News

Quarts August 2010

Given enough time, Matter will eventually start to think about itself.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary tells us that the word "geology" is the science and study of the Earth’s crust .In that crust is found the most common mineral, namely Quartz. It is the simplest of chemical structures, consisting of one part silicon and two parts oxygen (Si O2). I can feel your eyes glazing over already, but let me tell you about this amazing substance.

It is one of the most common minerals on the earth's surface, and its unique properties make it one of the most useful. The word "quartz" comes from Old German meaning something hard or tough. It is so tough it is the dominant mineral on mountain tops, when everything else has been eroded away. And what has been weathered is now on our beaches and the World's deserts. It is chemically inert when in contact with other substances and at a push, it can probably bend spoons!

What is amazing is quartz has electrical properties that make it so valuable in electronic products .It can be made to bend in an electric field. It has the further advantage that is does not change size as the temperature changes. This means that a quartz clock will remain accurate as the temperature changes. A quartz clock uses an electronic oscillator that is regulated by a quartz crystal to keep accurate time. Basically they are more accurate than a mechanical clock. More about clocks later.

As you read this you may be wearing quartz jewelry. Purple quartz is known as amethyst, yellow quartz is known as citrine and clear quartz is known as rock crystal. Even early Stone- Age Man used quartz in the form of flint to make his arrowheads and knife blades. On Limestone Island flint stones can be found that were used by the cement company to make their product. Feeling crook? Your next operation could see your surgeon using a quartz product.

At the Claphams Clock Museum can be found several examples of quartz crystal clocks. The staff there were inspired by this simple quartz technology to consider making their own cheap but effective time pieces. This led on to their display at the recent and very successful Mid-Winter Festival at Forum North.

Using the basic quartz clock mechanism, people were invited to make their own clocks. They were encouraged to create their own unique clock face designs, and there were some wonderful creations! The black family moggy, planes, horses, a guinea pig called Biscuit and many more. And they took home a real clock that worked for a pittance! Nothing succeeds like success, so the Clock Museum staff are once again inviting families to take the kids down to the Town Basin and have some fun making a quartz crystal clock.

Clock-making workshops will be held on the last Sunday of the Month for the next three months, allowing folk to create their own unique timepiece at a fraction of the cost of a bought one. We have been blessed by Nature in so many ways. While Time waits for no man, don’t wait to clock-in to the Clock Museum and register for some fun and cheap time.