1.
Anionic Group: Determines the class into which the mineral is categorized by; last part of the chemical formula.
2.
Apatite: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 5
3.
Calcite: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 3
4.
Cleavage: Breaking along preferred directions, planar and smooth.
5.
Color: 1st physical property observed; diagnostic physical property.
6.
Conchoidal Fracture: Has curved lines, rather like a seashell.
7.
Copper Penny: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 3.5
8.
Corundum: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 9
9.
Crystal Form: Set of planar faces, geometrically equivalent.
10.
Diamond: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 10
11.
Effervesces: Minerals in the Carbonate class react with hydrochloric acid by producing bubbles. Metallics will emit rotten egg like odor.
12.
Exsolution: Lines that look like squiggly white lines inside the typically pink/orange mineral. Caused by two types of feldspar that seperated from the magma during crystalization. Potassium feldspars.
13.
Fingernail: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 2.5
14.
Flourite: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 4
15.
Fracture: The way a mineral breaks or cracks. Broken in irregular surfaces due to the fact that bonding on an atomic scale is equal in all directions.
16.
Frederich Mohs: (1773-1839), German mineralogist. Using 10 readily available items developed a hardness scale.
17.
Glass Plate: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 5.5
18.
Gypsum: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 2
19.
Hardness: The resistance of a mineral to being scratched. May be determined by scratching it against a mineral of known hardness.
20.
Luster: Refers to the way a mineral reflects light. Metallic, Nonmetallic, Submetallic.
21.
Magnetism: Diagnostic test to see of a mineral is attracted to a magnet.
22.
Mineral major classes: Native elements
Sulfides
Oxides and Hydroxides
Carbonates
Halides
Sulfates
Phophates
Silicates
23.
Orthoclase: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 6
24.
Porcelain Streak Plate: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 6.5
25.
Quartz: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 7
26.
Specific Gravity: A comparison of the weight of a mineral to the weight of an equal volume of water. Minerals lighter than water will float.
27.
Steel Nail or Knife Blade: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 4.5
28.
Streak: Obtained by scraping the specimen across a peice of unglazed porcelain, aka streak plate - hardness 6.5.
29.
Striations: Plagioclase feldspars. Appear as thin opaque white to translucent white lines seen within the cleavage surface of the mineral. Due to the effect of twinning, oriented intergrowths of multiple crystals.
30.
Talc: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 1
31.
Taste: Halite can be identified by this.
32.
Topaz: Mohs Hardness Scale - Rank 8