FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

If not, try benzene and then separately toluene

Hi Peter, not no be obnoxious but for the sake of scientific accuracy (and perhaps to put your mind at rest a bit)...several international agencies ...

Yes, too much fluoride can cause tooth discoloration. At high enough concentrations it will damage the enamel secondary to hypomineralization. Young children are at the greatest risk.

-Tracy

Last time I checked, beauty was still in the eye of the beholder.

"One man's trash is another man's treasure" also comes to mind.

- Tracy

I love my children and my grandchildren and the last thing I would like for them to be is a wage-slave in a third-world mine. I have had the opportunity to travel in my youth, and I have seen many p ...

"Irradiation" means receipt of energy from radioactive emissions/decay. The radioactivity is inherent to the material emitting the energy, it doesn't transfer to the irradiated object. If ...

Thank you Pete and thank you Alfredo, and apologies to Stoned for sounding snitty. Text is often emotionless and I missed the joke.

I think for the new year/decade it's time for me to climb down o ...

I wouldn't handle it without a HazMat suit...

I can't tell whether you are serious or joking. I sincerely hope the latter. Again, where's the health hazard? It's a cobble that stinks like sulfur ...

Once you have let it air out long enough that it does not smell, it should no longer pose a health hazard.

...what type of health hazard currently exists?

Nice write-up on why we shouldn't eat our specimens, crush them and snort the powder, or rub them vigorously on skin (especially injured or broken skin)...with that I'm stepping off my eternal soapbox ...

Hi again Roger,

As an aside, I'd be more skeptical of the tree species than of the locality. I checked with a friend of mine who confirmed that spruces were around in WA during the Miocene epoch ( ...

Curious. "Yakima Ridge West" is awfully precise, almost suggests that the former owner dug it up personally or knew the finder. A quick Google told me there's a peak along the ridge called ...

Hi Roger,

While I can say that, at a glance, it looks like Yakima Canyon (or other Washington State) wood, experience has taught me that appearance is is a highly unreliable identifier for petrifie ...

humans form bezoars too...but not ones made of apatite. :)

Is this discussion still going? I throw my hands (and my malachites) up in the air.

Good thing half my collection is quartz, nobody's screaming about silicosis from handling them. Not yet, anyway ...

Some bonus pictures: I tried to "infect" my son with the mineral passion by taking him to this crystal paradise ... he first seemed to have fun, but became bored rather quick ... maybe too y ...

Hi Casimir. Catching up on things, I see that my thought was already expressed by Alfredo and Peter in an earlier post of yours. No need to pick it up again (and nice to know I'm in good company). ...

Without commenting on photos,"damage free" is a relative term. Completely intact all the way around, nothing showing on presentation face, main crystals intact but some nicks where it was t ...

As an environmental, health and safety expert, skilled in hazardous waste and materials, I will gladly accept any and all minerals that folks would like to divest themselves of -- the more highly crys ...

And Tracy is truly an expert in this field.

Thanks Les for the endorsement...I have to check out the commercial to which you refer. It sounds quite appropriate!

I'm not climbing back on my soapbox. :)

Joseph, happy to provide you with lots of reading material on risk assessment and occupational health/safety, since these are at the heart of threads like ...

