#Is that because of iron oxide...

[heartnosekid]

the magical hormuz island in iran | source

[finalpam8000]

I finally took the plunge and started reading my first longform (longer than 5 or so chapters) fanfic and I’m having a lovely time. But genuinely… HOW DO YOU PEOPLE COPE? ONE OF THE TWO MAIN CHARACTERS JUST DIED AND THE OTHER HAS BEEN TOTALLY STRIPPED OF THIER BODY… AND THERE ARE SOMEHOW TEN MORE CHAPTERS LEFT?!?

HOW DO PEOPLE READ MULTIPLE OF THESE, MY ENTIRE WAKING MIND IS TAKEN OVER BY WANTING TO READ MORE OF THIS BUT IT’S 3 AM AND I HAVE TO GET TO BED AAAAAA

[iamthepulta]

the only reason I can pretend like I know anything about leather chemistry is going on insane research dives at 3am for exactly two reasons: can you make clothing out of mushroom collagen (yes) and how expensive would leather be in Sunless Skies (not very).

I remember mapping out the insane breakdown of chemistry to go from mushroom collagen to leather collagen a year ago and right now I literally only remember there's a 3+ ion you have to fit into the collagen structure to make it remain flexible, vegetable tanning is the better of the two tanning methods, and good alum came from Egypt.

[bonefall]

Odd question but I actually know very little about geology;

Does anyone have good resources where I can learn how places get iron in the soil? Like... how does that happen? How would you know if a place would be iron oxide-rich?

This is specifically about if BB!Cats have access to Ochre but I'm casting a wide net here

[whatudottu]

Me, remembering that pill bugs can filter heavy metals from soil:

My brain: You know what this means, don’t you?

Me: What-

My brain: You can make talpaedans part pill bug-

Me, working on amperi headcanons: Wait LET ME FINI-

I’ve gone over a few times that I like to think that talpaedans are techno-organic, less so being silicon or silicone based beings but being an integration of organic carbon materials and the more industrialised physiology of being a walking talking construction equipment. I have also previously made use of the whole ‘machine’ aspect of their natural biology to not only consider them as burrowers, but also as ant-like burrowers with haplodiplody, this form of sex-determination system being used to expand the combinations of construction equipment that an individual talpaedan might have, but also as a basis of which I form the sociopolitical building of talpaedan cities, in which case we have large city state colonies of ant inspired pangolins recreating feudalism Europe of the 10th-13th century.

But up - until this point - there was not quite a lot of circumstances that would allow for actual metallic components to not only present itself biologically but also do so naturally, so with the heavy metal eating pill bug there’s a source of extra inspiration. Oniscidae (apparently the more accurate name for pill bugs/rollie pollies and literally any name under the sun) can remove arsenic (which is actually a metalloid), cadmium, lead, and depending on sources also mercury from the soil; additional metals that can be extracted from soil are copper and zinc. The pill bug in question would crystallise these ions in their gut and create spherical deposits within them, but since we are not talking about the isopod alone surely it isn’t too much of a stretch to the idea that perhaps talpaedans can use these deposits within themselves to feed into the development of their most notable features, their built in equipment?

Assuming that Poiana Lüncas has these metals and that talpaedans would in fact filter for them, in real world human employed Earth uses of these metals can indeed be of fine use. Both arsenic and cadmium can be used as alloys and zinc specifically can galvanise other metals such as iron to prevent rusting, very significant indeed in industry, notably especially with large amounts of zinc can be used in hardware industries. Copper has a very notable use in electronics and wiring of which motors are included, let alone more refined wiring in TVs and radio. And argueably the more infamous of these metals (at least to a standard ‘basic’ level of understanding) we have mercury and lead, the former being used in many different industries for it’s ability to measure the change in temperature and pressure, and the latter for some solders, gasoline/petroleum and wonderfully hazardous cosmetic items that uninformed humanity has come to be harmed by.

ngl, spent a bit of time trying to find an oxygen-carrier of these metals that can feasibly make black blood but i literally do not know if the colour of oxides is in any way relevant to how oxygen-carrier bloodcells would actually be coloured as i’m not a chemist

But in highlighting these metals, I am not simply looking to see if a techno-organic talpaedan can have galvanised armour nor if they come built in with blood pressure monitors. No no no, I am saying more than what talpaedans eat but also what metals can talpaedans have easy access to in the development of technology, and how one might say that actually interacts with the ant-psychology of utterly fucking despising other colony.

Well-

Let’s say that google might be a little concerned about me learning about elements used in the construction of ammunition and radiation protection ehek-!

With the earth tilling that many developing talpaedans need to incorporate necessary metals into their diet, depending on the availabilty of said metals they may be an over abundance for food alone; especially with the pressure of competition of resources in combination with a general disdain for anything extracolonial, a factor that may lead to an escalation of tech development. There is an inherent baseline for technology in talpaedans that would already give their industrialisation a boost, in addition to the materials that may vary on quantity based on the region, colony size, and general population needs. Before long there are city states reinforcing their own barriers and expanding their borders for more and more materials - to consume and to create - to in fact increase and increase the tension between colonies so loud to the point pressure spills like a broken thermometer spills mercury and conflicts arise.

And when everything boils over do they realise that many have to balance the act of raising young and building more weapons, the factor that may in fact be the tipping point to realise that the colonies with the most resources are not only a threat but a threat that can overwhelm on the technological scale and the population number. In spite of how many colonies may indeed hate each other, it is more than worth it to them to compromise and in fact LIVE rather than be caught between the suddenly unveiling superpowers of the world that had previously lay unknown thanks to willful ignorance. Decimation of land is significantly reduced from cataclysmic to catastrophic as entire colonies are rased and in fact dug out into craters, many war-era alliances held to the modern day of Poiana Lüncas. A tithing - remnants of the treaties formed at the peak of desperation - of the youngest generation of adult men stands as both tradition and of appeasement, a colony trade and marriage across many different colonial alliances as a symbol of what had to be done before, sharing resources and rearing while the soldiers fought to live.

And all of this because they got a pill bug diet see this is why ants aren’t allowed to have materials for megaton bombs smh 😞

[sabriel-writes]

RUST AND RUIN!!!!!!!!!

What's your favorite Cosmere swear replacement or idiom?

I'll get it started with "Rusts and Ruin" or "Storm you".

[winkofcharm]

Spinning, Spinning, Spun - Chapter 3

Uhhhhhhhhhh

I'm sorry it's short and kind of jumps around,

but I think you'll love this anyway. tw: blood, swearing

batfam x reader [platonic]

[previous] Stephanie and Damian find the private jet easily enough. It’s in a private hangar at a New York airport, hidden away from public view. From the outside, it looks normal. Not a thing out of place - no signs of forced entry, of a struggle outside. It isn’t until Damian activates the biometric scanner and opens the door that they find anything wrong. 

