User:Stephbender/sandbox

Environmental Science
The Environmental Science article is relatively clear and its structure is in the beginning stages, also material included is relevant to the topic. The general idea of this discipline is divided into components which are explained in greater depth and the article concludes with a paragraph on environmental regulations. There is no biased opinion because no particular portion of the subject has been discussed in great depth also most references are university or agency websites therefore reliable with respect to neutrality. Material currently included in the article is easy to comprehend however it should be adjusted to fit with more information that must be included. Looking at the talk page it is a wikiproject and under quality scale rated as C class. In the discussion editors appear to dislike the article at its current stage, reports are that it is all over the place with respect to disciplines and believe it should be entirely redone. Environmental science is difficult to work with because it does cross many paths, it is not solely based on scientific theories. Many other contributing factors such as politics, economy and society must be incorporated to understand the entire science of the environment. The current material in the article should remain but expanded and other factors of the science should be included. Regulations of the science should be also be expanded and discussion of worldwide regulations should be included. There is a lengthy list of suggested article tasks on the talk page including adding photos, expanding discussion, and update information for multiple sections of the article. On the reference section citations were checked and links are active, most sources are educational institutes or agencies which lack depth of information for this encyclopedia purpose, I would suggest to cite scholarly articles for current and future material, this is necessary to pinpoint and elaborate on specific ideas.This article is overall a brief and mediocre summary of environmental sciences however this study is very broad with many paths that can be expanded so this article does require work and additional information to be a valuable resource.

Talc
Talc is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. Talc in powdered form, often in combination with corn starch is a widely used substance known as baby powder. This mineral is one of the main ingredients in many cosmetic products, also used as a thickening agent and lubricant. It occurs as foliated to fibrous masses, and in an exceptionally rare crystal form. It has a perfect basal cleavage, uneven flat fracture and it is foliated with a two dimensional platy form.

The Mohs scale of mineral hardness is based on scratch hardness comparison, ranging from 1-10, a value of 10 being the hardest of minerals. Talc is the defining value 1 therefore the softest of minerals. Any mineral below a value of 2 on Mohs scale of mineral hardness can be scratched by a fingernail. When scraped on a streak plate it produces a white streak, this indicator is of little importance because most silicate minerals produce a white streak. Talc is translucent to opaque with colors ranging from whitish grey to green with a vitreous and pearly luster. Talc is not soluble in water, but is slightly soluble in dilute mineral acids. l.

Soapstone is a well known metamorphic rock composed predominantly of talc.

Article Draft
This article has very little information with respect to geology, chemistry and use in the industry. It is listed as a level 5 vital article in earth sciences, it is a wikiproject of high importance start-class with respect to volcanoes and mid-importance with respect to geology. There are very brief points made on the talk page, therefore my goal is to fix all of these points. I will be adjusting the introductory paragraph so summarize the key facts of this igneous rock. The following paragraph will be adjusted to focus on chemical and geological related properties. The section on 'Uses' is very brief therefore I will be elaborating on industrial uses with the history of use under each bulletin. I will be removing the section on natural sources and replacing it with a section on volcanoes. Sub headings under Volcanic Occurrence will contain locations of volcanoes that produce or have the potential to produce pumice.

=Pumice= Pumice ( /ˈpʌmɪs/), called pumicite in its powdered or dust form, is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals. It ranges from medium to light grey. Scoria is another vesicular volcanic rock that differs from pumice in having larger vesicles, and being dark colored due to magma chemical composition.[1]

Pumice is created when super-heated, highly pressurized rock is violently ejected from a volcano. The unusual foamy configuration of pumice happens because of simultaneous rapid cooling and rapid depressurization. The depressurization creates bubbles by lowering the solubility of gases (including water and CO2) that are dissolved in the lava, causing the gases to rapidly exsolve (like the bubbles of CO2 that appear when a carbonated drink is opened). The simultaneous cooling and depressurization freezes the bubbles in a matrix. Eruptions under water are rapidly cooled and the large volume of pumice created can be a shipping hazard for cargo ships.[3]

