Budući da je tema ovog pitanja vrlo ąiroka u odgovoru dajem odabir iz nekoliko članaka iz Enciklopedije Britannice, a to če biti (pod uvjetom da znate engleski) dovoljno za viąe od jednog referata. Ipak htio bih naglasiti da smisao ove diskusijske liste nebi smio biti rjeąavanje vasih domaćih zadaća.

U zadnje vrijeme su mi neka takva pitanja doąla na moju privatnu adresu umjesto na adresu diskusijske liste kamo trebaju biti poslana.

Takodjer pitanja se često ąalju isti dan kad se ľeli i odgovor ąto nije uredu, jer svi mi imamo i drugih poslova osim odgovaranja na pitanja.

Ako ľelite kvalitetne odgovore, a oni vam trebaju do određjenog roka tada pitanje postavite barem 2 dana prije roka. Pri tome treba uzeti u obzir da mnogi od nas pitanja mogu pročitati samo s kompjutera na poslu.

Naka vas ova blaga kritika ne obeshrabri da i dalje postavljate pitanja, jer ja ću uvijek (bez obzira s kojim ste ciljem pitanje postavili) nastojati dati ąto je moguče bolji odgovor.

Gemstone, any of various minerals highly prized for beauty, durability, and rarity. A few noncrystalline materials of organic origin (e.g., pearl, red coral, and amber) also are classified as gemstones. Gemstones have attracted humankind since ancient times, and have long been used for jewelry. The prime requisite for a gem is that it must be beautiful. The beauty may lie in colour or lack of colour; in the latter case, extreme limpidity and "fire" may provide the attraction. Iridescence, opalescence, asterism (the exhibition of a star-shaped figure in reflected light), chatoyance (the exhibition of a changeable lustre and a narrow, undulating band of white light), pattern, and lustre are other features that may make a gemstone beautiful. A gem must also be durable, if the stone is to retain the polish applied to it and withstand the wear and tear of constant handling. In addition to their use as jewelry, gems were regarded by many civilizations as miraculous and endowed with mysterious powers. Different stones were endowed with different and sometimes overlapping attributes; the diamond, for instance, was thought to give its wearer strength in battle and to protect him against ghosts and magic. Vestiges of such beliefs persist in the modern practice of wearing a birthstone. [Table] Of the more than 2,000 identified natural minerals, fewer than 100 are used as gemstones and only 16 have achieved importance. These are beryl, chrysoberyl, corundum, diamond, feldspar, garnet, jade, lazurite, olivine, opal, quartz, spinel, topaz, tourmaline, turquoise, and zircon. Some of these minerals provide more than one type of gem; beryl, for example, provides emeralds and aquamarines, while corundum provides rubies and sapphires. In virtually all cases, the minerals have to be cut and polished for use in jewelry. Except for diamond, which presents special problems because of its very great hardness (see diamond cutting), gemstones are cut and polished in any of three ways. Agate, opal, jasper, onyx, chalcedony (all with a Mohs hardness of 7 or less) may be tumbled; that is, they may be placed in a cylinder with abrasive grit and water and the cylinder rotated about its long axis. The stones become polished but are irregular in shape. Second, the same kinds of gemstones may instead be cut en cabochon (i.e., with a rounded upper surface and a flat underside) and polished on water- or motor-driven sandstone wheels. Third, gemstones with Mohs hardness of more than 7 may be cut with a carborundum saw and then mounted in a holder (dop) and pressed against a lathe that can be made to revolve with extreme rapidity. The lathe carries a point or small disk of soft iron, which can vary in diameter from that of a pinhead to a quarter of an inch. The face of the disk is charged with carborundum grit, diamond dust, or other abrasives, along with oil. Another tool used to grind facets is the dental engine, which has greater flexibility and sensitiveness than the lathe. The facets are ground onto the stone using these tools and then are polished as described above. Of decisive significance for the modern treatment of gemstones was the kind of cutting known as faceting, which produces brilliance by the refraction and reflection of light. Until the late European Middle Ages, gems of all kinds were simply cut either en cabochon or, especially for purposes of incrustation, into flat platelets. The first attempts at cutting and faceting were aimed at improving the appearance of stones by covering natural flaws. Proper cutting depends on a detailed knowledge of the crystal structure of a stone, however. Moreover, it was only in the 15th century that the abrasive property of diamond was discovered and used (nothing else will cut diamond). After this discovery, the art of cutting and polishing diamonds and other gems was developed, probably in France and The Netherlands first. The rose cut was developed in the 17th century, and the brilliant cut, now the general favourite for diamonds, is said to have been used for the first time about 1700. In modern gem cutting, the cabochon