Posted on 06/11/2021 11:51:04 AM PDT by Red Badger
At 563 carats, the Star of India is the world’s largest gem-quality blue star sapphire, and is approximately 2 billion years old. (Image credit: D. Finnin/Copyright AMNH)
==================================================================
What does the legendary Star of India — a 563-carat star sapphire the size of a golf ball — have in common with a 35-million-year-old petrified redwood slab; a massive cluster of sword-like crystals that looks like it came from "Game of Thrones;" and a 5-ton (4.5-metric ton) stone pillar that can "sing?"
You can see all of them, along with 5,000 other amazing stones, in the newly renovated Mignone Hall of Gems and Minerals at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York City, which is reopening after a four-year closure on Saturday (June 12). There, one-of-a-kind precious gems appear alongside odd-looking rocks — some of which date to billions of years ago — that have been uniquely warped and twisted by extreme temperatures and pressures.
Individually and together, these objects tell a story of the diverse geologic processes that shape minerals on Earth's surface and deep inside our planet, beginning when the world was young and continuing to this day, museum representatives told Live Science.
Related: 13 mysterious and cursed gemstones
The Star of India, which formed about a billion years ago, was discovered in Sri Lanka in the 18th century. It is one of the best-known gems in the world, in part because it was famously and brazenly stolen from AMNH in 1964, along with several more of the museum's prized stones, by a pair of thieves named Jack "Murf the Surf" Murphy and Allan Kuhn, Smithsonian reported in 2014, on the heist's 50th anniversary. (The one-of-a-kind sapphire was recovered and went back on display in 1965).
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
Cheated death—yee haw!
The Fridge God has been kind.
Congratulations!
The floof has elf-ears. Squee!
Good morning.
It was a very quiet night, with no text messages or photos. That’s very unusual!
Did you sleep well?
Will there be more Driving Adventures today? You’re such a brave lady! Two at a time sounds a lot like seven with one blow.
;o]
And how are the Trainees doing? Are they as frightful as Past Trainees?
*tagline*
We’re in the “very careful” phase of driving adventure, before they get overconfident. James will go first this morning, while Vlad mows the back yard. We’re expecting Tom for supper and to observe the full moon, so I need to make a Plan.
Ah. Still, I admire your courage!
My son said he got his Father’s Day card yesterday. I sent it almost two weeks ago. Someone in that Dogpatch post office either doesn’t like him or doesn’t like me.
Is it time for the full moon again? I always feel like I’m in Rivendell when the full moon comes around. “Wasn’t that just last week?”
“Time is a flat circle,” as they say. (I heard it from Jonah Goldberg, but he was quoting someone else.)
Imagine how it was for people in pre-industrial societies. For centuries in, say, Egypt, one generation followed another with the same view, the same annual cycle, the same technology. Your life was basically identical to your great-great-great grandparents’ lives.
Then consider the changes in just your lifetime. It’s no wonder humanity as a whole is going loo-loo.
The good part is, nobody but you and me will ever know.
Cheer up, kitteh. It’s Friday Eve.
Happy Friday Eve, everyone!
I don’t think much has changed, really. Just the way humanity messes things up has changed.
And maybe the speed at which we can do it.
But our tendency to take a good thing and make it rotten is still what it was for all of recorded history.
The changes in just my lifetime compared to my parents’ lifetimes are exponential.
And then I think of the Pioneers...I really want to go to Omaha and see the Pioneer Cemetery there.
Happy Friday Eve!!
And now, I need to go sort pills.
BRB
I agree with that. People are always the same. However, change in the circumstances of most people’s lives has accelerated.
I’ll give you that the opportunity to shout, “Squirrel!” has significantly increased.
Also “coyote,” “skunk,” and “raccoon.” Some species know how to live off us really well.
Time for a driving adventure, speaking of trials our distant ancestors didn’t have. I wouldn’t trade my flush toilet for the avoidance of teen drivers, but our ancestors didn’t realize they were missing the toilet ...
Yesterday. We went from mid 90s to rain, thunder, hail and more rain.
Next week? Snow in July?...
In Northern NV? Could happen! Nestled right there in the Sierras...
Well, crikey.
I finished up The Filing, which means the last of the gathered up stuff, some of which went into a book box marked “Misc.,” and decided if I were going to get to work on the kitchen, I’d better take the next dose of morphine, and make sure the extra half-pill is included.
So I did. I thought. I remember the cup with just a little water, and I remember the snack, but what I DON’T remember is if I actually took the bottle down and took two pills out of it.
So I’ll wait about 30 minutes, and then get up and get to work in the kitchen. It will take me about 30 minutes of being on my feet and bending over to pack a box before I realize whether I actually took the pills or not.
And don’t worry, folks. This short-term memory thing is common with CFIDS, so I’m good. One thing is for sure — I won’t take another dose until the last one in due at bedtime.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.