The smell of rotting copper and iron hits them full force. Stephanie is grateful her mask muffles the smell, Damian doesn’t have her luck, and as used to the smell of blood as he is, still finds it too much. However, it’s not just the smell that is too much, it’s the amount as well.

Brown blood, well oxidized, is soaked into the carpet, into the curtains, into the chair by the far window - where it has not soaked in, it has splattered. There are still bright red spots, but only where there is so much that it hasn't yet dried. It is not simply a crime scene, but a horror show. 

Damian moves quickly to look for clues, even if it means stepping into a puddle of your blood, he is determined to find anything he can that may lead to you. The chair at the far window is your favourite place to sit, he knows, from your many snapchats from that exact place. No doubt it was where you sat when the attack began, as the blood outlines a body of your size. Beneath that seat he finds his first clue, your phone. 

It’s dead, likely having been for several days at least, but if he charges it, he may find some sort of idea or hint as to what may have happened. It’s unlikely you wouldn’t have at least tried to call for help, and he hopes you may have tried to describe your attacker in such an emergency plea. 

Stephanie has moved towards the cockpit, the jet is pilotless, fully automated, but there are cameras aboard - just in case. They’ve never really had reason to look over them until now, and she hopes that whoever took you didn’t know about them. Her hope is dashed, when she realizes the cameras had failed. The few moments of footage were of you, sitting quietly as the plane landed and pulled itself into its dedicated hangar. You were on your phone, texting or scrolling, just getting ready to unbuckle and stand when it cuts off. 

It’s a clean cut, no static, just a cut to black. There is no sign of who approached the jet from the outer camera, and no sign of you being assaulted on the inner one (which is both a relief and a pain, she didn’t want to see you getting hurt, but then, at least, she would know who did it). 

Damian is still in the rear of the plane when she hears it - sirens. All approaching quickly to their location. They need to move quickly, lest they be caught, and investigation hindered. They move as quickly as they can, taking with them your phone, and leave, disappearing into the night - back to Gotham. 

Stephanie can’t help but wonder, how, or rather, why, the police were only showing up now. At this exact moment. Why had they not come earlier, but rather once the scene was disturbed? Had it been a trap? A trigger of some sorts they had unknowingly pulled, that had called them? She doesn’t know, but she will find out.

Tim has no idea who you are. He knows of you, knows about you, but knows nothing of who you are as a person. It’s usually an easy job, finding out who holds a grudge against who, but with you it’s nearly impossible. He follows internet trolls, paparazzi reporters, your fellow celebutantes, trying to find anyone that may have hated you, may have held even a drop of enmity - but there’s nothing. He’s used to stalking people, it’s what landed him the role of Robin, after all. He’s able to find out anything, about anyone. 

You… you are a perfect mask. Even better than Batman, he surmises - because he was able to track down and identify Batman. He cannot identify you. 

There are no scandals, no rumours, no drama or fights or fallouts. You seem to be exactly what you appear. A wealthy philanthropist with a side job of modeling for haute couture brands. He tries to dig deeper, moving on to shitty celebrity gossip blogs that exist only to throw mud - and still, there’s nothing. Perhaps Babs did her job too well, and wiped a little too much from the internet regarding you. 

Speaking of Barbara -

Oracle: Check the news 

The ping drives him to do as she commanded, and he is overwhelmed immediately. 

“Wayne Heir Missing!”

“Gruesome crime scene at centre of Wayne Heir disappearance!”

“Cover up? Wayne family silent as Heir missing for days.”

The headlines are flooding in, and with them come your fans, your friends, your coworkers - all saying the same, that they miss you, hope you’re found safe, that they haven’t heard from you in days but thought it was just a brief get away. In minutes, your pages are flooded with concern - and Tim knows immediately he’ll be in for a long night when his own social media starts getting attention. So does Bruce’s, Dick’s, Damian’s - everyones is starting to be overrun, but unlike the kindness that pours onto yours, he sees the vitriol first hand. 

The public is demanding to know why nothing was found earlier, how you could be gone for so long before they noticed, how could they go about their daily lives without a shred of despair regarding your disappearance. Did they not notice? Or did they not care?

Wayne Enterprises and Drake Industries stocks are already beginning to plummet. He’s getting calls from every member of the board of each company, the free-fall and ramifications are piling up, and he’s doing his best to ignore the outside world. He’s trying to focus so hard on finding you, that he almost blocks out the alarms.

Reporters are flocking to Wayne Manor, newspapers and tabloids, from The Daily Planet, to the sleaziest of sleazy mags. He tosses his phone aside, and rubs his hands on his face. He and the others had hoped to keep this under wraps, out of public scrutiny for as long as possible and yet, in the 24 hours they had known you were gone, the secret had already been blown. 

Tim groans as he pushes away from the Batcomputer, and heads up out of the cave to the main Manor - he’ll have to change, something dark to impress how seriously he was taking your abduction. Bruce is with Dick, dealing with the Red Hood stuff, and Damian is still heading home with Stephanie, so Tim will have to be the one to release a statement. 

What will he even say? 

“Yeah, no, we had no idea they were gone, and could be dead??” Especially if that amount of blood in the pictures Damian sent over was all yours. “Sorry, I know we look like besties online, but I have no fucking idea what happened?” Not like he had actually laid eyes on you in the month leading up to this. “Half the time I forget they even exist, so how was I supposed to notice???”

Alfred waits for him in the foyer, as Tim puts the finishing touches on his suit. Best to play this as formally as possible, best to lie his ass off and hope no one calls him on it. 

Alfred’s eyes are rimmed in red, he hasn’t cried, but he wants to. A stiff upper-lip, Tim thinks, is expected of the man. He wouldn’t blame him, however, if he did cry. Alfred was the closest to you, and everyone knew there was a special bond there. The older man was always extra gentle with you, gave extra care and attention - perhaps to make up for what the rest of them didn’t give. Tim does feel a little guilty in thinking that Alfred’s distress will make whatever snake oil he’s about to sell easier for the press to buy. 

They walk side by side down the long drive that leads from the Manors front gates to the actual building itself. The crunch of their footsteps slowly being overwhelmed by the chatter of the reporters waiting for them, and Tim is temporarily blinded when they finally spot him and start snapping pictures. He keeps walking forward, until finally he is in front of the grand gates, with only a few feet between him and them. 

He waits for the rapid fire of first questions to die, for the cameras to start rolling and pictures to stop clicking, before beginning his address. 

“We were made aware yesterday of the disappearance of one of our own -,” Tim starts, “We have since been made aware that they may have been gone for longer than initially thought. Currently we are working with the police and investigators as they work towards finding them. We are certain they will be found soon, and brought home, and only ask that whoever did this comes forward and releases them.” 