Origin of Name
Pumice is has a foamy appearance therefore the name was derived from the Latin word pumice. Through history this igneous rock has had many names because the formation was not clear. The old English term was “Spuma Maris” meaning froth of the sea because it was a frothy material that was thought to be hardened sea foam. It was also known as “écume de mer” in French and “Meerschaum” in German for the same reason, “foam from the sea”. In Greek civilization in approximately 80 BC it was called “lapis spongiae” for its vesicular properties. Many Greek scholars decided there were different sources of pumice, one of which being in the sea coral category.

Volcanic Occurrence
Pumice is solely produced from volcanic eruptions with high [silicate] content. High silicate concentrations are found closer to the surface of the earth, while more [mafic] rocks originate deeper beneath the surface of the earth. Depending on the type and formation of the volcano it will produce different compositions of igneous rock. Many physical properties of igneous rocks are dependent upon viscosity which is also associated with the type of volcano. With greater viscosity the magma traps more air bubble, this causes a more explosive reaction which releases more porous volatile like pumice.

Natural Sources
Pumice can be found all across the globe originating from continental volcanic occurrence and submarine volcanic occurrence, floating stones can also be distributed by ocean currents. As described earlier pumice is produced by the eruption of explosive volcanoes under certain conditions therefore natural sources occur in volcanically active regions. . In 2011, Italy and Turkey led pumice mining production at 4 and 3 million tonnes respectively; other large producers at or exceeding a million tonnes were Greece, Iran, Chile and Syria. Total world pumice production in 2011 was estimated at 17 million tonnes.

Asia
There are large reserves of pumice in Asian countries including Afghanistan, Indonesia, Japan and eastern Russia. Large amounts of pumice can be found at the Kamchatka Peninsula on the eastern flank of Russia. This area contains 19 active volcanoes and it lies in close proximity with the Pacific volcanic belt. Asia also contains the second most extreme volcano that erupted in the 20th century, Mount Pinatubo erupted on June 12, 1991 in the Philippines. Ash and pumice Lapilli were distributed over a square mile around the volcano, these ejections filled trenches that once reached 660 feet deep. So much magma was displaced from the vent than the volcano became a depression on the surface of the Earth. Another well known volcano that produces pumice is Krakatoa, an eruption in 1883 ejected so much pumice that kilometers of sea were covered in floating pumice and in some areas rose 1.5 meters above sea level.

Europe
Europe is the largest producer of pumice, there are deposits in Italy, Turkey, Greece, Hungary and Iceland. Italy is the largest producer of pumice because of its large eruptive volcanoes. On the Aeolian Islands of Italy lies the island of Lipari which is entirely volcanic rock, including pumice. Large amounts of igneous rock on this island are due to many extended periods of volcanic activity from the Upper Pleistocene/Tyrrhenian to the Post-Pleistocene.

North America
Pumice can be found all across North America including the Caribbean Islands. In the United States, pumice is mined in Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, California, New Mexico and Kansas. U.S. production of pumice and pumicite in 2011 was estimated at 380,000 tonnes, valued at $7.7 million with approximately 46% coming from Nevada and Oregon. Idaho is also a large producer of pumice because of the quality and brightness of the rock found in local reserves. One of the most famous volcanoes was Mount Mazama that erupted 7,700 years ago in Oregon. 300 feet of pumice and ash was deposited around the vent, the large amount of magma that was erupted caused the structure to collapse, forming a caldera now known as Crater Lake.

South America
Chile is one of the leading producers of Pumice in the world. The Puyehue-Cordón Caulle are two coalesced volcanoes in The Andes that ejected ash and pumice across Chile and Argentina. A recent eruption in 2011 wrecked havoc on the region by covering all surfaces and lakes in ash and pumice.