method continues to be used for opaque, translucent, and some transparent stones, such as opal, carbuncle, and so on; but for most transparent gems (especially diamonds, sapphires, rubies, and emeralds), faceted cutting is almost always employed. In this method, numerous facets, geometrically disposed to bring out the beauty of light and colour to the best advantage, are cut. This is done at the sacrifice of material, often to the extent of half the stone or more, but the value of the gem is greatly increased. The four most common faceted forms are the brilliant cut, the step cut, the drop cut, and the rose cut. In addition to unfaceted stones being cabochon cut, some are engraved. High-speed, diamond-tipped cutting tools are used. The stone is hand-held against the tool, with the shape, symmetry, size, and depth of cut being determined by eye. Gemstones can also be made by cementing several smaller stones together to create one large jewel. See assembled gem. In some cases, the colour of gemstones is also enhanced. This is accomplished by any of three methods: heating under controlled conditions, exposure to X rays or radium, or the application of pigment or coloured foil to the pavilion (base) facets. In recent times various kinds of synthetic gems, including rubies, sapphires, and emeralds, have been produced. Two methods of fabrication are currently employed, one involving crystal growth from solution and the other crystal growth from melts. diamond, a mineral composed of pure carbon. It is the hardest naturally occurring substance known; it is also the most popular gemstone. Because of their extreme hardness, diamonds have a number of important industrial applications. The hardness, brilliance, and sparkle of diamonds make them unsurpassed as gems. In the symbolism of gemstones, the diamond represents steadfast love and is the birthstone for April. Diamond stones are weighed in carats (1 carat = 200 milligrams) and in points (1 point = 0.01 carat). In addition to gem-quality stones, several varieties of industrial diamonds occur, and synthetic diamonds have been produced on a commercial scale since 1960. See also industrial diamond; synthetic diamond. Diamonds are found in three types of deposits: alluvial gravels, glacial tills, and kimberlite pipes. Only in kimberlite pipes, such as those at Kimberley, S.Af., are they present in the original rock in which they were formed, probably lying at depths of more than about 75 miles (120 km). Diamonds found in alluvial and glacial gravels must have been released by fluvial or glacial erosion of the kimberlite matrix and then redeposited in rivers or in glacial till. Diamonds vary from colourless to black, and they may be transparent, translucent, or opaque. Most diamonds used as gems are transparent and colourless or nearly so. Colourless or pale blue stones are most valued, but these are rare; most gem diamonds are tinged with yellow. A "fancy" diamond has a distinct body colour; red, blue, and green are rarest, and orange, violet, yellow, and yellowish green more common. Most industrial diamonds are gray or brown and are translucent or opaque, but better-quality industrial stones grade imperceptibly into poor quality gems. The colour of diamonds may be changed by exposure to intense radiation (as released in a nuclear reactor or by a particle accelerator) or by heat treatment. A very high refractive power gives the diamond its extraordinary brilliance. A properly cut diamond will return a greater amount of light to the eye of the observer than will a gem of lesser refractive power and will thus appear more brilliant. The high dispersion gives diamonds their fire, which is caused by the separation of white light into the colours of the spectrum as it passes through the stone. The scratch hardness of diamond is assigned the value of 10 on the Mohs scale of hardness; corundum, the mineral next to diamond in hardness, is rated as 9. Actually, diamond is very much harder than corundum; if the Mohs scale were linear, diamond's value would be about 42. The hardness of a diamond varies significantly in different directions, causing cutting and polishing of some faces to be easier than others. For detailed physical properties, see native element (table). In the atomic structure of diamond, as determined by X-ray diffraction techniques, each carbon atom is linked to four equidistant neighbours throughout the crystal. This close-knit, dense, strongly bonded crystal structure yields diamond properties that differ greatly from those of graphite, native carbon's other form. ruby, gemstone composed of transparent red corundum (q.v.), a mineral form of aluminum oxide, Al2O3. Its colour varies from deep cochineal to pale rose red, in some cases with a tinge of purple; the most valued is a pigeon-blood red. The red colour arises from the replacement of a small number of aluminum atoms by chromium atoms (1 in 5,000). High refractivity is characteristic; when cut and polished, ruby is a brilliant stone, but, because it has weak dispersion, it lacks fire. On exposure to