Jack Lemmon is one of the best-liked Academy Award winning American actor + I love his movies + (via wikipedia) his personal quotes: the ones I like -- Death ends a life, not a relationship; I won't quit until I get run over by a truck, a producer or a critic; Failure seldom stops you. What stops you is the fear of failure; If you think it's hard to meet new people, try picking up the wrong golf ball; It's hard enough to write a good drama, it's much harder to write a good comedy, and it's hardest of all to write a drama with comedy. Which is what life is; Nobody deserves this much money - certainly not an actor; Stay humble. Always answer your phone - no matter who else is in the car.
Useful links (via www.imdb.com):
The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)
Tuesdays with Morrie (1999)
"Chicken Soup for the Soul" (1999)
Inherit the Wind (1999) (TV)
The Odd Couple II (1998) .... Felix Ungar
Puppies for Sale (1998)
The Long Way Home (1998) (TV)
12 Angry Men (1997) (TV) Juror #8
Out to Sea (1997)
"The Simpsons" (1 episode, 1997)
The Twisted World of Marge Simpson (1997)
Hamlet (1996) Marcellus
My Fellow Americans (1996) President Russell P. Kramer
A Weekend in the Country (1996) (TV)
Getting Away with Murder (1996)
Grumpier Old Men (1995) John Gustafson
The Grass Harp (1995)
Grumpy Old Men (1993) John Gustafson
A Life in the Theater (1993) (TV)
Short Cuts (1993)
Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) Shelley Levene
For Richer, for Poorer (1992) (TV)
JFK (1991)
Dad (1989)
The Murder of Mary Phagan (1988) (TV)
Long Day's Journey Into Night (1987) (TV)
That's Life! (1986)
Maccheroni (1985)
Mass Appeal (1984)
Stars Over Texas (1982) (TV)
Missing (1982)
Buddy Buddy (1981) Victor Clooney
Musical Comedy Tonight II (1981) (TV)
Tribute (1980)
The China Syndrome (1979) Jack Godell
Airport '77 (1977)
Alex & the Gypsy (1976)
The Entertainer (1976) (TV)
The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1975)
The Front Page (1974) Hildebrand 'Hildy' Johnson
Wednesday (1974)
Polizia ha le mani legate, La (1974)
Get Happy (1973) (TV)
Save the Tiger (1973)
Avanti! (1972) (Italy)
The War Between Men and Women (1972)
Kotch (1971)
The Out of Towners (1970)
The April Fools (1969)
The Odd Couple (1968) Felix Ungar
There Comes a Day (1968)
Luv (1967)
The Fortune Cookie (1966)
The Great Race (1965)
How to Murder Your Wife (1965)
Good Neighbor Sam (1964)
Under the Yum Yum Tree (1963)
Irma la Douce (1963)
"The Dick Powell Show" (1 episode, 1963)
The Judge (1963) TV Episode
Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
The Notorious Landlady (1962)
The Wackiest Ship in the Army (1960)
Voyage en ballon, Le (1960) (voice)
The Apartment (1960) C.C. 'Bud' Baxter
It Happened to Jane (1959)
"Frontier Justice" (1 episode, 1959)
The Three Graves (1959) TV Episode
Some Like It Hot (1959)
"Playhouse 90" (2 episodes, 1957-1959)
Face of a Hero (1959) TV Episode
The Mystery of Thirteen (1957) TV Episode
Bell Book and Candle (1958)
"Goodyear Theatre" (4 episodes, 1957-1958)
Disappearance (1958) TV Episode
The Victim (1958) TV Episode
Voices in the Fog (1957) TV Episode
Lost and Found (1957) TV Episode
"Alcoa Theatre" (5 episodes, 1957-1958)
Disappearance (1958) TV Episode
The Days of November (1958) TV Episode
Souvenir (1957) TV Episode
Cowboy (1958)
Operation Mad Ball (1957)
Fire Down Below (1957)
"Zane Grey Theater"
Three Graves (1957) TV Episode
You Can't Run Away from It (1956) Peter Warne
"Ford Star Jubilee" (1 episode, 1956)
The Day Lincoln Was Shot (1956) TV Episode
My Sister Eileen (1955)
Mister Roberts (1955) Ens. Frank Thurlowe Pulver
Three for the Show (1955)
Phffft (1954)
"The Ford Television Theatre" (1 episode, 1954)
Marriageable Male (1954) TV Episode
It Should Happen to You (1954)
"The Road of Life" (1954) TV Series
"Campbell Playhouse" (1 episode, 1953)
One Swell Guy (1953) TV Episode
"Medallion Theatre" (1 episode, 1953)
The Grand Cross of the Crescent (1953) TV Episode
"Lux Video Theatre" (1 episode, 1953)
The Ascent of Alfred Fishkettle (1953) TV Episode
"Armstrong Circle Theatre" (2 episodes, 1951-1953)
