GEOLOGY FOR HUNGRY PEOPLE PT 1

Part of the human condition is unanswerable questions about the nature of what it means to be alive. Why are we all here on this planet? What is the purpose of life? Why on Earth do geologists do what they do?

Being the Philosopher™️ that I am, I have somehow come up with the answer. After decades of meditating in a cave, searching the solutions for life's biggest queries, and consulting the sacred text, An Introduction to Physical Geography, by Edward J. Tarbuck, I have stumbled upon the answer. And that is that geologists are hungry. Rocks can be divided into three categories based on formation: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. Igneous rocks are definitely the most edible looking, followed by metamorphic, and finally, sedimentary. Sedimentary rocks don't seem to have quite the crunch I crave. Igneous rocks, before they are rocks, are magma, which definitely looks quite appetizing. I want to dip a Ritz cracker in this like it's hummus.

When magma cools, igneous rocks are formed. Magma, (which is lava when it's not underground), is created from the melting of the mantle or the core. I think it's ironic that we get new rocks (igneous rocks) from solidified melted old rock. Igneous rocks are either extrusive or intrusive, based on how they specifically form from magma. Igneous rocks forming from magma in the Earth's crust are called intrusive igneous rocks, whereas extrusive igneous rocks form on the surface. Most igneous rocks are intrusive. Intrusive igneous rocks are classified based on depth, with plutonic igneous rocks being formed in the shadowy depths of the crust, and hypabyssal igneous rocks being formed just below the surface of the crust. Extrusive igneous rocks are formed on the surface, often from volcanoes. The most common extrusive igneous rock is basalt. Intrusive igneous rocks are typically larger in grain size in comparison to extrusive igneous rocks. Plutonic igneous rocks typically have larger grain sizes than hypabyssal igneous rocks.

One of my favorite intrusive igneous rocks is peridotite, which is green! Peridotite is GREEN. On a scale of 1-10, I'd definitely rate it pretty high, at a 9.7/10.

Diorite is also pretty good, but I'm not sure how I'd feel texture-wise. It absolutely gives Oreo. 7/10

Extrusive igneous rocks look absolutely SCRUMPTIOUS. My favorite is kinda basic: obsidian. Looks delicious. Definitely a 9.5/10. I prefer the smoother igneous rocks, but I will not lie, pumice makes me hungry. Igneous rocks can be classified based off of the type of magma from which they form. Felsic magma has the most silicon dioxide, usually above 63% or so. Because of this, felsic rocks are composed of minerals like feldspar and quartz. Intrusive felsic rocks include granite (tastier when polished), and extrusive felsic rocks include rhyolite and phonolite. Granite gets a solid 5.7/10, and rhyolite earns itself a 7.2/10. Phonolite gets a 6/10. Intermediate magma has 51-63% silicon dioxide, including diorite and andesite. This is still a good amount of silicon, and intermediate igneous rocks are composed of a lot of feldspars. Color of intermediate rock is darker than that of felsic rocks. Diorite, as I said earlier, is my GOAT. Oreo flavored rock... Andesite is similar to Oreo rock, and earns a 6.5/10. With mafic rocks, we start to say farewell to feldspars, and instead, pyroxenes and olivines take up the mantle (see what I did there?) Here's where you get really hungry. Mafic rocks are even darker than intermediate rocks, and further, are denser than intermediate and felsic rocks. Mafic rocks include basalt and gabbro, both of which are fine grained rather than porphyritic. Basalt gets itself a 5/10, and gabbro easily earns a 6/10. Ultramafic rocks are definitely the best. This is where they have funky colors, as well as the absolute least amount of silicon dioxide- less than 43%. Ultramafic rocks are the densest, and can sometimes be green. Ultramafic rocks include peridotite, komatiite, and melilitite. Peridotite, as expressed earlier, is a 9.7/10, although that mostly might be because green. Komatiite is so cool, it has all the funky lines- 8.6/10, I like texture with my meals. And melilitite is amazing, it has melilites (the names are killing me, too.)

This is a melilite, and I think it looks so good and tasty and crunchy and crispy..

By virtue of the melilite itself, melilitites earn a 9.6/10.

Stay tuned for a part 2 later this week, where we delve into sedimentary rocks and metamorphic rocks!