It’s an automatic speech, one he’s practiced, but never thought he’d have to ever give. Sure you’d been taken before, they all have, but usually that was solved and you were home within the day, long before any of this sort of attention was demanded. 

“We ask that you give us our privacy at this time, and allow us, as a family, to work through this. We appreciate your concern, and please rest assured, that the police are doing all they can.” He finishes his statement, and the flurry of questions and cameras starts up again. It’s only polite to answer a few questions, and will project a better image of the family to do so. He scans over the crowd, trying to decide which reporter he will answer when his eyes land on a familiar face. 

Lois Lane stands beside a cameraman for The Daily Planet, her face set in a frown as she listens to Tim speak. She’s met you several times, mostly in passing, but enough to know that whatever happened to you is bad, really, really bad. You’ve always been kind to her, and sweet to Jon whenever he visited Damian. Clark had even brought you home once for a meal after a kidnapping, she remembered how you laughed and smiled, how polite you had been - so when she learned that you had been taken, violently, she had immediately volunteered to be the one sent to Gotham. She studied everything she could on her way, including your latest posts and had only one question - 

“Drake, according to their post history, you were the last one to see them -,” She began, but she knew the truth. You and Tim hadn’t spoken in weeks, despite what you had posted. Lois had left her phone number with you the second or third time you’d met, so had Clark, mostly just in case - but you messaged back and forth frequently about little things. 

You’d often send her clips of Jon and Damian together, running about in the back of the grounds, but sometimes you’d ask her questions. Questions that let her know everything wasn’t as it seemed. Questions about what to do when you felt ignored, or unwanted. Things a mother or father should have talked to you about, not an almost, but not quite, stranger. 

Tim ended up dodging her almost-question, made an excuse about how you had met up shortly before getting on the plane but he hadn’t heard from you since. It was enough to plant a seed in the rest of the reporters though. That maybe you weren’t as close as your posts made you seem, that maybe Tim was lying, or you were. It was enough, Lois decided, and she turned back to her cameraman. They’d leave as soon as this impromptu Q and A was over, and she’d be contacting her husband. Maybe he’d be able to help find you, or at least try and convince the Batman to let him help. 

—----------------------------

Jason and Red Hood.

Red Hood and Jason.

His son is alive, alive and filled with rage the likes he has never seen before. Perhaps that is why he took you? For revenge? Another way to throw Bruce’s failings back in his face, to hammer home the point that Bruce has done nothing but hurt those he was meant to protect. He hopes at least that Jason has been kind to you, that your brother may have still held some warmth towards you, despite how he had tried to drive you apart. That Jason may recognize you for what you are, a civilian, an innocent caught in the line of fire. 

He has followed his lost son, to a warehouse where the freshly beaten Joker lies, where his son points a gun at his head, and where you, thankfully are not (but where are you?). 

Jason lashes out, demands his pound of flesh, demands he kill Joker - but Bruce knows he cannot, that if he were to kill, even once, he would be lost in a flurry of violence and death.

There is no perfect time to ask about you, to demand Jason send you home safe and sound - but he does anyway - forces out the words, demands to know where your brother has taken you, and in doing so, he’s made another mistake.

“The fuck you mean Bruce?” Jason demands, “You think I’d hurt them? That’d I’d go after them just to get to you?” He sees Jason get angrier as he talks, as he realizes that Bruce has lost another kid. “You did it again, didn’t you? You fucking lost another one of us! But unlike me, they’re untrained, they’re weak, because you left them defenseless, and now look at what you’ve done!” 

Jason doesn’t have you, never even thought of using you against him.  Joker didn’t take you, he had been in Arkham up until this final confrontation. He doesn’t have time to ask anything else about you, not when the clock is ticking.  Bruce refuses to kill the Joker, and Jason escapes, leaving him alone. 

Joker is brought back to Arkham, and he turns his comms back on, and is overwhelmed immediately by all that has occurred outside his crusade.

You are still gone.

Joker doesn’t have you. 

Jason didn’t take you.

The police are swarming the jet.

Reporters are flooding his driveway. 

The internet is rife with speculation, with rumours and tales, some of them pointing towards an inside job. 

He is a failure.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The ocean is warm this time of year, the sand almost burns with the heat. It’s unfortunate you can’t get in the water yet, not until the doctor clears you completely. The scab on your stomach itches as it heals, but at least you can go outside with it covered. 

The drink in your hand is sweet, fruity and fresh, just as you like it. A brand new phone, registered in a fake name, in your other hand scrolling rapidly through news site after news site. 

A smile plays at your lips. 

“Damn,” you whisper, “If I knew it would be this easy, I would have gone girl’d them years ago.”

Tag list:

@holybatflapexpert @electricgg @xoyumiqls @holderoflostmemories @sleeptimes @galaxypurplerose @sassam @pearlyribbons @bellelamoon @fortunatelydifferentqueen

@randomlyappearingartist @c4xcocoa @whyiseveryuseenametaken @myjumper

@magdalenacarmila @noone1233nobody @bbmgirll @degenerates-posts

@rinkydinkythinky @ithoughtthinks @rtyuy1346  @s1mppp @yokesmam @cssammyyarts

@overlyobsessivefangirl @paastaboi @dakotali @mysh-lynnn @hai-there-how-are-you

@sadeem575 @lettucel0ver

(please let me know if the tag didn't work)

[dresshistorynerd]

Sewing a turn of the 15th century French kirtle in doll scale

Another day, another historical doll outfit! This time it's Late Medieval. This was a popular style from about 1380-1420 France and Alpine area, but I specifically based this dress on French illuminations from the early 15th century, which mostly effects the details, like headwear. As always I hand stitched everything and stuck to historical construction methods as much as I could.

Chemise

I made a very simple chemise. The construction is based on what we know from extant finds, made out of simple rectangles and triangles, like earlier unlaced kirtles. Based on illustrations, chemise was fairly slim but unfitted enough it didn't need closures. I made it from linen, because it's not very gathered and won't bulk up too much, so I don't need to use my very fine cotton voile.

Cote

Cote is just the French word for kirtle, so appropriate here. This is the supportive layer cote, which was sort of an undergarment, but was considered fully dressed, if informal on it's own. The sleeves on this underlayer were always long and either fully fitted or gathered at the wrist. Some fitted sleeve styles had a flare at the wrist which covered the hand. The very fitted look was achieved with buttons. The silhouette was smooth and fitted, the waistline was slightly above the natural waist, though that was not as pronounced in France as in Northern Italy. Abdomen was emphasized, round lower stomach was the body ideal. The cut of the dress left plenty of room there. To fill that room I folded the chemise under the abdomen as a sort of padding. This was common to do with any kind of skirts, primarily to raise the hem when working, but why not for this purpose also? The necklines were fairly low and very wide.

