Rocks and minerals are inextricably tied to our history. Rocks and minerals were used by ancient zodiac systems to represent personality types. Alchemists used different rocks and minerals in their quest to make the philosopher's stone and achieve the spiritual goal of turning lead into gold. Today, rocks and minerals are an essential part of everyday life, with mines all over the world digging up elements most people are unaware of to put into the batteries and circuitry that power the devices we carry every day.
Our relationship with minerals goes back even further, though. The Epic of Gilgamesh is alleged to have been carved into tablets of lapis lazuli by Gilgamesh himself. That same mineral was recently found in the teeth of skulls from a medieval convent's cemetery, showing the nuns there illustrated medieval Bibles and would sharpen their brush tips by putting them between their lips. Minerals not only tell a story in science but in culture. Our associations with them have everything to do with how we use them now and how we used them in the past.
Which rock represents your soul? This is a complex question, but we determined how to find out. Just take this quiz, and we'll tell you the rock you should rock.
Do you like to make jokes at work?
All the time! I keep them self-deprecating.
Rarely. I like jokes, but I'm not much of a joke teller.
I don't. I don't think work is the place for joking around.
All the time, though my sense of humor is a little coarse.
