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TOPIC: Mother-of-pearl

Blobrana

L

Posts: 131433

Date: Feb 16 23:41 2012

Nacre	Permalink

Mother of pearl tells a tale of ocean temperature, depth Nacre or mother of pearl, scientists and artisans know, is one of nature's amazing utilitarian materials. Produced by a multitude of mollusc species, nacre is widely used in jewellery and art. It is inlaid into musical instruments, furniture and decorative boxes. Fashioned into buttons, beads and a host of functional objects from pens to flatware, mother of pearl lends a lustrous iridescence to everyday objects. In recent years, subjecting the material to the modern tools of scientific analysis, scientists have divined the fine points of nacre architecture and developed models to help explain its astonishing durability: 3,000 times more fracture resistant than the mineral from which it is made, aragonite. Read more __________________

Blobrana

L

Posts: 131433

Date: Jul 5 23:17 2007

Mother-of-pearl	Permalink

While the shiny material of pearls and abalone shells has long been prized for its iridescence and aesthetic value in jewellery and decorations, scientists admire mother-of-pearl for other physical properties as well. Also called nacre ("NAY-ker"), mother-of-pearl is 3,000 times more fracture-resistant than the mineral it is made of, aragonite. "You can go over it with a truck and not break it - you will crumble the outside but not the inside. And we don't understand how it forms - that's why it's so fun to study" - Pupa Gilbert, a physicist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Read more __________________

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