I used cotton because I didn't have suitable thin enough wool that wouldn't have created too much bulk on this scale, but the cote should have been made from. The cotton is tightly woven and sells the look of a woven wool in this scale well enough for me. I didn't finish seems or line it to avoid bulk. I did give the lacing a cording to reinforce it and avoid wrinkling. The cotton was originally white, but I dyed it with iron oxide, basically rust, which at least is very much historical.

Hose

I made the hose from cotton as well for the same reasons as I did the cote. Long pointed style became fashionable around this time, as well as sewing leather soles in the bottoms of the hose instead of using shoes. Though often pattens (wooden flipflops basically) could be used when walking outside to protect the leather soles.

Cornettes or horned hair

I tied the hair with a tape on cornettes, where the volume of hair was tied on the temples to create a bit of horned appearance, especially when combined with the horned headwear. The sort of fillet which became more of a forehead loop seemed to have been tied into the hair, which I did.

Cotehardie

Cotehardie meant literally "bold cote", and in France that was what the formal outer cote was called. It was basically the same as cote, but made from more expensive materials and often had large hanging sleeves. I went with widening triangular sleeves, since they were perhaps the most popular sleeves at the time. I used fine fulled wool (verka) I had enough scraps left from. White fur was popular lining material, but obviously I can't use fur in this scale, I wish I had some light white velvet, it would have been pretty good, but I didn't. I lined the skirt and the sleeves with white cotton to imitate the look without adding too much body or extra bulk. I decorated the neckline with a simple golden trim. I thought about adding a bit of golden embroidery around it too, like seemed to have been popular, but my local crafts store had run out of golden thread so I decided to go with this only.

Accessories

Unlike the belt used with houppelande, which was below bust, the belt used with the kirtle or cotehardie, was very low, under the abdomen to emphasize it. I went for a silk belt look, which I'm imagining is embroidered/woven with golden thread, since embroidery that small would have been too painful. I had an old broken necklace, which I could use for the metallic parts.

With the pouch I went for the tasseled drawstring look, with simple embroidery manageable in this scale. I used linen for it.

Headwear

I made her a chaperon, which likely was where the escoffion got it's beginning, escoffion being the round tube-like headwear worn on top of the head seen in several primary source images above. Early form of escoffion was becoming very popular at the time, though chaperon's were still seen on women too. Chaperon, as seen below both on the left-most woman and the man in the middle was actually just the hood rolled into a circle.

Because the horned look was popular, the escoffion and chaperon were often worn over the wired horned veil, so I first made that. I made it from cotton to make it as light as possible. It was just a square I hemmed. I just used some wire to poke out the horns from her hair and pinned the veil close from the back and onto her hair from the top.

Then I made the open hood. It was just the regular hood which had become very popular during the last century and which had ever longer narrow tip, but it was pinned and worn open, probably because of the hair style and to again create the horned look. I made if from the same cotton I made the hose, even though it too should be from wool. But it was already too bulky as it was.

And finally I could make the chaperon. Here's first chaperon without wire or veil under it and then with those. The effect isn't as pronounced as I would have hoped because the hood is too bulky, but there is an effect which is nice.

[niteshade925]

April 20, Beijing, China, National Museum of China/中国国家博物馆 (Part 2 - Dehua white porcelain exhibition/德化白瓷展 continued):

This was actually the very first piece I encountered at the entrance to the exhibition, a gigantic basket of flowers (probably over 1 meter tall and over 1 meter wide?), the entire thing made of porcelain.

And to reiterate, every part of every piece is porcelain. Though I will say that despite the ultra-realistic shape of the flower petals and leaves, the only detail that hinted at these flowers being made out of porcelain was that the painted colors weren't as vibrant as real flowers. That's it. If you don't examine it up close you really can't tell that it's all porcelain.

This is a good place to roughly introduce the technical side of Dehua white porcelain. The color of Dehua white porcelain mainly comes from the clay it uses, which is a special kaolin clay (gaolingtu/高岭土 in Chinese) found in Dehua. The clay mineral used naturally contains sericite and quartz, both of which are silica minerals and may have contibuted to the almost translucent look of the finished pieces; it also contains comparatively high amounts of potassium oxides, while the amount of iron oxides present is low. Due to the intricate designs of the pieces, the firing success rate may be very low. All those pieces involving super thin parts representing fabric or paper or flower petals? They may bring the success rate down to about 5%. Which means many of these pieces may be the 15th-20th try that finally survived firing. For people who are more interested in the chemistry of Dehua white porcelain, this paper goes into depth about it. There's also a great book in Chinese that goes into depth all about Dehua porcelain. (link goes to the first chapter only)

Continuing on, this is one of many Guanyin/观音 (Avalokiteśvara) statues at the exhibition, again with light clothing made out of porcelain:

More Guanyin statues in various classic depictions/forms, of which there are 33 total. This particular form is called Yulan Guanyin/鱼篮观音 (鱼篮 means fish basket), and comes from a legend where Guanyin transformed into a beautiful female fish vendor in order to guide mortals.

I believe the text here reads 持经观音 (Guanyin holding scripture)? The Guanyin here is holding a vase instead of a scroll though.

This is a classic depiction of Guanyin with a little bit of a modern-ish twist? Guanyin is often depicted with a vase of divine water, but here it forms a circle.

Despite some of the Guanyin statues having the amazing ceramic "clothing", this one remains my favorite, just because of the sense of space and serenity that this simple "frame" design creates:

And this very literal take on "thousand arm Guanyin" (千手观音). It's giving me that "biblically accurate angels" vibe:

Buddha floating atop.......idk what that is but the texture is amazing:

A fully painted statue of Guanyu/关羽. The gradient and detailed patterns on his robes is amazing:

Two identical (I think?) statues of the daomadan/刀马旦 (female commander archetype) character Mu Guiying/穆桂英 as she would appear in Chinese traditional opera, one painted and one unpainted. The word 巾帼英雄 in the title means "hero in women's headscarf", which is a term used exclusively in reference to female heroes. There's also the phrase "巾帼不让须眉", which roughly means "those in women's headscarves aren't inferior to those with beards and thick brows"

Porcelain depiction of Dunhuang's famous feitian/飞天 figures, in the classic pose of playing pipa in reverse (called 反弹琵琶). The clothing on this figure is made of porcelain, but this time also painted:

A porcelain statue of a couple in traditional Lhoba/Luoba/珞巴 clothing. The Lhoba/Luoba people are one of China's 55 少数民族 who mainly live in the south-eastern region of Tibet Autonomous Region, and as of 2019, it is the 少数民族 with the smallest population

A porcelain statue of a woman in traditional Miao/苗 clothing. I love how the artist recreated the traditional Miao silver crown in porcelain.

