minerals
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The Mystery Origin Story of King Tut’s Meteorite Dagger
A team of researchers recently X-ray scanned an iron dagger found in the tomb of Tutankhamun to figure out how the object, the metal of which came from a meteorite, was made. They suspect the dagger was created through low-temperature forging — but they don’t think it was crafted in Egypt.
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Fool’s Gold Is Hiding ‘Invisible’ Real Gold, Scientists Find
Confirming once more that it cannot be trusted, the metal known as fool’s gold, aka pyrite, can contain bits of the real thing, according to an Australian-Chinese research team. Getting at the trapped gold, however, is likely to be more trouble than it’s worth.
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New Culture War Just Dropped: World’s Largest Jeweller Pivots to Lab-Grown Diamonds
If you can bring yourself to wear a diamond that doesn’t represent a shaved-down bit of the planet’s finite supply, but is chemically identical to the original product and denies warlords funding — then Pandora is your shop. The world’s largest jeweller (in sheer volume of product), known for charm bracelets, has announced that it…
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Science Reveals The Secret To Ancient Rome’s Indestructible Concrete
Roman concrete is famous for its durability, lasting for thousands of years and seemingly stronger with each passing year. New research has uncovered the chemical processes responsible for the sturdiness of this ancient building material — a finding that could inspire modern engineers to revive this forgotten technique.