E
ARTH’S CRUST AND
OCEANS ARE THE SOURCE
OF A WIDE VARIETY OF
useful and essential minerals. Most
people are familiar with the common
uses of many basic metals, including
aluminum in beverage cans, copper in
electrical wiring, and gold and silver in
jewelry. But some people are not aware
that pencil lead contains the greasyfeeling mineral graphite and that bath
powders and many cosmetics contain
the mineral talc. Moreover, many do
not know that drill bits impregnated
with diamonds are employed by
dentists to drill through tooth enamel,
or that the common mineral quartz is
the source of silicon for computer
chips. In fact, practically every
manufactured product contains
materials obtained from minerals.
F O C U S O N C O N C E P T S
To assist you in learning
the important concepts in this
chapter, focus on the following
questions:
What are minerals, and how are
they different from rocks?
What are the smallest particles
of matter?
How do atoms bond?
How do isotopes of the same
element vary, and why are some
isotopes radioactive?
What are some of the physical
and chemical properties of
minerals? How can these
properties distinguish one
mineral from another?
What are the eight elements that
make up most of Earth’s
continental crust?
What is the most abundant
mineral group? What do all
minerals within this group have
in common?
When is the term ore used with
reference to a mineral? What are
the common ores of iron and
lead?
Crystals of elbaite, a colorful member of the tournaline
group. The white mineral, albite, is a member of the
plagioclase feldspar group. (Photo by Jeffrey Scovil)