Painted porcelain bust of a woman wearing the Xunbu/蟳埔 "flower crown", named a zanhuawei/簪花围. The town of Xunbu in Fujian province is known for its tradition of zanhua/簪花, or wearing flowers in one’s hair.

Porcelain statue of a Buddhist monk wearing a zhiduo/直裰 (the robes on the inside) and a jiasha/袈裟 (काषाय/kasaya; the garment on the outside that drapes over the left shoulder). From its looks, one can tell that zhiduo originated from hanfu, but with some minor changes (sidenote, this is not the same as the zhiduo of Ming-era hanfu). Jiasha evolved from the clothing of Indian Buddhist monks, but there appears to be a lot of influence from Central Asia and ancient Greece as well (link goes to pdf; this article is in Chinese).

Some modern-themed pieces. Look at those dresses omg

A porcelain statue of Hua Mulan/花木兰, the character from traditional Chinese literature and opera that inspired the Disney character. I will say though this pose reminds me of someone else.......

[wtfearth123]

When sodium hypochlorite (bleach) solution is added to luminol, a chemical reaction occurs that releases energy in the form of light. This is called chemiluminescence. The bleach solution acts as an oxidizing agent, which means it takes electrons away from the luminol molecule. This causes the luminol molecule to become excited, and it releases the energy as light.

🎥 Courtesy: Kendra Frederick

The luminol molecule is made up of two amino groups, a carbonyl group, and an azo group. The amino groups are electron-rich, while the carbonyl group is electron-poor. The azo group is a conjugated system, which means that the electrons in the double bonds can move freely from one atom to another.

When sodium hypochlorite (bleach) solution is added to luminol, the bleach molecules react with the amino groups of the luminol molecule. This reaction takes electrons away from the luminol molecule, which causes the luminol molecule to become oxidized. The oxidized luminol molecule is in an excited state, which means that it has more energy than it normally does.

The excited luminol molecule then releases the extra energy as light. This light is called chemiluminescence. The light emitted by the chemiluminescence reaction is blue because the luminol molecule has a blue fluorescence.

The chemiluminescence reaction between luminol and sodium hypochlorite is catalyzed by the presence of a metal ion, such as iron or copper. The metal ion helps to stabilize the excited state of the luminol molecule, which makes it more likely to release the extra energy as light.

The chemiluminescence reaction is very sensitive to impurities, so it is important to use pure chemicals. The reaction can also be affected by the pH of the solution. The optimal pH for the reaction is around 9.

The chemiluminescence reaction between luminol and sodium hypochlorite can be used to detect blood, as the iron in hemoglobin can catalyze the reaction. The reaction is also used in some commercial products, such as glow sticks and emergency lights.

I hope you enjoyed learning about this. ❤️🙏

[foggyfrogss]

「 OXIDIZE 」 ˎˊ

tf! Sukuna x f! Reader | Warnings: MDNI, sexual content

Discord 21+

Summary: You and Sukuna indulge in each other for the night.

He was not a gentleman, but you could say he was a gentle man.

With the way his large hands softly move over your body, it resonates throughout you intensely. As if he’d left bruises. His touch lights your skin ablaze, leaving you hot. Yet, he touches you like a freshly bloomed wildflower, gently picking it to avoid bruising.

Perhaps he understands just how big the difference is in your sizes; a fear of hurting you. No matter how many times you explain to him he can’t hurt you, the same tenderness remains.

Pink hair tickles at your exposed skin, dancing softly as he kisses the valley between your breasts. His nose drags into your skin while his silkened lips demonstrate his hunger. You can feel the way his heavy breaths puff into your skin, it’s warm and feeds the eager butterflies inside of you.

They swarm excitedly around your core.

Four arms seem a bit excessive, but the thought slips when you feel them hold you as they do. The top pair hold your wrists in place beside your head while the bottom find places on your body that crave attention. In the curve or your waist one hand rests as the other holds himself up. Again, he doesn’t want to put too much pressure into your wrists; scared of hurting you.

From above, you see the concentrated look of his face, twisted into his famous resting scowl. His eyes are closed, but they open to gaze up at you. He probably sensed your attention.

Red; it’s deep and rousing. They’re discernibly hungry.

Hungry for you.

All four gaze up, his left side hooded by the blanket of pink, full eyelashes. Eyelashes you grew to be jealous of. A faint, but evident crimson blush decorates his cheeks. Not because he is embarrassed, but because he is on fire. Inflamed, he is pressing into your core. His hardened cock is making itself known. You return his amorous gestures as you buck up into him.

Yet, as he presses into you, he’s moved his head up further. Hot kisses trail from your chest to your collar bone, spreading slowly to the curve of your neck. You’re tilting your head to the side, giving him more access; more control.

His sharp teeth lightly graze across your skin. Though it’s already littered with love marks, he plants more, claiming his territory.

Tongue following, it runs a stripe up to the start of your jawline below your ear. His breathing is still heavy next to your ear. It’s hot. A heavy grunt, from deep within his chest, could be heard as you continue to press up into him. Any distance between the two of you needed to be closed.

He’s kissing down your jawline, worshipping your skin like it was the finest meal brought to him. Ironically enough, his favorite meal was women.

He just would rather devour you in this way. It allowed him to have you as many times as he pleased.

“You are the most intoxicating and dangerous woman I have ever met,” he tells you. His lips press a light kiss to the corner of your mouth, causing your lips to burn with anticipation.

Ryomen Sukuna had called you dangerous. You wondered how to take that… Though stunned, you realize just how shocking it was for this man to even admit that… It was a compliment, a kind you were sure he’d never admit. He was a proud man, sure of himself and his abilities.

“I think of ripping your flesh from your body constantly, just to see how you taste…” He’s looking down at you with his heavy eyes. Your chest raises as you take in a deep breath, breathless from his words. “I bet you’re sweet, like a forbidden fruit.”

“Yet, the very fact that I couldn’t have you again after that irks me,” he’s muttering out huskily. “I would go mad.”

For someone who touches you so gently, he speaks with strong vehement. His brutish, aggressive vocabulary and behavior completely unparalleled to the actions in which he presents to you.

The man is a killer, eating humans for pure enjoyment and pleasure. A selfish man who is exceptionally sadistic. Cold-hearted but not for you. His heart warms you in ways no other being could. Nothing could compare.

You allow him to devour you in the way he does now, even knowing he’d never let you go.

A prisoner to Ryomen Sukuna.

From below, you admire the darkness of his tattoos that embellish his striking face. His fair skin glows from the lanterns in the room, but the pink of his cheeks remains prominent. Your eyes flicker around, following the lines on his jaw to his chin then back to his eyes.

Pink eyebrows furrow together while he studies you from above. It was as if he casted a curtain of pure lust by the way he gazed down.

His jaw clenches.

“I am yours,” you finally say in your hushed voice. The words pass easily through your lips, only because you were certain you meant it.