The Checkerboard Heart (1953) TV Episode
Last Chance (1951) TV Episode
"Robert Montgomery Presents" (2 episodes, 1952-1953)
Dinah, Kip, and Mr. Barlow (1953) TV Episode
Mr. Dobie takes a Powder (1952) TV Episode
"Kraft Television Theatre" (5 episodes, 1949-1953)
Snooksie (1953) TV Episode
Duet (1953) TV Episode
The Easy Mark (1951) TV Episode
The Fortune Hunter (1951) TV Episode
Whistling in the Dark (1949) TV Episode
"Heaven for Betsy" (1952) TV Series
"The Frances Langford-Don Ameche Show" (1951) TV Series
Newlywed (1951-1952)
"Danger" (1 episode, 1951)
Sparrow Cop (1951) TV Episode
"The Web" (1 episode, 1951)
Cops Must Be Tough (1951) TV Episode
"Pulitzer Prize Playhouse" (1 episode, 1951)
The Happy Journey (1951) TV Episode
"Studio One" (2 episodes, 1949-1950)
The Wisdom Tooth (1950) TV Episode
June Moon (1949) TV Episode
"That Wonderful Guy" (1949) TV Series
The Lady Takes a Sailor (1949)
"Suspense" (1 episode, 1949)
The Gray Helmet (1949) TV Episode
Sunday, October 07, 2007
The Business Of Software
Good Books: (via Emergic) Michael Cusumano's The Business of Software subtitled: What Every Manager, Programmer, and Entrepreneur Must Know to Thrive and Survive in Good Times and Bad may be for computer geeks, but in my view there are many parallels + the concept (s) could be used/modified for selective application (s) in other business ventures to become successful. I enjoyed reading it.
From the book’s description:
The world's leading expert on the global software industry and coauthor of the bestseller Microsoft Secrets reveals the inner workings of software giants like IBM, Microsoft, and Netscape and shows what it takes to create, develop, and manage a successful company -- in good times and bad -- in the most fiercely competitive business in the world.
In the $600 billion software industry it is the business, not the technology that determines success or failure. This fact -- one that thousands of once glamorous start-ups have unhappily discovered for themselves -- is the well-documented conclusion of this enormously readable and revealing new book by Michael Cusumano, based on nearly twenty years of research and consulting with software producers around the world.
At the heart of the book Cusumano poses seven questions that underpin a three-pronged management framework. He argues that companies must adopt one of three basic business models: become a products company at one end of the strategic spectrum, a services company at the other end, or a hybrid solutions company in between. The author describes the characteristics of the different models, evaluates their strengths and weaknesses, and shows how each is more or less appropriate for different stages in the evolution of a business as well as in good versus bad economic times. Readers will also find invaluable Cusumano's treatment of software development issues ranging from architecture and teams to project management and testing, as well as two chapters devoted to what it takes to create a successful software start-up. Highlights include eight fundamental guidelines for evaluating potential software winners and Cusumano's probing analysis, based on firsthand knowledge, of ten start-ups that have met with varying degrees of success.
Here is an excerpt from the book.
From the book’s description:
The world's leading expert on the global software industry and coauthor of the bestseller Microsoft Secrets reveals the inner workings of software giants like IBM, Microsoft, and Netscape and shows what it takes to create, develop, and manage a successful company -- in good times and bad -- in the most fiercely competitive business in the world.
In the $600 billion software industry it is the business, not the technology that determines success or failure. This fact -- one that thousands of once glamorous start-ups have unhappily discovered for themselves -- is the well-documented conclusion of this enormously readable and revealing new book by Michael Cusumano, based on nearly twenty years of research and consulting with software producers around the world.