Africa
Kenya, Ethiopia and Tanzania have some deposits of pumice.

Australia
The Havre volcano is the largest deep ocean volcanoes in the world. The volcano erupted in July 2012 but remained unnoticed until enormous pieces of pumice were seen to be floating on the Pacific Ocean. Blankets of rock reached a thickness of 5 meters. . Most of this floating pumice is deposited on the North-West coast of New Zealand as well as the Polynesia islands.

Uses
Pumice is a very light weight, porous and abrasive material and it has been used for centuries in the construction and beauty industry. It is also used as an abrasive, especially in polishes, pencil erasers, and the production of stone-washed jeans.

Early Medicine
Pumice has been used in the medicinal industry for more than 2000 years. Ancient Chinese medicine used ground pumice to add to teas along with ground mica and fossilized bones to calm the spirit. This tea was used to treat dizziness, nausea, insomnia, and anxiety disorders. Ingestion of these pulverized rocks were actually able to soften nodules and was later used with other herbal ingredients to treat gallbladder cancer and urinary difficulties. In western medicine starting in the early 18th century, pumice was ground into a sugar consistency and with other ingredients was used to treat ulcers mostly on the skin and cornea. Concoctions like these were also used to help wounds scar in a healthier manner. In approximately 1680 it was noted by an English naturalist that pumice powder was used to promote sneezing.

Beauty
Pumice has been used as a material in personal care for thousands of years. Is an abrasive material that can be used in powered or or as a stone to remove unwanted hair or skin. In ancient Egypt skincare and beauty was very important to all classes, makeup and moisturizers were widely used. One common trend was to remove all hair on the body and create wigs with human or animals hair then dye them with black or red henna. Hair was removed from the body using creams, razors and pumice stones. Egyptian and Greek beauty culture was the root of Roman beauty, oils and eye paint were used however pumice stones had a different use. Pumice in powered form was used to whiten teeth in Roman culture, hair was simply died or bleached. Nail care was very important in ancient China, nails were kept groomed and calluses were removed using pumice stones. To this day many of these techniques are still used, pumice is widely used as a skin exfoliant, hair removal techniques have evolved but abrasive material like pumice stones are still used. "Pumice stones" are often used in beauty salons during the pedicure process to remove dry and excess skin from the bottom of the foot as well as calluses. If pumice stones are not being used in current nail care there are substitutes such as skin and nail specific sandpaper or steel files. Finely ground pumice is added to some toothpastes as a whitener and easily remove plaque build up, similar to what the Romans did, also it is added to heavy-duty hand cleaners (such as Lava soap) as a mild abrasive. Some brands of chinchilla dust bath are also made of powdered pumice. Old beauty techniques using pumice are still being done today however some substitutes are used that are easier to come by.

Construction
Pumice is widely used to make lightweight concrete, to reduce supporting materials needs and insulative low-density cinder blocks. The air filled vesicales in this porus rock serves as a good insulator. When used as an additive for cement, a fine-grained version of pumice called pozzolan is mixed with lime to form a light-weight, smooth, plaster-like concrete. This form of concrete was used as far back as Roman times. Roman engineers used it to build the huge dome of the Pantheon, increasing amounts of pumice were added to concrete for higher elevations of the structure. It was also commonly used as construction material for many aqueducts. One of the main uses of pumice in the United States is in concrete. This rock has been used in concrete mixtures for thousands of years and still are, especially in regions close to where this volcanic material is deposited.

