puzzled archeologists for years. “The Incas used solar power, not manpower, to cut the huge stones that they used to build their massive cities, Said Dr. Ivan Watkins of St. Cloud University in Minnesota.

 

Watkins said his theory supercedes all previous theories because they do not account for all the evidence. He believes that is enough circumstantial evidence in the preserved Inca traditions to support his idea. The sun was important to the Incas and was venerated in an annual festival, he noted. Some cultural records indicate that the Indians renewed an eternal flame by lighting a torch with the sun’s rays reflected from a priest’s bracelet. “There is no doubt in my mind that they knew how to do it; everything points to it,” Watkins said.

 

Watkins believes the Incas used gold dish-shaped or parabolic reflectors to concentrate the sun’s energy to carve rocks with a beam of light. “They had the technology 1000 years ago,” he said. “Every Inca temple contained a golden dish.”

 

Watkins believes the dishes were probably cut up and destroyed when the Spanish Conquistadors conquered the Incas in the 15^th century. Additional evidence to support the theory can be found in the Gold Museum of Bogotá, Columbia. Four small dishes appear to have the shape needed to focus the sun’s rays. A parabolic dish looks like a TV satellite dish. “When sunlight is reflected on parabola, the focused energy can be directed moving the dish,” Watkins explained.

 

“The dishes used by the Incas were ‘two men across.’ That’s pretty big dish and it could burn a lot-it would be large enough to cut rock easily. The huge dish allowed the Incas to cut the rocks in a precise fashion. The stone blocks are so closely matched that a knife blade cannot be inserted between them,” he noted. Previously, scientists have theorized the massive stones of Inca cities were hammered with other stones; broken with wooden or metal wedges; etched with organic acids or sanded with grains of sand and water. But Watkins noted that some of the rocks are carved with sharp inside corners and that there are clean edges of cut rock near stress fractures in the rocks. Crude stone hammers could not be used to achieve those kinds of results. Watkins said his theory evolved after he noticed a glaze on the wall of a cave that had Inca stonework in it. “In order to get a glaze what you have to do is heat the rock, fire it up. What happened in this cave is that they had heated the rock quite severely.”

 

The Inca villages were rediscovered in 1911. The capital of the Inca Empire was near the Peruvian town of Cuzco, but the most famous of the sites is Machu Pichu in the mountains of south-central Peru.

 

The professor conducted experiments on his theory at the federal Bureau of Mines in the twin Cities and found that rock could be cut with a 100-watt laser. A huge dish, like those Watkins believes were used, could generate 6000 watts of energy.

 

Watkins has been awarded a patent for a solar dish similar to those he believes the Incas used. He plans to test the dish on red granite in the St. Cloud area, since it is the same (type) as that found in the mountains of Peru. He plans to take a sabbatical next year to detail his dish theory and three other theories. He also hopes to learn how the Incas transported the rocks from the quarries, miles away to the village sites.

                                                                                                            ViSMS MATRIX

 

From The Petrified Log Mar & Apr 2001

Via OSAGE HILLS GEMS 3/02

Don’t Lose Your Head To Gain A Minute You Need Your Head Your Brains Are In It * Burma Shave *

 

Drove Too Long Driver Snoozing What Happened Next Is Not Amusing * Burma Shave *

 

Brother Speeder Let’s Rehearse All Together Good Morning Nurse * Burma Shave *

 

Via The Rock Bag May 2003