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Known reserves of minerals may not last long. by Dr. Nitish Priyadarshi The use of minerals has been instrumental in raising the standard of living of mankind. The names of the minerals and their products have been used to christen various eras of civilization, such as the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Iron Age and the Nuclear Age. The sophisticated world of today is largely the result of the enlarged use of minerals, whether it be as fertilizer for food, coal, petroleum, natural gas and atomic energy as sources of power, or countless other necessities of life, like automobiles, aero planes, ships, modern communications and a host of chemicals which are derived from the use of minerals. Minerals thus form a part and parcel of our daily life. Since the beginning of this century the use of minerals has been greatly diversified and expanded. Their consumption has shown an unprecedented increase, year after year. It has been estimated that the quantity of mineral consumed in the last 70 y...

The formation of some rock types and minerals are directly influenced by aspects of climate. by Dr. Nitish Priyadarshi Palaeoclimatology, the study of climates during the geological past, is one of the most topical areas of research in the geosciences at present. The threat of future climate change caused by higher levels of greenhouse gases, which would drastically alter many aspects of our environment, has prompted much research to try to understand how our complex climate system works. Only by understanding how climate has evolved over million of years can we identify important climate cycles with a frequency in excess of the short climate records we possess. These climate cycles have the potential to have a profound effect on our environment. Understanding our climate history in the geological past is also important for climatologists trying to construct accurate numerical computer models of our present climate system to use for predicting future climate change. Basic information a...