Thread by @mikamckinnon

SIGH. I still can’t believe I have to say nice things about #Quartz this year.

https://twitter.com/mineralcup/status/1172799258329829376

#Quartz starts with a Q, so you can flip to the end of the stack to find it instead of wading around in the endless C’s hunting for #Chalcopyrite

#Quartz has such inexplicably devoted fans that @MineralCup was invented to make them feel better.

#Chalcopyrite doesn’t inspire that steadfast devotion in the face of years of defeat by other minerals.

https://twitter.com/mineralcup/status/1172816336201887745

#Quartz is everywhere and looks like everything, so if you go outside, pick up a rock, and exclaim, “Look, it’s quartz!” you’re probably right.

Ignore that #chalcopyrite has actual distinct diagnostic features that can reassure you that you’ve identified it correctly.

The best thing about #quartz is that if you hit it hard enough, sometimes you can make it glow.

That the actual practicalities of this involve very long safety lists and aren’t very doable is irrelevant.

#Quartz: it’s as deceptive and easily-confused with every other mineral as #Apatite, but without the neat biochemical processes or opportunity for puns! #MinCup2019

#Quartz: because it’s literally everywhere on the crust of the Earth and you can’t avoid it no matter how hard you try, so you may as well surrender and accept it.

That you actually have a choice about spending time with #Chalcopyrite shouldn’t influence your affections at all.

How to ID #Quartz
1. Any colour
2. Shiny, except when it’s not
3. Clear, except when it’s not
4. Hard, but not too hard
5. Extremely distinctive dual-terminated hexagonal crystals ...if it‘s in ideal conditions.

Look, it’s unmistakable using expensive, finicky specialized tools.