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Any class of substances occuring in nature, usually comprising of inorgainic substances.
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| Not having the structure or organization characteristic of living bodies. |
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| A clear, transparent mineral or glass resembling ice. |
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| The state or quality of being hard. |
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Hardness is determined by using the Mohs hardness scale. Minerals are rated on a scale from 1 to 10. 1 being the softest and 10 being the hardest.
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| Used to describe how a mineral reflects light from it's surface. |
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| Describes how a mineral looks when it breaks apart in an irregular way. |
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Density=Mass divided by volume. Each mineral has a characteristic density. No matter what size of the mineral sample you have, it will always have to same density.
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| A precious stone that can be cut and polished for use as a gem. |
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| The tendancy of crystals, certain minerals, rocks, etc., to break in preferred directions so as to yeild more or less smooth surfaces. |
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