Mica under a "Poor Man's Polarizing Microscope"







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Pennsylvanian

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Trip to the Pennsylvanian edge of the Illinois Basin. Sunrise 6:30am Stop no. 1 was the Bond formation behind a cemetery near the border of Indiana. The rocks here contain a rich fauna, however I was mostly looking for rugose corals to make thin sections. Stop no. 2 was mostly for scouting for the black Mecca shales to find shark remains.
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Water Levels

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I thought it would be fun to periodically post water level data, since the sea levels are rising. I'll mostly focus on Lake Michigan, Great Lakes, Atlantic ocean. Here are some pictures of disappearing Juneway Beach in Chicago and a link to an article here . 2019
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A Test on Silurian Corals Stained with Alizarin Red S

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I've been slicing up Silurian corals in order to experiment with some histological carbonate staining techniques and analysis, mostly just to have fun following crystal diagenesis, observe morphological changes through coral life/death, mineralogy, etc.. I still have a lot of learning and work to do. This is just a first test using Alizarin Red S diluted with hydrochloric acid. For photos, I used my old Canon PowerShot SX120IS 10MP. Favosites sp. with Alizarin Red staining. Bridgeport Quarry, Chicago, IL Zoom I need to fix lighting! Above is an unknown specimen found at Hawthorne Quarry, Cicero, IL. It could be Alveolites sp or possibly a Chaetitid sponge. Above is another Favosites slice from the same coral, vertical slice. from Bridgeport showing corallites. Dolomite slice with echinoderm skeletal fragments. From Hawthorne. Zoom Mostly need to figure out a different lighting set up and timing of staining. These were all stained at the sa...
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