At the heart of the book Cusumano poses seven questions that underpin a three-pronged management framework. He argues that companies must adopt one of three basic business models: become a products company at one end of the strategic spectrum, a services company at the other end, or a hybrid solutions company in between. The author describes the characteristics of the different models, evaluates their strengths and weaknesses, and shows how each is more or less appropriate for different stages in the evolution of a business as well as in good versus bad economic times. Readers will also find invaluable Cusumano's treatment of software development issues ranging from architecture and teams to project management and testing, as well as two chapters devoted to what it takes to create a successful software start-up. Highlights include eight fundamental guidelines for evaluating potential software winners and Cusumano's probing analysis, based on firsthand knowledge, of ten start-ups that have met with varying degrees of success.
Here is an excerpt from the book.
Classics Of Everyday Design
(via The Guardian) Jonathan Glancey's classics of everyday design:
Classics of everyday design No 11
Classics of everyday design No 12
Classics of everyday design No 13
Classics of everyday design No 14
Classics of everyday design No 15
I liked it.
Classics of everyday design No 11
Classics of everyday design No 12
Classics of everyday design No 13
Classics of everyday design No 14
Classics of everyday design No 15
I liked it.
World's Largest Uncut Diamond Denounced As Plastic Fake
(via The Guardian) David Beresford in Johannesburg writes about the actors/speculators behind the so-called world's largest diamond (I think it was a big joke) + the real story + other viewpoints @ http://www.guardian.co.uk/southafrica/story/0,,2184921,00.html
Charming
Sonia Kolesnikov-Jessop writes about the latest charms + other viewpoints @ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21047414/site/newsweek
Useful links:
faberge-jewelry.com
cinziamaini.com
neimanmarcus.com
othercriteria.com
colette.fr
Useful links:
faberge-jewelry.com
cinziamaini.com
neimanmarcus.com
othercriteria.com
colette.fr
What’s So Funny About Contemporary Art?
Linda Yablonsky writes about humor in art by artists + the inspirational angle + I liked this one: E. B. White once wrote, 'Analyzing humor is like dissecting a frog. Few people are interested and the frog dies of it.' + other viewpoints @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1590
Selling Diamonds
(via Diamond Promotion Service): The Value Of A Diamond: 40. The assessment of the value of a diamond is very complex. One basic factor is its enduring beauty, which as kept the diamond in demand all through the centuries. Another is its rarity; all the rough gem diamonds found in the world in a single year would fit into just one 2½ ton truck. A third is its durability; a diamond never changes, never wears out, needs no maintenance. A fourth is its symbolism; in modern times, the diamond has become the symbol of love and affection, and in some quarters it is still a status symbol, as it has been from time immemorial.
All these factors give a diamond a value that, for some owners, is beyond price. But for the more practical operation of establishing the price of a diamond, the four C’s are the determining factors: carat weight, color, clarity and cut. The first measures the size of a diamond; the other three, its quality. The infinite combinations of degrees of size and quality, and the rarity of some of these combinations, give the diamond a very complex price structure.
Prices of average diamonds have followed fairly closely the increase of the general price index through the years. This is reasonable, because all the costs of mining and cutting have also shown comparable increases. However, increasing demands for the larger and rare stones have increased their prices at a greater rate than the average.
Diamonds are an investment in beauty and sentiment. As a financial investment they have limitations. The average persons buys diamonds at retail prices, but he can get only wholesale prices when he has to (or wants to) sell; profits in such transactions are rare. But because of its durability, a diamond always has a basic and cashable value. For this reason, diamonds have been the financial salvation of many refugees who could carry no other property with them into exile.
41. Carat weight. Originally the carat was the weight of the carob seed with which ancient lapidaries balanced their scales. For centuries, carat weights differed slightly from market to market, but in this century the carat was standardized according to the metric system as 200 milligrams, or one-fifth of a gram. In the American system of weights, this means there are 142 carats to the avoirdupois ounce.
The carat is further divided into 100 points, and a point is about the weight of three fine breadcrumbs. This means that diamonds must be weighed very carefully; even a breath of air can tip the sensitive scales.
A diamond is usually priced on a per carat basis, according to its size and quality. Where two diamonds have exactly the same carat weight, the one of better quality will command a higher price per carat. Because the rarity of diamonds increases with their size, so does their price per carat; a two carat diamond will cost more than twice as much as a one carat diamond of the same quality.
