A diamond will not dissolve in acid. The only thing
that can destroy it is intense heat.
A lump of pure gold the size of a matchbox can be
flattened into a sheet the size of a tennis court.
Absolutely pure gold is so soft that it can be
molded with the hands.
An ounce of gold can be stretched into a wire 50
miles long.
Colored diamonds are caused by impurities such
as nitrogen (yellow), boron (blue). With red
diamonds being due to deformities in the structure
of the stone, and green ones being the result of
irradiation.
Diamond is the hardest naturally occurring
substance, and is also one of the most valuable
natural substances. Diamonds are crystals formed
almost entirely of carbon. Because of its hardness,
the diamond is the most enduring of all
gemstones. They are among the most costly
jewels in the world, partly because they are rare,
Only four important diamond fields have been
found - in Africa, South America, India, and the
Soviet Union.
In 1957, the Shipping port Atomic Power Station in
Pennsylvania, the first nuclear facility to generate
electricity in the United States, went on line. (It
was taken out of service in 1982.)
In 1982, in the first operation of its kind, doctors at
the University of Utah Medical Center implanted a
permanent artificial heart in the chest of retired
dentist Dr. Barney Clark, who lived 112 days with
the device.
Mercury is the only metal that is liquid at room
temperature.
Mineral deposits in caves: The ones growing
upward are stalagmites, the ones growing
downward are stalactites.
Natural gas has no odor. The smell is added
artificially so that leaks can be detected.
Prussic acid, in a crystalline powder called Zyklon
B, was used to kill in Germany's gas chambers.
The gas would paralyze the victim's lungs, causing
them to suffocate.
Sea water, loaded with mineral salts, weighs about
a pound and a half more per cubit foot than fresh
water at the same temperature.
Ten per cent of the salt mined in the world each
year is used to de-ice the roads in America.
The air we breathe is 78% nitrogen, 21.5%
oxygen, .5% argon and other gases.
The Chinese were using aluminum to make things
as early as 300 AD Western civilization didn't
rediscover aluminum until 1827.
The Cullinan Diamond is the largest gem-quality
diamond ever discovered. Found in 1905, the
original 3,100 carats were cut to make jewels for
the British Crown Jewels and the British Royal
family's collection.
The largest gold nugget ever found weighed 172
lbs., 13 oz.
The largest hailstone ever recorded was 17.5
inches in diameter - bigger than a basketball.
The most abundant metal in the Earth's crust is
aluminum.
The only rock that floats in water is pumice.
The three most common elements in the universe
are 1) hydrogen; 2) helium; 3) oxygen.
The United States government keeps its supply of
silver at the US Military Academy at West Point,
NY.
