HW#8: Matter & Minerals

Instructions: Answer the questions below using one to five sentences.

7. Define luster.

8. Why is color not always a useful property in mineral identification? Give an example of a mineral that supports your answer.

9. Describe a simple chemical test that is useful in identifying the mineral calcite.

10. Distinguish between rock-forming minerals and economic minerals.

11. What is the ratio of oxygen to silicon found in single tetrahedrons? How about framework structures? Which has the highest silicon content?

12. What differences in their silicate structures account for the slipperiness of talc and the hardness of quartz?