42. Color. Most diamonds are transparently clear, or white, but with a tinge of body color that can be seen when one looks through the side of the diamond against a white background. Completely colorless, icy white diamonds are very rare, only a very small percentage of all gem diamonds. Because of this rarity, ‘top color’ diamond command premium prices.
Not as rare are diamonds with a tinge of color so faint that it is discernible only to the eye of an expert. Nevertheless, such diamonds command higher prices than those in which the body color is easily seen. For some reason, diamonds with a tinge of color seem to have more fire, a warmer beauty, than icy white stones.
Although white diamonds are most common, there are diamonds in virtually all colors of the spectrum. Most of these are shades of yellow or brown, but there are also shades of pink, orange, green and blue. These diamonds are called fancies and are valued for their rarity. The deeper colors have great beauty, but they do not have the brilliance of the lighter colors.
43. Clarity. Because Nature is rarely perfect, most diamonds show imperfections of crystallization. These are called inclusions because they are within the stone—tiny bubbles, specks of uncrystallized carbon, hairlines or feathers. Such inclusions are not structural weaknesses. But they affect the clarity of the diamond to the degree that they interfere with the passage of light through the stone.
In some diamonds, there are inclusions visible to the naked eye. The brilliance and fire of these stones is less than that of diamonds whose inclusions are not visible, and so they have a lesser degree of clarity.
A flawless diamond has top clarity. By Federal Commission standards, a flawless diamond is one in which no inclusions are visible to a trained eye using 10-power magnification in good light.
A diamond does not have to be flawless to be beautiful. In a sense, the inclusions in a diamond are its fingerprints, because the number, type and location of inclusions in one diamond are rarely duplicated in another.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
All these factors give a diamond a value that, for some owners, is beyond price. But for the more practical operation of establishing the price of a diamond, the four C’s are the determining factors: carat weight, color, clarity and cut. The first measures the size of a diamond; the other three, its quality. The infinite combinations of degrees of size and quality, and the rarity of some of these combinations, give the diamond a very complex price structure.
Prices of average diamonds have followed fairly closely the increase of the general price index through the years. This is reasonable, because all the costs of mining and cutting have also shown comparable increases. However, increasing demands for the larger and rare stones have increased their prices at a greater rate than the average.
Diamonds are an investment in beauty and sentiment. As a financial investment they have limitations. The average persons buys diamonds at retail prices, but he can get only wholesale prices when he has to (or wants to) sell; profits in such transactions are rare. But because of its durability, a diamond always has a basic and cashable value. For this reason, diamonds have been the financial salvation of many refugees who could carry no other property with them into exile.
41. Carat weight. Originally the carat was the weight of the carob seed with which ancient lapidaries balanced their scales. For centuries, carat weights differed slightly from market to market, but in this century the carat was standardized according to the metric system as 200 milligrams, or one-fifth of a gram. In the American system of weights, this means there are 142 carats to the avoirdupois ounce.
The carat is further divided into 100 points, and a point is about the weight of three fine breadcrumbs. This means that diamonds must be weighed very carefully; even a breath of air can tip the sensitive scales.
A diamond is usually priced on a per carat basis, according to its size and quality. Where two diamonds have exactly the same carat weight, the one of better quality will command a higher price per carat. Because the rarity of diamonds increases with their size, so does their price per carat; a two carat diamond will cost more than twice as much as a one carat diamond of the same quality.
42. Color. Most diamonds are transparently clear, or white, but with a tinge of body color that can be seen when one looks through the side of the diamond against a white background. Completely colorless, icy white diamonds are very rare, only a very small percentage of all gem diamonds. Because of this rarity, ‘top color’ diamond command premium prices.
Not as rare are diamonds with a tinge of color so faint that it is discernible only to the eye of an expert. Nevertheless, such diamonds command higher prices than those in which the body color is easily seen. For some reason, diamonds with a tinge of color seem to have more fire, a warmer beauty, than icy white stones.
Although white diamonds are most common, there are diamonds in virtually all colors of the spectrum. Most of these are shades of yellow or brown, but there are also shades of pink, orange, green and blue. These diamonds are called fancies and are valued for their rarity. The deeper colors have great beauty, but they do not have the brilliance of the lighter colors.
