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1.2: Definition of a Mineral

Last updated

Jul 6, 2022
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- 1.1.3: The Importance of Crystallography
- 1.2.1: Traditional Definition

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The word mineral means different things to different people. In ancient times, people divided all things on Earth into the animal, vegetable, or mineral kingdoms, so a mineral was any natural inorganic substance. Today, dieticians use the term to refer to nutritional elements such as calcium, iron, or sodium, while miners often use it for anything they can take out of the ground—including coal, sand, or gravel. Mineralogists have their own definition.

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