high temperature, ruby becomes green but regains its original colour upon cooling. When subjected to radiant discharge, ruby phosphoresces with a vivid red glow. Ruby is a mineral of very limited distribution. Its best known localities are in north-central Myanmar (Burma), northeast of Mandalay, where the gemstone occurs in bands of crystalline limestone associated with granitic and gneissic rocks. Rubies have been found at several localities in Thailand, in gravels with sapphires and spinels; they are generally of dark colour, often inclining to a deep reddish brown. Rubies found in the gem gravels of Sri Lanka are not usually of such good colour as the Myanmar stones. The stone is sometimes called oriental ruby to distinguish it from other red gems. Thus Cape rubies, Australian rubies, and Arizona rubies are fine garnets; Siberian ruby is rubellite, red tourmaline; and balas ruby is ruby spinel. Although the word ruby is used in the English translation of the Old Testament, it is improbable that ruby was known to the ancient Hebrews. Rubies have been produced artificially with much success. At one time it was the practice to fuse together small fragments of the natural stone. This method gave way to the flame-fusion (Verneuil) process of forming artificial ruby from purified ammonia alum and small amounts of chrome alum. Synthetic ruby containing 2.5 percent chromic oxide has the prized pigeon-blood red colour. Synthetic rubies possess the physical characteristics of natural corundum but may generally be distinguished by microscopic bubbles and striae. sapphire, transparent to translucent, natural or synthetic variety of corundum (q.v.; aluminum oxide, Al2O3) that has been highly prized as a gemstone since about 800 BC. Its colour is due mainly to the presence of small amounts of iron and titanium and normally ranges from a very pale blue to deep indigo, with the most valued a medium-deep cornflower blue. Colourless, gray, yellow, pale pink, orange, green, violet, and brown varieties of gem corundum also are known as sapphire; red varieties are called ruby. Much sapphire is unevenly coloured; it is also dichroic; that is, the colour of most varieties changes with the direction of view. Alexandrite sapphire appears blue in daylight and reddish or violet in artificial illumination, somewhat like true alexandrite. Careful heating and cooling under various conditions can induce permanent colour changes in sapphire (e.g., from yellow to colourless or greenish blue and from violet to pink). Other colour changes result from exposure to intense radiation. Most sapphire contains abundant microscopic inclusions; reflections from these yield a faint whitish sheen, known as silk. Tiny, regularly arranged mineral inclusions (commonly rutile) and elongate cavities are responsible for the asterism shown by star sapphire. Sapphire is a primary constituent of many igneous rocks, especially syenites, pegmatites, and various basic (silica-poor) types; it also occurs in schists and metamorphosed carbonate rocks. Most commercial production has come from alluvial gravels and other placer deposits, where the sapphire commonly is associated with ruby and other gem minerals. The best known sources, including some lode deposits, are in Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Australia (Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales), India, Madagascar, Russia, South Africa, and the United States (Montana, North Carolina). Most transparent sapphire is faceted, generally in the brilliant style. Such gems have considerable sparkle, but they exhibit little fire because of their modest dispersion (separation of light into its component colours). Skillful cutting of unevenly coloured stones yields gems with a uniform appearance derived from only small portions of relatively deep colour. Star sapphire and other nontransparent varieties are cut en cabochon (in convex form, highly polished) rather than faceted. Despite its great hardness, some sapphire is carved or engraved, especially in the Orient. Synthetic sapphire has been produced commercially since 1902. Clear, sound material is manufactured in the form of carrot-shaped boules and slender rods. Much is consumed by the jewelry trade, but most synthetic material is used for the manufacture of jewel bearings, gauges, dies, phonograph-needle points, thread guides, and other specialized components; some also is used as a high-grade abrasive. Synthetic star sapphire is made with luminous stars that are more regular and distinct than those in most natural stones; the asterism is obtained through controlled exsolution of impurities. emerald, grass-green variety of beryl (mineral composed of beryllium aluminum silicate, Be3Al2(SiO3)6, a commercial source of beryllium.) that is highly valued as a gemstone. The name comes indirectly from the Greek smaragdos, a name that seems to have been given to a number of stones having little in common except a green colour; Pliny's smaragdus undoubtedly included several distinct species. Much confusion has arisen with respect to