STUDENT’S VOICE
Another Round of Optics
Kristina Pourtabib, SA-3410
pour1824@vandals.uidaho.edu
In previous TPG articles I have men- tioned the importance of integrating Optical Mineralogy into an undergradu- ate curriculum, either as a stand-alone course or taught as part of a Mineralogy class, and I think it’s about time that I revisit this subject. At my current uni- versity Mineralogy is a course taught in the spring semester, hence the reason why I have been thinking about optics in depth lately. I still strongly believe that Optical Mineralogy is an integral part of the geology curriculum, and it is a tremendously useful and intuitive way to identify minerals using the Polarized Light Microscope (PLM.) Optics is an important tool that most of, if not all geology students and professionals alike have had to take at some point in their geology career. Unfortunately, many new geology students are not being adequately exposed to learning optical mineralogy, and in turn, optics is being slowly phased out of some curriculums. My affinity towards optical mineralogy is what helped me to really enjoy the research process as an undergraduate student, and it is also what helped me to get into graduate school. To think that some new geology students might have little to no knowledge regarding optical mineralogy makes me wonder why this important application of mineralogy is being overlooked.
Don’t get me wrong; when I first learned optical mineralogy I was utterly confused, but from the moment I suc- cessfully located my first interference figure I was hooked and wanted to learn all about this “abstract” world full of indicatrices and becke lines. Now, just like any other class in geology, I know that Optical Mineralogy isn’t for everybody, and some might even argue that geology is moving in a more computer-based/analytical direction and the offered coursework at a university needs to accommodate that change. To this statement I would argue that isn’t
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every new mineral required to be charac- terized optically? And isn’t it important that we remember and continue to teach the fundamental concepts of mineralogy so that future generations can keep this information alive? How are we supposed to foster an appreciation for all concepts tied to mineralogy if we don’t devote an adequate amount of time to learn the fundamentals? Optical Mineralogy is not an easy concept for some under- graduates to grasp and maybe that’s a reason for why less and less time is spent teaching optics. Even in the mineralogy lab that I currently TA, only a few weeks are spent teaching Optical Mineralogy and even that seems like a very little amount of time for the students to grasp the concept of applying optical mineral- ogy to identifying an unknown grain. During the first day or so of teaching Optical Mineralogy in the lab, I could tell that the students were struggling to understand some of the information and figure out what the practical application of optics was. As soon as the students were left on their own to try and get interference figures and figure out optic class and optic sign of their unknown minerals, I could see their faces light up one by one as they were able to set up and view their first interference figures successfully. From that point, trying to interpret what they were seeing took a little bit of time, but they eventually were able to recognize what interference figure they were looking at and use that information to decipher their figure further. Even though my students are already moving on from optics in order to start their next unit, I’d like to think that some of them grew to appreciate the tedious yet rewarding process that is Optical Mineralogy. Perhaps it’s just wishful thinking but I’d like to believe that some of my enthusiasm for optics brushed off on them in the end.
Optical Mineralogy is a unique and beautiful way to look at how light
interacts with a mineral’s structure and chemistry. Although it can be com- plicated work, it is a rewarding process that requires finesse and skill to achieve suitable results. I don’t think many of us geologists forget the first time we glimpse an interference figure on a PLM, and it’s an experience that I’d like to see continue on within the geology curriculum.
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Apr.May.Jun 2016 TPG 41
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