Eager to say it.

He seems to enjoy your words. Lips raise into a proud smirk as a deep, but quiet chuckle erupts from him. His blush seems to have grown darker, which causes your lips to turn up a bit. It thrills you to see such a beast crested in a rosy hue that you’d caused.

It makes you proud.

“I am yours,” you repeat again, reaching a hand towards his face. His skin is on fire, lighting your fingertips ablaze as you’re caressing his cheek. It’s soft, forming into the palm of your hand as you cup his face. Your fingertips just barely reach the edge of his hairline past his ear.

“So have me.”

Your words push him over the edge, causing a low growl to erupt from his throat. He’s moving his hips up a bit, positioning himself to fit you.

With an airy gasp, you’re feeling the bottom side of his shaft slide up against your clit, gathering your wetness. His size could be felt even from the minuscule movements. Though you’ve had him many times before, it always felt new. The pure excitement and intimidation never left.

You watch as he leans his hips back, only to bring them forward, placing his tip against your needy entrance. You’re taking in a shaking breath, eager to feel him… He’s sliding in without issue, thanks to your wetness.

Instantly you are taking hold of his arms, releasing his face. Your fingers latching into his tattoos biceps that cage you in.

His cock stretches you, pushing deep into you and kissing your cervix with his large tip. “God,” you whimper out, clenching your teeth as he slides his hips further into you, bottoming out completely. Even now, you’re amazed you’re able to take all of him.

Sukuna’s body is fully pressed into you, stomach against yours. His elbows dig into the fabric of the futon as he supports himself. His other pair of arms do the same, unable to do anything else as he presses into you. It’s just enough, you realize. He would not crush you.

When he begins to slowly drag out a bit, you feel a puff of warm air spread over your face. You realize how close his face is to yours, feeling the softness of his lips just barely touching your cheek.

“You are so tight,” he’s murmuring into your cheek as he presses a kiss. He’s bucking into you once more, grunting into your skin.

Your clit is suddenly stimulated, feeling a warmness as if he’d placed a hand down there… You’re moaning, biting your lip.

It’s his second cock, probably the one closer to his stomach. The top one. It’s sliding against your swollen cunt as he drags himself in and out of you.

His top right hand moves to cup your face, angling your head to your left so he can access your neck. Lips finding your sensitive skin, you’re panting as he quickens his pace, pressing his body into you a bit harder. You realize he’s attempting to stimulate his other cock this way.

It lights you on fire, feeling him use you this way.

You’re moving your left hand between the gap between his two arms, placing a hand on his back. He nips at the skin of your neck, grunting in rhythm with his thrusts. You take your other hand and find the hair on the back of his head, holding onto it.

With a light tug, he’s growling again, directly into your ear now.

His thrusts are a good pace, not slow but not fast, they’re just right. It’s hitting the sweet spot within you each time. His top cock helping you reach your climax with each slide.

You can feel every inch of him pump in and out of you.

Yet, you feel a devious idea come to mind, which makes you remove your hand from his back.

Between your bodies your hand moves, traveling low enough to find what you are looking for. His tip thrusts up, peeking between your stomachs and you wrap your eager hand around it, finding his shaft further down. It makes him halt his movements. Curiously, he’s looking at you now. “Keep going,” you plead, sighing. “I am close.”

He continues with no issue, thrusting into the cage of your fingers. The added tightness is good, you note. Only due to the fact that you could feel the way his hands tighten in the fabric of the futon below you. You were scared he may rip it.

In one thrust, you’re crying out, feeling the sudden harshness of it. It wasn’t painful, but you weren’t prepared for it. “Ryo…” you’re mumbling out in a whimper, dragging your nails through his hair as he fucks into you. His cock inside of you throbs, just like the one in your hand. You could only imagine how good it felt for him in this moment.

Your hand is placed just above your clit, so his dick is still sliding against your folds. Each thrust brings you closer. Vision growing hazy and bright as it builds up in your core.

At this point you’re closing your eyes, whimpering uncontrollably. “I-I’m…” you’re stuttering, clenching your hand tighter around his cock as you feel the orgasm begin to blossom. “You’re so good,” you hear him praise you.

A silent gasp comes from your lips as you throw your head back. Body exploding from the intensity of your orgasm. It has your clenching your cunt around his cock, which makes him hiss in return.

As the waves of pleasure cascade around you, he’s still relentlessly thrusting into you. In your ears you can feel and hear your heartbeat; it’s erratic. You keep hold of him in your hand, wanting to help as much as you can.

Soon enough, you feel him press his lips to yours, taking in your parted lips. His tongue finds yours instantly. Thrusts become uneven, bucking into you in a broken pattern. You know he’s close, which makes you moan.

He groan into your mouth and you feel an added wet heat between your bodies. Inside, you feel him release, filling you completely. Sukuna always came a lot… So you’d have to bathe again you were sure.

“Shit,” you hear him curse after he pulls his lips from yours. You’re looking up at him in a dazed trance, completely exhausted. Though the two of you had done much more in a session, this time wore you out anyways.

He’s slowly pulling out of you, leaning back and sitting on his knees. You’re sighing as you take in the sight before you, watching him do the same to you.

“What a lovely sight,” you hear Sukuna chuckle out.

You’re covered in his cum. It’s pooled up on your stomach and running down the sides of your body. You were sure it was running out of your cunt as well.

“I can bathe again,” you tell him, knowing he won’t sleep soiled. Yet, he’s reaching a hand between your legs, sticking two digits into your pussy. “Ah!” You jolt, feeling the overstimulation from it. His two large fingers pump in and out of you a couple times before pulling back out.

“I had to make sure it all stayed in there,” he says, leaning back down to hover over you. Sukuna presses a soft kiss to your lips before bringing his fingers to them. “Clean them,” he orders. Your stomach does a flip, but you follow his orders, feeling his fingers slide between your swollen lips.

You taste yourself and him, mixed together into one salty and sweet taste. It just about riles you back up.

One of your hands holds his wrist as you lick his fingers clean, pulling them out once you’re done.

“I’ll wash you,” Sukuna is finally saying, crawling off of you to stand. As he stands you take in all that he is, four arms and everything. A beast.

You ignore the fact that he’s about to walk around his shrine fully nude, but you realize he doesn’t care. It’s his shrine. It’s also yours, you note, as he picking you up from the futon. His bottom pair of arms holds you bridal style against him, top pair hiding your nude body the best they can.

“Toys last longer if you take care of them,” is all Sukuna mumbles to you while he exits the room towards the bathing area.

[vestaignis]

«Дьявольский глаз» источника Айкен в пустыне Гоби, Китай.

Озеро Айкен расположено в северо-западной части Китая, в автономном районе Цинхай. Оно является одним из самых глубоких и красивых озер в мире. Его глубина достигает 230 метров, что делает его одним из самых глубоких озер в Китае.