43. Clarity. Because Nature is rarely perfect, most diamonds show imperfections of crystallization. These are called inclusions because they are within the stone—tiny bubbles, specks of uncrystallized carbon, hairlines or feathers. Such inclusions are not structural weaknesses. But they affect the clarity of the diamond to the degree that they interfere with the passage of light through the stone.
In some diamonds, there are inclusions visible to the naked eye. The brilliance and fire of these stones is less than that of diamonds whose inclusions are not visible, and so they have a lesser degree of clarity.
A flawless diamond has top clarity. By Federal Commission standards, a flawless diamond is one in which no inclusions are visible to a trained eye using 10-power magnification in good light.
A diamond does not have to be flawless to be beautiful. In a sense, the inclusions in a diamond are its fingerprints, because the number, type and location of inclusions in one diamond are rarely duplicated in another.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Tracy is one of the greatest film actors of all time + he is natural + you almost forget you are watching a performance. His performances have always stood the test of time. I am a big fan.
Useful links (via www.imdb.com):
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)
How the West Was Won (1962)
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
The Devil at 4 O'Clock (1961)
Inherit the Wind (1960)
The Last Hurrah (1958)
The Old Man and the Sea (1958)
Desk Set (1957)
The Mountain (1956)
Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
Broken Lance (1954)
The Actress (1953)
Plymouth Adventure (1952)
Pat and Mike (1952)
The People Against O'Hara (1951)
Father's Little Dividend (1951)
Father of the Bride (1950)
Malaya (1949)
Adam's Rib (1949)
Edward, My Son (1949)
State of the Union (1948)
Cass Timberlane (1947)
The Sea of Grass (1947)
Without Love (1945)
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)
The Seventh Cross (1944)
A Guy Named Joe (1943)
Keeper of the Flame (1942)
Tortilla Flat (1942)
Woman of the Year (1942)
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)
Men of Boys Town (1941)
Boom Town (1940)
Edison, the Man (1940)
Northwest Passage (1940)
Young Tom Edison (1940)
I Take This Woman (1940)
Stanley and Livingstone (1939)
Boys Town (1938)
Test Pilot (1938)
Mannequin (1937)
Big City (1937)
Captains Courageous (1937)
They Gave Him a Gun (1937)
Libeled Lady (1936)
San Francisco (1936)
Fury (1936)
Riffraff (1936)
Whipsaw (1935)
Dante's Inferno (1935)
The Murder Man (1935)
It's a Small World (1935)
Marie Galante (1934)
Now I'll Tell (1934)
Bottoms Up (1934)
Looking for Trouble (1934)
The Show-Off (1934)
The Mad Game (1933)
Man's Castle (1933)
The Power and the Glory (1933)
Shanghai Madness (1933)
Face in the Sky (1933)
20,000 Years in Sing Sing (1932)
Me and My Gal (1932)
The Painted Woman (1932)
Society Girl (1932)
Young America (1932)
Disorderly Conduct (1932)
Sky Devils (1932)
She Wanted a Millionaire (1932)
Goldie (1931)
Six Cylinder Love (1931)
Quick Millions (1931)
Up the River (1930)
The Hard Guy (1930)
Taxi Talks (1930)
The Strong Arm (1930)
Useful links (via www.imdb.com):
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)
How the West Was Won (1962)
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
The Devil at 4 O'Clock (1961)
Inherit the Wind (1960)
The Last Hurrah (1958)
The Old Man and the Sea (1958)
Desk Set (1957)
The Mountain (1956)
Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
Broken Lance (1954)
The Actress (1953)
Plymouth Adventure (1952)
Pat and Mike (1952)
The People Against O'Hara (1951)
Father's Little Dividend (1951)
Father of the Bride (1950)
Malaya (1949)
Adam's Rib (1949)
Edward, My Son (1949)
State of the Union (1948)
Cass Timberlane (1947)
The Sea of Grass (1947)
Without Love (1945)
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)
The Seventh Cross (1944)
A Guy Named Joe (1943)
Keeper of the Flame (1942)
Tortilla Flat (1942)
Woman of the Year (1942)
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)
Men of Boys Town (1941)
Boom Town (1940)
Edison, the Man (1940)
Northwest Passage (1940)
Young Tom Edison (1940)
I Take This Woman (1940)
Stanley and Livingstone (1939)
Boys Town (1938)
Test Pilot (1938)