Author	Message
Topic: What on Earth is this???
Tracy Replies: 5 Views: 2420	Forum: FOR BEGINNERS: What is it? Where is it from? Posted: Nov 01, 2020 11:16 Subject: Re: What on Earth is this???
Tracy Replies: 5 Views: 2420	If not, try benzene and then separately toluene Hi Peter, not no be obnoxious but for the sake of scientific accuracy (and perhaps to put your mind at rest a bit)...several international agencies ...
Topic: How everyday common items got started
Tracy Replies: 12 Views: 11384	Forum: Off-Topic and Introductions Posted: Mar 17, 2020 09:03 Subject: Re: How everyday common items got started
Tracy Replies: 12 Views: 11384	Yes, too much fluoride can cause tooth discoloration. At high enough concentrations it will damage the enamel secondary to hypomineralization. Young children are at the greatest risk. -Tracy
Topic: Dealing with damage
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 17917	Forum: Off-Topic and Introductions Posted: Mar 03, 2020 13:12 Subject: Re: Dealing with damage
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 17917	Last time I checked, beauty was still in the eye of the beholder. "One man's trash is another man's treasure" also comes to mind. - Tracy
Topic: Ethical mineral collecting
Tracy Replies: 10 Views: 13063	Forum: Off-Topic and Introductions Posted: Mar 01, 2020 12:28 Subject: Re: Ethical mineral collecting
Tracy Replies: 10 Views: 13063	I love my children and my grandchildren and the last thing I would like for them to be is a wage-slave in a third-world mine. I have had the opportunity to travel in my youth, and I have seen many p ...
Topic: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	Forum: What is it? - Where is it from? Posted: Jan 10, 2020 08:45 Subject: Re: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	"Irradiation" means receipt of energy from radioactive emissions/decay. The radioactivity is inherent to the material emitting the energy, it doesn't transfer to the irradiated object. If ...
Topic: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	Forum: What is it? - Where is it from? Posted: Jan 08, 2020 15:21 Subject: Re: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	Thank you Pete and thank you Alfredo, and apologies to Stoned for sounding snitty. Text is often emotionless and I missed the joke. I think for the new year/decade it's time for me to climb down o ...
Topic: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	Forum: What is it? - Where is it from? Posted: Jan 08, 2020 12:36 Subject: Re: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	I wouldn't handle it without a HazMat suit... I can't tell whether you are serious or joking. I sincerely hope the latter. Again, where's the health hazard? It's a cobble that stinks like sulfur ...
Topic: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	Forum: What is it? - Where is it from? Posted: Jan 08, 2020 09:22 Subject: Re: Weird rock. Smells STRONG - need help to ID
Tracy Replies: 17 Views: 8764	Once you have let it air out long enough that it does not smell, it should no longer pose a health hazard. ...what type of health hazard currently exists?
Topic: An Overview of Minerals Toxicity - (32)
Tracy Replies: 7 Views: 16449	Forum: Featured Columns of FMF Posted: Jan 03, 2020 08:19 Subject: Re: An Overview of Minerals Toxicity - (32)
Tracy Replies: 7 Views: 16449	Nice write-up on why we shouldn't eat our specimens, crush them and snort the powder, or rub them vigorously on skin (especially injured or broken skin)...with that I'm stepping off my eternal soapbox ...
Topic: Quartz pseudomorph after Red Spruce
Tracy Replies: 6 Views: 4110	Forum: What is it? - Where is it from? Posted: Dec 02, 2019 11:20 Subject: Re: Quartz pseudomorph after Red Spruce
Tracy Replies: 6 Views: 4110	Hi again Roger, As an aside, I'd be more skeptical of the tree species than of the locality. I checked with a friend of mine who confirmed that spruces were around in WA during the Miocene epoch ( ...
Topic: Quartz pseudomorph after Red Spruce
Tracy Replies: 6 Views: 4110	Forum: What is it? - Where is it from? Posted: Nov 29, 2019 16:41 Subject: Re: Quartz pseudomorph after Red Spruce
Tracy Replies: 6 Views: 4110	Curious. "Yakima Ridge West" is awfully precise, almost suggests that the former owner dug it up personally or knew the finder. A quick Google told me there's a peak along the ridge called ...
Topic: Quartz pseudomorph after Red Spruce
Tracy Replies: 6 Views: 4110	Forum: What is it? - Where is it from? Posted: Nov 29, 2019 16:01 Subject: Re: Quartz pseudomorph after Red Spruce
Tracy Replies: 6 Views: 4110	Hi Roger, While I can say that, at a glance, it looks like Yakima Canyon (or other Washington State) wood, experience has taught me that appearance is is a highly unreliable identifier for petrifie ...
Topic: Apatite related to the appetite of ungulates.
Tracy Replies: 3 Views: 8767	Forum: Minerals and Mineralogy Posted: Nov 08, 2019 12:03 Subject: Re: Apatite related to the appetite of ungulates.
Tracy Replies: 3 Views: 8767	humans form bezoars too...but not ones made of apatite. :)
Topic: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	Forum: Conserving, Preparing and Cleaning Minerals Posted: Nov 03, 2017 20:33 Subject: Re: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	Is this discussion still going? I throw my hands (and my malachites) up in the air. Good thing half my collection is quartz, nobody's screaming about silicosis from handling them. Not yet, anyway ...
Topic: Terra Mineralia (Freiberg, Saxony, Germany)
Tracy Replies: 65 Views: 63595	Forum: Freiberg Museums Posted: Oct 31, 2015 17:35 Subject: Re: Terra Mineralia (Freiberg, Saxony, Germany)
Tracy Replies: 65 Views: 63595	Some bonus pictures: I tried to "infect" my son with the mineral passion by taking him to this crystal paradise ... he first seemed to have fun, but became bored rather quick ... maybe too y ...
Topic: Could Use A Second Opinion: Look At Mineral Pictures
Tracy Replies: 11 Views: 10362	Forum: Off-Topic and Introductions Posted: Sep 03, 2015 20:14 Subject: Re: Could Use A Second Opinion: Look At Mineral Pictures
Tracy Replies: 11 Views: 10362	Hi Casimir. Catching up on things, I see that my thought was already expressed by Alfredo and Peter in an earlier post of yours. No need to pick it up again (and nice to know I'm in good company). ...
Topic: Could Use A Second Opinion: Look At Mineral Pictures
Tracy Replies: 11 Views: 10362	Forum: Off-Topic and Introductions Posted: Sep 03, 2015 07:20 Subject: Re: Could Use A Second Opinion: Look At Mineral Pictures
Tracy Replies: 11 Views: 10362	Without commenting on photos,"damage free" is a relative term. Completely intact all the way around, nothing showing on presentation face, main crystals intact but some nicks where it was t ...
Topic: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	Forum: Conserving, Preparing and Cleaning Minerals Posted: Sep 02, 2015 15:21 Subject: Re: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	As an environmental, health and safety expert, skilled in hazardous waste and materials, I will gladly accept any and all minerals that folks would like to divest themselves of -- the more highly crys ...
Topic: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	Forum: Conserving, Preparing and Cleaning Minerals Posted: Sep 01, 2015 11:25 Subject: Re: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	And Tracy is truly an expert in this field. Thanks Les for the endorsement...I have to check out the commercial to which you refer. It sounds quite appropriate!
Topic: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	Forum: Conserving, Preparing and Cleaning Minerals Posted: Sep 01, 2015 10:27 Subject: Re: Potential Toxicity of Handling Raw Malachite Specimens.
Tracy Replies: 26 Views: 41751	I'm not climbing back on my soapbox. :) Joseph, happy to provide you with lots of reading material on risk assessment and occupational health/safety, since these are at the heart of threads like ...