Preliminary: Rocks and Minerals

[Cheesy Pie]

I still think a good method is a previous test. It gives an idea of what the test is like even before you get the rules. And after.

[anatomy]

Yes, I agree, tests are really helpful.

Would the audubon field guide be a good a resource for this event?

I looked at it and it didn't have all the required info. so I don't know if it is actually that good.

[Cheesy Pie]

Do you know of a field guide with more info?

[IdahoSciGuy]

The Guides I use:

Simon and Schuster's Guide to Rocks and Minerals
Peterson's Field Guide, Rocks and Minerals
National Audubon Society Guide to North American Rocks and Minerals.

The audubon guide is my favorite of the three, it has an appropriate selection from the official list, Has excellent photos, and is well organized. Simon and schusters is a close second for me. It has an incredible range of diversity of minerals, however much of it is unnecessary. Also, the minerals are sporadically located, making it hard to organize. The Plus side is the pictures are incredibly detailed, more so than the audubon society. Last on my list is the Peterson guide. It has a wealth of written information in it, though there are very few pictures located in the center of the book, and it is very textual. If you learn by reading, this would be a good one for you.

When making tests, I use all three, because some of the information(like crystalline structure, and chemical composition) comes from one guide, while another may have common usage information, and still another may provide basic hardness and cleavage information, for example. If you had to pick a guide to bring to the comp, I would definitely choose the audubon society, in my opinion.

[mingtian]

Do you know of a field guide with more info?

I would recommend the Audobon. It's my personal favorite in all subject areas. They do a thorough job.

[tuftedtitmouse12]

i just hate how that the plates are on different pages than the info

[rfscoach]

i just hate how that the plates are on different pages than the info

Ditto!

[tuftedtitmouse12]

its impossibly annoying
with forestry and ornithology, it was also like that, but with both having a east and a west edition
its annoying

the info, though i will have to agree with ming, is pretty sufficient, but the organization could use some changes...
i was thinking about getting a better organized field guide and writing down audubon info into the other field guide...

[anatomy]

its impossibly annoying
with forestry and ornithology, it was also like that, but with both having a east and a west edition
its annoying

the info, though i will have to agree with ming, is pretty sufficient, but the organization could use some changes...
i was thinking about getting a better organized field guide and writing down audubon info into the other field guide...

Ya, i agree, it is a great guide but the organization sucks, and some minerals are impossible to find.
The index says that they are there, but you aren't able to find them.

[tuftedtitmouse12]

during competition, it would take too long to flip through all that...
if audubon changed its organization...i might actually like the series....

[anatomy]

If this event allows a binder, then I would just copy all the information from the Audubon guide and add it to my binder.
This way, I would still have the information but the organization would be better. Then I'd just take another useful field guide to the competition.

[tuftedtitmouse12]

hm, good idea
what resources were you allowed to take in last time this was an event?
what resources for fossils were allowed?

[Cheesy Pie]

For fossils we did the Smithsonian guide. Do they have a R&M book, and if so is it good?

[gneissisnice]

hm, good idea
what resources were you allowed to take in last time this was an event?
what resources for fossils were allowed?

Both Fossils and Rocks and Minerals have always allowed a binder and a field guide.

[tuftedtitmouse12]

hm, then in the binder, couldn't you dedicate a page or so to each mineral and categorize it and arrange it so it would be easy to navigate? and then get a good ID book as your field guide?