the "emerald" of the Scriptures: the Hebrew word rendered emerald in the Authorized Version probably meant carbuncle, a garnet. The ancients appear to have obtained emeralds from Upper Egypt, where it is said to have been worked as early as 2000 BC. Greek miners were working the mines in the time of Alexander the Great, and later the mines yielded their gems to Cleopatra. Remains of extensive workings were discovered about 1817; "Cleopatra's Mines" are situated in Jabal Sukayt and Jabal Zabarah near the Red Sea coast, east of Aswan. The Egyptian emeralds occur in mica schist and talc schist. During the Spanish conquest of South America, vast quantities of emeralds were taken from several rich deposits in Colombia. The only South American emeralds now known occur near Bogotá, Colom. The most famous mine is at Muzo, but workings are known also at Coscuez. The emeralds are found in thin veins in a black bituminous limestone containing ammonites of Lower Cretaceous age. About 1830 emeralds were discovered in the Urals. They have been worked on the River Takovaya, northeast of Sverdlovsk, where they occur in mica or chlorite schist. Emeralds have been found, also in mica schist, in the Habachtal, Austria, in granite in Eidsvold, Norway, and in a pegmatite vein piercing slaty rocks near Emmaville, N.S.W., Australia. Fine crystals have been obtained from Hiddenite, N.C., in the United States. Many virtues were formerly ascribed to emeralds. When worn, the stone was held to be a preservative against epilepsy, and when held in the mouth it was believed to be a cure for dysentery. It was supposed to assist women at childbirth, to drive away evil spirits, and to preserve the chastity of the wearer. Administered internally, it was reputed to have great medicinal value. Its refreshing green colour was said to be good for the eyesight. The physical properties of emerald are essentially the same as those of beryl. Its refractive and dispersive powers are not high, so that cut stones display little brilliancy or fire. The magnificent colour that gives extraordinary value to this gem is probably due to small amounts of chromium. The stone loses colour when strongly heated. Because of emerald's high value, attempts were long made to manufacture it synthetically. These efforts finally met with success between 1934 and 1937, when a German patent was issued to cover its synthesis. Synthetic emeralds are currently manufactured in the United States by either a molten-flux process or a hydrothermal method; in the latter technique, aquamarine crystals are placed in a water solution at elevated temperature and pressure and used as a seed to produce emeralds. The crystals thus grown appear very similar to natural crystals and rival them in colour and beauty. topaz, silicate mineral that is valued as a gemstone. It is believed that the topaz of modern mineralogists was unknown to the ancients and that the stone called topazos was the mineral chrysolite or peridot. The "topaz" in the Old Testament also may have been chrysolite. Topaz is an aluminum silicate containing fluorine and has a chemical formula of Al2(F,OH)2SiO4. It is formed by fluorine-bearing vapours given off during the last stages of the crystallization of igneous rocks. It typically occurs in cavities in rhyolites and granite, in pegmatite dikes, and in high-temperature veins. Often associated with cassiterite, topaz may be useful to indicate the presence of that tin ore. The finest British topaz is found in the Cairngorm Mountains in the Central Highlands, especially at Ben a Buird, Scot. The famous topaz rock of the Schneckenstein, in Germany, yields pale yellow crystals that were formerly cut for jewelry. Fine topaz occurs at several localities in the Urals and in Siberia, Russia, and beautiful crystals come from Takayama and Tanokamiyama in Japan. Brazil is a famous locality, the well-known sherry-yellow crystals coming from Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, where they occur in a kaolinitic matrix. In the United States fine topaz has been worked near Pikes Peak, Colo., and in San Diego county, Calif. Common topaz occurs in coarse crystals at many localities. For detailed physical properties, see silicate mineral (table). Pure topaz may be colourless and, when brilliant-cut, has been mistaken for diamond. It may also be coloured various shades of yellow, blue, or brown; the colour in many cases is unstable, and the brown topazes of Siberia are particularly liable to be bleached by sunlight. In 1750 a Parisian jeweler discovered that the yellow Brazilian topaz becomes pink on exposure to a moderate heat, and this treatment has since been extensively applied, so that nearly all the pink topaz occurring in jewelry has been heat-treated. Such "burnt topaz" is often known as Brazilian ruby, as is the very rare, natural red topaz. Cut topazes of large size are known, and it is said that the great "Braganza diamond" of Portugal is probably a topaz.

Odgovorio: Goran Stefanic stefanic@rudjer.irb.hr

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