[Mongoose]

That doesn't sound like a bad way to spend 4 hours.

Oh no, it was great.  There's something a bit awe-inspiring about looking at a 4-billion-year-old rock from the Moon.  Along the same lines, if anyone's ever in Pittsburgh, check out the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.  They have a really good minerals collection too, plus a fantastic dinosaur exhibit to boot.

[Colonol Dekker]

Element/Mineral difference highlight

[perihelion]

Minerals can be individual elements or specific compounds.  What matters is that it is a single substance, not an aggregate like "rocks."

...I'm sure most everyone here already knows that, but I think I'm seeing a little bit of confusion here and there.

[lostllama]

Yep, this is indeed correct. I was wrong earlier.

[Droid803]

[X3N0-Life-Form]

I was waiting for someone else to make that joke

[NGTM-1R]

LSA.

(If you get that, congratulations, you got screwed by Sierra like me!)

[Colonol Dekker]

LSA.

(If you get that, congratulations, you got screwed by Sierra like me!)

I don't get it

[watsisname]

I only know of one LSA and I don't think it's a mineral.  :V

[Black Wolf]

Minerals can be individual elements or specific compounds.  What matters is that it is a single substance, not an aggregate like "rocks."

Not strictly true. What matters is the regular crystalline structure. Pure elemental metals aren't minerals (although I do remember reading a paper thqt suggesged some situations where this wasn't strictly true wrt Gold, will need to check).

[Nuke]

I was waiting for someone else to make that joke

YOU'VE NOT ENOUGH MINERALS!!!

[Colonol Dekker]

YOU MUST CONSTRUCT ADDITIONAL PYLONS!!

[Mefustae]

Tourmaline

This.

Because it's so bloody easy to identify. A real treat when you see it in an exam.

[Pred the Penguin]

Saw some cool looking minerals at the local museum. I have no idea what most of them were called. o_o

[Goober5000]

Dilithium FTW.

[JCDNWarrior]

Salt is my most favorite mineral, without it I don't think we can live

[Mobius]

Uraninite.

[Kopachris]

Silica because it has so many different forms: quartz, rose quartz, amethyst, agates in all different colors, jasper...
Also corundum because it's awesome.

[MP-Ryan]

Minerals can be individual elements or specific compounds.  What matters is that it is a single substance, not an aggregate like "rocks."

Not strictly true. What matters is the regular crystalline structure. Pure elemental metals aren't minerals (although I do remember reading a paper thqt suggesged some situations where this wasn't strictly true wrt Gold, will need to check).

Thank you, Black Wolf.

There are a fair number of people around here in need of a periodic table, it would seem, because I'm seeing a fair number of elements that are most certainly NOT minerals (*coughmolybdenumchromiumiridiumcough*)

At any rate, pyrite is my favourite, though only if the person I'd be selling it to doesn't know what it is

[MR_T3D]

Always been an Iron-man myself.