March 2013 Calendar of Events & General Mtg Program

Del–Air Rockhounds Calendar of Upcoming Events

Mar 2013

07: General Meeting: 7:30 pm in our regular meeting room

10: Daylight Savings Time Begins: Set your clocks ahead one hour.

17: St Patrick’s Day: Wear your green or you’ll get a pinch!

20: First Day of Spring: A good time to start that spring cleaning!

21: Board Meeting: 7:30 pm @ the Hellenthal’s Home

26: Passover Begins: Enjoy your Seder Dinner!

31: Easter Sunday: Bunnies, Eggs and Chocolate!

 

March 2013 Program: Geology of the Santa Monica Mountains

This month, we are excited to have Ryan Stead, a ranger at Santa Monica Mountains, to present an interesting and dynamic program. Ryan always dreamed of becoming a park ranger when he was young. He first started volunteering for the park service in 2003 and soon found himself at a law enforcement ranger academy in Santa Rosa, CA. It was quite the experience, but he soon found that his true love was for education and interpretation. After the academy, he started working for the Ventura Sector state parks as an interpreter and rover. He provided programs on ethnobotony and the Mediterranean climate. He currently works for the Santa Monica Mountains Eco-Helpers program. Ryan is going to talk about the formation, recreation areas and the unique geological aspects of the Santa Monica Mountains. Don’t miss this fascinating presentation.                  

March 2013 Metal of the Month

Copper

Copper Crystal

Copper Ore

Copper Ore

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; a freshly exposed surface has a reddish-orange color. It is used as a conductor of heat and electricity, a building material, and a constituent of various metal alloys.

The metal and its alloys have been used for thousands of years.

 In the Roman era, copper was principally mined on Cyprus, hence the origin of the name of the metal as сyprium or metal of Cyprus. It was later shortened to сuprum. Its compounds are commonly encountered as copper salts, which often impart blue or green colors to minerals such as azurite and turquoise and have been widely used historically as pigments. Architectural structures built with copper corrode to give a green verdigris or patina. Decorative art prominently features copper both by itself and as part of pigments.

Copper Crystal

Copper Crystal

Copper is essential to all living organisms as a trace dietary mineral because it is a key constituent of the respiratory enzyme complex cytochrome c oxidase. Copper is present in the Earth's crust at a concentration of about 50 parts per million where it occurs as native copper or in minerals such as the copper sulfides chalcopyrite and chalcocite, copper carbonates azurite and malachite and the copper oxide mineral cuprite. The largest mass of elemental copper discovered weighed 420 tons and was found in 1857 on the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan.

Copper Nugget

Feb 2013 Metal of the Month: Silver

 
Feb 2013 Metal of the Month:  Silver

Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal.   The metal occurs naturally in its pure, free form as an alloy with gold and other metals, and in minerals such as argentite and chlorargyrite. Most silver is produced as a byproduct of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining. Many well-known uses of silver involve its precious metal properties, including currency, decorative items, and mirrors. The contrast between its bright white color and other media makes it very useful to the visual arts. It has also long been used to confer high monetary value as objects such as silver coins and investment bars or make objects symbolic of high social or political rank. Today, silver metal is also used in electrical contacts and conductors and in catalysts of chemical reactions. Its compounds are used in photographic film, and diluted silver nitrate solutions. Other silver compounds are used as disinfectants. Among metals, pure silver has a very high optical reflectivity.  Silver is stable in pure air and water, but tarnishes when it is exposed to air or water containing ozone or hydrogen sulfide. Recorded use of silver to prevent infection dates to ancient Greece and Rome. It was re-discovered in the Middle Ages, when it was used for several purposes such as to disinfect water and food during storage and also for the treatment of burns and wounds as wound dressing. In the 19th century, sailors on long ocean voyages would put silver coins in barrels of water and wine to keep the liquid potable. Pioneers in America used the same idea as they made their journey from coast to coast. Silver solutions were approved in the 1920s by the US Food and Drug Administration for use as antibacterial agents.

February 2013 General Meeting Program

Feb 2013 Program: Semi Annual Silent Auction

Now is the time to bring some of that neat rock you probably found on your vacation
travels here and there. We will have a GREAT SILENT AUCTION at our February Meeting and
your contributions will make it even better. Anyone can bring something to put on the auction
tables. If you think it is really special, mark it for the EXTENDED AUCTION table and tell the
set up crew what the bid should start at. Our auction is really many auctions until everything
gets a bid and someone takes it home. Bidding starts at 25 cents on each item and goes up by 25
cents or more. When the timer rings, the last name on the list gets the item and pays the club
treasurer. Yes, we still have a ‘KIDS ONLY’ table. Not only rocks are on the tables. There
can be many items used in our hobby, baked goods, homemade items.
ALL VERY NICE ITEMS YOU WILL WANT TO BID ON!
This is always a lot of fun, for everyone and remember - KEEP YOUR PENCIL
HANDY, BECAUSE SOMEONE WILL PUT A BID ON TOP OF YOURS!

Emmy Silverman, Program Chairperson

Our Next General Meeting-Thurs, Feb 07, 2013
The Meeting Begins At 7:30 pm In Our Regular Meeting Room At:
Northridge United Methodist Church
9650 Reseda Blvd, Northridge, CA 91324
Guests Are Always Welcome At Our Meetings & Events.