Айкен в переводе с монгольского – ужасный. И в самом деле, вид у этой местности ужасный, похож на представления про ад и серу. В центре источника находится кипящая бурлящая вода. Так же озеро Айкен уникально тем, что оно окрашивает землю в красный цвет. За цвет отвечают соединения серы и окислы железа. Это происходит благодаря тому, что в озере обитают микроорганизмы, которые окисляют железо в воде. В результате этого процесса вода становится красной.

Кроме того, озеро Айкен похоже сверху на глаза, так как его форма напоминает глаза. Это делает его еще более уникальным и красивым. Однако, несмотря на свою красоту, озеро Айкен лишено жизни- в нем нет рыб или других животных. Тем не менее, это не мешает туристам со всего мира приезжать сюда, чтобы насладиться красотой этого уникального озера.

"Devil's Eye" of the Aiken Spring in the Gobi Desert, China.

Lake Aiken is located in the northwestern part of China, in the Qinghai Autonomous Region. It is one of the deepest and most beautiful lakes in the world. Its depth reaches 230 meters, which makes it one of the deepest lakes in China.

Aiken in Mongolian means terrible. And indeed, the appearance of this area is terrible, similar to ideas about hell and sulfur. In the center of the source is boiling, bubbling water. Lake Aiken is also unique in that it colors the ground red. Sulfur compounds and iron oxides are responsible for the color. This happens because the lake is home to microorganisms that oxidize iron in the water. As a result of this process, the water turns red.

In addition, Lake Aiken looks like eyes from above, as its shape resembles eyes. This makes it even more unique and beautiful. However, despite its beauty, Lake Aiken is devoid of life - there are no fish or other animals in it. However, this does not stop tourists from all over the world from coming here to enjoy the beauty of this unique lake.

Источник: /t.me/roundtravel, /german.china.org.cn/txt/2020-08 /26/content_76639267_3.htm, /pabliko.ru/@olka/ozero_aiken_kitaj-280834/, /www.behance.net/gallery/164309405 /Aiken-Spring-II?locale=pl _PL, //dzen.ru/a/X97wjzcTo3uG27KY, //www.westchinago. com/qinghai-aiken-spring.

[nasa]

Let's Explore a Metal-Rich Asteroid 🤘

Between Mars and Jupiter, there lies a unique, metal-rich asteroid named Psyche. Psyche’s special because it looks like it is part or all of the metallic interior of a planetesimal—an early planetary building block of our solar system. For the first time, we have the chance to visit a planetary core and possibly learn more about the turbulent history that created terrestrial planets.

Here are six things to know about the mission that’s a journey into the past: Psyche.

1. Psyche could help us learn more about the origins of our solar system.

After studying data from Earth-based radar and optical telescopes, scientists believe that Psyche collided with other large bodies in space and lost its outer rocky shell. This leads scientists to think that Psyche could have a metal-rich interior, which is a building block of a rocky planet. Since we can’t pierce the core of rocky planets like Mercury, Venus, Mars, and our home planet, Earth, Psyche offers us a window into how other planets are formed.

2. Psyche might be different than other objects in the solar system.

Rocks on Mars, Mercury, Venus, and Earth contain iron oxides. From afar, Psyche doesn’t seem to feature these chemical compounds, so it might have a different history of formation than other planets.

If the Psyche asteroid is leftover material from a planetary formation, scientists are excited to learn about the similarities and differences from other rocky planets. The asteroid might instead prove to be a never-before-seen solar system object. Either way, we’re prepared for the possibility of the unexpected!

3. Three science instruments and a gravity science investigation will be aboard the spacecraft.

The three instruments aboard will be a magnetometer, a gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer, and a multispectral imager. Here’s what each of them will do:

Magnetometer: Detect evidence of a magnetic field, which will tell us whether the asteroid formed from a planetary body

Gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer: Help us figure out what chemical elements Psyche is made of, and how it was formed

Multispectral imager: Gather and share information about the topography and mineral composition of Psyche

The gravity science investigation will allow scientists to determine the asteroid’s rotation, mass, and gravity field and to gain insight into the interior by analyzing the radio waves it communicates with. Then, scientists can measure how Psyche affects the spacecraft’s orbit.

4. The Psyche spacecraft will use a super-efficient propulsion system.

Psyche’s solar electric propulsion system harnesses energy from large solar arrays that convert sunlight into electricity, creating thrust. For the first time ever, we will be using Hall-effect thrusters in deep space.

5. This mission runs on collaboration.

To make this mission happen, we work together with universities, and industry and NASA to draw in resources and expertise.

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the mission and is responsible for system engineering, integration, and mission operations, while NASA’s Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Services Program manages launch operations and procured the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.

Working with Arizona State University (ASU) offers opportunities for students to train as future instrument or mission leads. Mission leader and Principal Investigator Lindy Elkins-Tanton is also based at ASU.

Finally, Maxar Technologies is a key commercial participant and delivered the main body of the spacecraft, as well as most of its engineering hardware systems.

6. You can be a part of the journey.

Everyone can find activities to get involved on the mission’s webpage. There's an annual internship to interpret the mission, capstone courses for undergraduate projects, and age-appropriate lessons, craft projects, and videos.

You can join us for a virtual launch experience, and, of course, you can watch the launch with us on Oct. 12, 2023, at 10:16 a.m. EDT!

For official news on the mission, follow us on social media and check out NASA’s and ASU’s Psyche websites.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

[grapeagata]

jesus christ god in heaven oh my god you seeing this????????

It's Red Fox Agate, juses chorist my gog wow

holy fuck that is gorgeous, it's red because iron oxide, it's bubbly because gas bubbles that happened when lava was cooling, holy fuck, and then the gases are destroyed and it leaves holes, then some liquid with lots of silica in it deposits quartz and chalcedony inside tge holes

it'a like mid on the hardness scale, denser than water, trigonal crystal system, no cleavage, also it's gorgeous and beautiful and I'm getting married to this agate the marriage is today, right now, you're all invited

[etirabys]

abiogenesis & endosymbiosis timeline

I put this together after reading Nick Lane's The Vital Question. The proposed timeline:

3.8bya: The earliest evidence for life is isotopic fractionation. The carbon (and iron, sulfur, nitrogen) atoms in graphite in Greenland are non-randomly sorted, which indicates the presence of cells whose enzymes have a slight preference for the lighter forms of each. However, geological processes can also produce non-random sorting, so this evidence is ambiguous.

3.5bya: Less ambiguously, we have microfossils that look like cells, again with isotopic signatures.

We think bacteria and archaea split off really early, close to the beginning of life (abiogenesis) itself. This is because their cell walls and membranes are so different it's hard to see how one could have evolved from the other. They probably emerged in parallel when they became independent at all. (Quick sketch of abiogenesis, and bacteria/archaea divergences.)