Horticulture
A good soil requires sufficient water and nutrient loading as well as little compaction to allow easy exchange of gases. The roots of plants require continuous transportation of carbon dioxide and oxygen to and from the surface. Pumice improves the quality of soil because of its porous properties, water and gases can be transported easily through the pores and nutrients can be stored in the microscopic holes. Pumice rock fragments are inorganic therefore no decomposition and little compaction occurs. Another benefit of this inorganic rock is that it does not attract or host fungi or insects. Drainage is very important in horticulture, with the presence of pumice tillage is much easier, this property also creates ideal conditions for growing plants like cacti and succulents. Pumice increases the water retention in sandy soils and reduces the density of clayey soils to allow more transportation of gases and water. Addition of pumice to a soil improves and increases vegetative cover, the roots of plants make slopes more stable therefore it helps reduce erosion, often used on roadsides and ditches. Pumice is also commonly used in turf and golf courses to maintain grass cover and flatness that can degrade due to large amounts of traffic and compaction. With regards to chemical properties pumice is pH neutral so it is not acidic or alkaline. In 2011, 16% of pumice mined in the United States was used for horticultural purposes.

Mining
Mining Pumice is an environmentally friendly process compared with other mining methods because the igneous rock is deposited on the surface of the earth in loose aggregate form. The material is mined by open pit methods. Soils are removed by machinery in order to obtain more pure quality pumice. Scalping screen are used to filter impure surficial pumice of organic soils and unwanted rocks. Blasting is not necessary because the material is unconsolidated, therefore only simple machinery is used such as bulldozers and power shovels. Different sizes of pumice are needed for specific muses therefore crushers are used to achieve desired grades ranging from lump, coarse, intermediate, fine and extra fine.

Reflective Essay
Reaching the end of the semester this Wikipedia project has been most valuable to me because of the contributions I am making to a free encyclopedia that is used worldwide. In the beginning of the term I learned the goals and regulations of Wikipedia, with this knowledge I evaluated an article on Environmental Sciences. To begin I read the entirety of the article which was quite brief, then went to the talk page and noticed many comments on how to improve the article. I critiqued the article by taking the contents of the talk page and my own opinion and provided an overall evaluation of what could be done to improve the article. I mentioned that environmental sciences was a very broad topic and could go many ways into differing disciplines, the structure could be altered by dividing these fields into separate topics or separate articles. I noticed in the article that there was some biased content so I mentioned to refrain from opinions of this sort, I also spoke of adding a broader coverage of each subject. Another article I edited was talc, I began by reading the talk page to see what other editors found important to improve. There were many section that could have been added to but I found the introductory paragraph needed help. I altered the paragraph by leading the reader into the article and adding a more scientific perspective. For my final project I decided to work on the pumice article, in this article there were few comments on the talk page because there was very little information present. I altered the structure of the article and adjusted placement of topics such as volcanic formation and physical properties. I added to topics on the multiple uses of the rock as well as natural sources where the igneous rock forms. I believe I contributed a great deal to this article because there was little information present and it didn’t seem to grasp the reader’s interest. Peer review was important for this class assignment because it helped students edit their article by having another opinion to contribute thoughts on what can be improved. I suggested to other students to refrain from biased opinion on an article and to be careful with citing sources that could potentially have a biased opinion. Another suggestion I added was to elaborate on each topic mentioned so there is an even coverage over the article. I also received feedback on my article suggesting I alter the structure and information distribution. I took these comments into account while further editing, an external opinion was very helpful. After contributing to Wikipedia I learned more about the importance of reliable sources and in source links. While reading an article there are points you reach that are difficult to understand or a word you are not sure of. With Wikipedia you can simply click on a highlighted word to be sent to another Wikipedia article to educate yourself. I also learned the importance of unbiased opinions, structure and even coverage of topics, Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia therefore it must be clear and concise for all viewers. This Wikipedia project has had great value to me because I am contributing to a reliable resource that is used by so many people whereas if I write a paper for a class it will be graded then thrown out. Wikipedia can be used to improve public understanding of geology if more articles are edited, at the moment pages on different rocks types contain a brief, boring explanation of what it is. However if more information and effort is put into articles the public will be more inclined to hop from article to article within the field of geology. Depending on the subject Wikipedia is often the first website that pops up, therefore if more geology content is added to Wikipedia the field of geology will have more interested viewers and causing Wikipedia to be more popular.