MPCS Minerals Test
Terms
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- ore
- A mineral or rock that contains a useful substance that can be mined at a profit.
- Name the four characteristics of minerals.
- 1) All minerals are formed by natural processes. 2) Minerals are inorganic 3) Every mineral is an element or compound with a definite chemical composition. 4) Minerals are crystalline solids.
- Where is the Hope Diamond displayed?
- the Smithsonian in Washington, DC
- What percent of the Earth's crust is made of only 8 natural elements?
- 98
- Only a solid can be a mineral, but...
- Not all solids are minerals.
- Which minerals will pick up iron filings?
- lodestone
- Name a mineral with a fracture.
- Quartz
- What group do most of the common rock-forming minerals belong to?
- The silicates group
- How many elements occur naturally in the Earth's crust?
- 90
- Describe minerals that have nonmetallic luster.
- They are dull, pearly, silky, and glassy.
- What 2 elements form the basic building blocks of most of the minerals in Earth's crust and mantle?
- silicon and oxygen
- smelting
- A process in which aluminum oxide powder is converted to moten aluminum.
- How many different minerals are found on Earth?
- About 4,000
- streak
- The color of a mineral when it is in a powdered form.
- crystal system
- A group of crystals that have similiar atomic arrangements and similiar external crystal shapes.
- All solids have what?
- A definite volume and shape.
- What was the largest uncut diamond ever discovered?
- the Cullinan, found in South Africa
- How was the Cullinan diamond cut?
- Into 9 main stones and 96 smaller ones.
- silicate
- Minerals that contain silicon and oxygen and one or more other elements.
- quartz light
- Forms 2 separate rays when it passes through calcite, causing you to see double images.
- fracture
- Minerals that break with uneven, rough, or jagged surfaces.
- luster
- The way a mineral reflects light. (Can be metallic or nonmetallic.)
- What element is obtained from hematite and is used to make frying pans and ships?
- iron
- What is magnetite attracted to?
- magnets
- Describe crystals that form from rapidly cooled magma.
- They are small.
- What happens at magma cools?
- Its atoms lose heat energy, they move closer together, and begin to combine into compounds.
- What 2 minerals are the sources of titanium?
- ilmenite and rutile
- Mohs Scale
- A scale of hardness developed by Austrian scientist, Friedrich Mohs.
- What determines which minerals will form from magma?
- The type and amount of elements present.
- Describe minerals that have a metallic luster.
- They shine like metal.
- specific gravity
- The ratio of a mineral's weight compared with the weight of an equal volume of water.
- What is the largest cut of the Cullinan diamond called?
- Cullinan 1 or Great Star of Africa (It is now part of the British monarchy's crown jewels.)
- magma
- Hot, melted rock material that comes from within the Earth's surface.
- When does a streak test work?
- Only for minerals that are softer than the streak plate.
- What gems are used in electronics and timepieces?
- Quartz (like the watch) ;)
- What is the hardness of a diamond, on the Mohs scale?
- 10 (They can scratch almost any material!)
- What comes from the ore bauxite?
- aluminum
- hardness
- A measure of how easily a mineral can be scratched.
- vein mineral deposits
- Mineral deposits left behind that fill in the open spaces created by the weaknesses in rocks.
- cleavage
- Minerals that break along smooth, flat surfaces.
- What can form when water evaporates and/or when too much of a substance is dissolved in water?
- Crystals
- How do atoms of the different compounds arrange themselves?
- Into orderly, repeating patterns.
- cystalline
- The atoms are arranged in a pattern that is repeated over and over again.
- gems
- Highly prized minerals that are rare and beautiful. (They are also clearer, brighter, and more colorful.)
- crystal
- A solid in which the atoms are arranged in orderly, repeating patterns.
- mineral
- A naturally occurring, inorganic solid with a definite chemical composition and an orderly arrangement of atoms.
- inorganic
- Things not made by life processes.
- What is a durable, lightweight, metallic element?
- titanium
- What forms when magma cools?
- Crystals that can be seen with the human eye.
- What diamond has a reputation for bringing its owner bad luck?
- The Hope Diamond
- Who makes most industrial diamonds and gems?
- Humans
- What gems are used to produce specific types of laser light?
- rubbies
- What are some other properties we study to identify minerals?
- How hard it is, how it breaks, and its color when crushed into powder.
- How do we identify minerals?
- By color and appearance