3.2bya: We see bacterial activity in rust bands in rocks. When bacteria strip electrons from iron dissolved in the oceans, the oxidated iron precipitates out into rust and sinks down to the ocean floor.

All bacteria and archaea respire (strip electrons from a donor 'fuel' to generate ATP, which fuels cellular activity). Many donors are possible – common ones are Fe2+, H2S, or H2O (which respectively become Fe3+, S, and O2 after the electron is stripped). Water is the last to be cracked as a donor.

2.4bya: It's cracked now, by some bacteria (archaea never manage it), which leads to The Great Oxidation Event. The oxygen is first absorbed by the oceans, the seabed, and land surfaces. It'll take over a billion years before the oxygen 'sinks' are exhausted, and oxygen accumulates in the atmosphere for real.

1.8bya: A bacterium somehow ends up inside an archaeon cell, and somehow they don't die about it. The bacterium becomes a specialized energy-producing unit, allowing the host cell to grow larger and more complex. They become the first eukaryote, invent sex, and spawn all complex life. (You can read my RPF about it btw.)

1bya: This engulfment – endosymbiosis – happens one more time, to produce chloroplasts in plants.

0.5-6bya: Atmospheric oxygen levels are rising for real now. We see large complex eukaryotes for the first time. These creatures have specialized tissues whose failure threatens the entire organism, and it becomes advantageous to separate out the germline (the part of eukaryotes that divide forever, e.g. sperm and eggs) and make the rest of the body just durable enough to last as long as the most failure-prone tissues. Death by design has entered the world.

[iamthepulta]

@joemomrgneissguy SPACE MINING. HO BOY.

So when mining comes into a conversation, there are several 'laws' of mining and processing that I like to consider that people tend to forget:

Location and rarity of commodity

Location and rarity of extraction techniques/reagents

What is necessary for this operation to work?

Where does the finished product go?

Some of these are extraneous. Theoretically, we don't have to care that iron is common on earth and might be present on the moon, so it changes the conversation from "why?" to "how would we?". Same with extraction and reagents. If you don't care how expensive it is to ship- for example: water and carbon dioxide to the moon because you want to process He-3, nothing can stop you.

However, what will stop planning, is processing. Blowing up a rock is easy. Collecting the rock and breaking it into a usable form is not. If there isn't a plan for exactly what commodity is being mined and how to separate it and all the equipment that needs to be made to get it into a usable form, and a plan to get that equipment into space. God help the poor bastard.

And fundamentally, no matter HOW you turn it, people use the finished product. If there are no people where you are mining the Thing, you need to have a way for the Thing to get back to the people who need it. WHY are you mining the Thing? What is economic about the Thing being made? and Is it worth the money?

[angry geologist rant under the cut]

So the thing about space and asteroids is metals come in native form a lot of the time because there's nothing to oxidize them; it makes processing simpler and the density increases profit. This is usually what people talk about when they go off about space mining: Ohh, if we just reach this asteroid 400 years away there's so much Gold and Platinum! Ohh, if we just crashed a FUCKING ASTEROID INTO EARTH OR MARS we could be so rich!

However this is a LIE for two reasons: It's actually harder to process straight sulfides or straight metal because they aren't brittle. Instead of breaking into smaller pieces you can separate and process, they jam the crusher. Universities with mining departments often have huge chunks of impressive high-grade sitting around that were donated by companies when they jammed their fucking system. If you can't break it down, it's a useless fucking clump of rock.

Secondly, even if you have native metals clumped together like an iron-nickel asteroid, unless you want an iron-nickel product, you have to separate them. Since it's not brittle, you would have to pour a bunch of hydrochloric on it and wait for the reaction to dissolve the outer surface.

And all this is assuming the metals are on Earth. If not, you have to figure out how to do this in space. How much HCl will you need? How are you going to fly it up there? How are you going to break it down? How are you going to replace parts when they inevitably break?

The big "commodity" on the moon is Helium-3, which is extremely rare on Earth. (So yes, we have a need, and yes, there's substantial reason to mine it in a place where it's more accessible.) The logic starts breaking down around "getting it back" and "how does the operation work": In moon quantities (up to 15 parts per billion (ppb)), you have to mine about 150 tons to extract 1g of He-3. That's not unreasonable, to be honest, since economic gold hovers around 7-12 ppb. And technically you'd only have to heat the rock to 600-700 C. However, things do melt at those temperatures. Then you have to get it back to earth. Either a SpaceX-style return and come back, or a drop shipments- It's just insane to me though that we would use SO MANY RESOURCES to rip up the fucking moon, even with an automated system, when if you look at He-3 we already produce what equals 11 pounds of He-3 yearly from Oil and Gas deposits, it's just not collected.

I have more beef with planets that are theoretically resource-rich, but people just- don't care about getting them back to Earth? Venus has significant metal-Sulfides and Tellurides in its atmosphere, which is why people joke about the "floating oxygen colonies" on Venus. But congratulations! You've colonized a planet that is inaccessible to human technology because anything we've ever designed will dissolve. Same with Europa. To design something that works on Venus - not to mention extracts things in the proper form to be used in human conditions - and/or get them back to Earth means redesigning how we think of the properties of the periodic table.

With extraction, we play a lot with oxidation states, and one of the rules is to stay within Earth's aqueous conditions. If you oxidize anything too much, your solution will want to vaporize to oxygen. Reduce anything too much, and your solution will want to vaporize to hydrogen gas.

So, if you design anything on Earth designed for conditions on Venus, it will be unstable. If you design anything on Venus meant for Earth, it will be unstable.

Which is kind of the end of my rant, I guess. Don't crash something into Earth unless you can process it. If you can process it in space, can you get it back? Who's responsible when the thing breaks? Why the fuck is money being spent when 9 times out of 10 we have it here on earth with the conditions we're familiar with?

If we've somehow depleted Earth enough that we need resources from other planets, which would insinuate we have not figured out how to recycle our own metals, which is untrue, and likewise we have no business in space anyway- Where did all our resources go? Are we leaving for those other planets? Do we have faster-than-light travel to collect the new resources in a timely manner?

There isn't even water in space half the time and if you do have a colony on Mars and tech bros are going to process all the hematite to build their shitty underground Martian city, are they shipping water from the north and south poles to do this? Have they figured out how to renew the carbon filters that are going to be needed to get all the waste and organics out of it once it's used?

In my opinion, it's all just fucking stupid. Space mining tries to answer a question that doesn't need to be asked with people who don't know how mineral processing works who haven't thought what the logistics require and don't care that entropy demands even minerals in stasis don't last forever. But it's ~new~ and the dollar signs on metallic asteroids gleam in their eyes and I want to take out Elon Musk's kneecaps.