Mannequin (1937)
Big City (1937)
Captains Courageous (1937)
They Gave Him a Gun (1937)
Libeled Lady (1936)
San Francisco (1936)
Fury (1936)
Riffraff (1936)
Whipsaw (1935)
Dante's Inferno (1935)
The Murder Man (1935)
It's a Small World (1935)
Marie Galante (1934)
Now I'll Tell (1934)
Bottoms Up (1934)
Looking for Trouble (1934)
The Show-Off (1934)
The Mad Game (1933)
Man's Castle (1933)
The Power and the Glory (1933)
Shanghai Madness (1933)
Face in the Sky (1933)
20,000 Years in Sing Sing (1932)
Me and My Gal (1932)
The Painted Woman (1932)
Society Girl (1932)
Young America (1932)
Disorderly Conduct (1932)
Sky Devils (1932)
She Wanted a Millionaire (1932)
Goldie (1931)
Six Cylinder Love (1931)
Quick Millions (1931)
Up the River (1930)
The Hard Guy (1930)
Taxi Talks (1930)
The Strong Arm (1930)
The Piracy Paradox
James Surowiecki writes about copying in the fashion industry + the piracy paradox effect + the concept of induced obsolescence + I liked this one: Professors Kal Raustiala and Christopher Sprigman suggest that weak intellectual-property rules, far from hurting the fashion industry, may have instead been integral to its success + other viewpoints @ http://www.newyorker.com/talk/financial/2007/09/24/070924ta_talk_surowiecki
Brilliant!
Brilliant!
Keyboard Shortcuts
I see keyboards as a concept + art. I liked the following links (via idexonline).
@ Mashable
230 + shortcuts for for some of the top web services, including Google (and several of its services), Wikipedia and Yahoo! Mail.
@ Lifehacker
To increase the efficiency of your Gmail, check out some of the search filters suggested by Lifehacker.
@ Pipl
Understands online data + a people search engine + lists information such as where a person lives and works.
@ Bust A Name
Suggests domain names based on keywords that you input + checks their availability for you.
@ CrossLoop
Allows users to securely share screens, enabling them to get connected in seconds from anywhere on the Internet.
@ Microsoft Surface
A new interface technology that will revolutionize the way devices (think digital camera, PDA, cell phone, etc.) communicate with each other and how we interact and use these piles of information.
@ IMEEM
An online community where people can promote their content, share their tastes, and discover blogs, photos, music and video.
+
Top 10 Free Online Games of All Time
How to Make Your USB Drive into a Digital Swiss Army Knife
+
Try wooden memory sticks from Dutch design group Oooms.
I liked this one.
@ Mashable
230 + shortcuts for for some of the top web services, including Google (and several of its services), Wikipedia and Yahoo! Mail.
@ Lifehacker
To increase the efficiency of your Gmail, check out some of the search filters suggested by Lifehacker.
@ Pipl
Understands online data + a people search engine + lists information such as where a person lives and works.
@ Bust A Name
Suggests domain names based on keywords that you input + checks their availability for you.
@ CrossLoop
Allows users to securely share screens, enabling them to get connected in seconds from anywhere on the Internet.
@ Microsoft Surface
A new interface technology that will revolutionize the way devices (think digital camera, PDA, cell phone, etc.) communicate with each other and how we interact and use these piles of information.
@ IMEEM
An online community where people can promote their content, share their tastes, and discover blogs, photos, music and video.
+
Top 10 Free Online Games of All Time
How to Make Your USB Drive into a Digital Swiss Army Knife
+
Try wooden memory sticks from Dutch design group Oooms.
I liked this one.
Inside Men
Economist writes about Anatomy as Art + the early maps of the human body + I liked this comment: The market for medical books of this kind—whether defined as art or not—is robust: 'Not speculative, no spikes in the prices.' + other viewpoints @ http://www.economist.com/daily/columns/artview/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9891953
Sign Here!
Mary Haus writes about artist's signature (s), (especially when you are famous) + the power of signature (s) (which may perceived) as self-expression + the adverstising link + other viewpoints @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1557
Selling Diamonds
(via Diamond Promotion Service) The Beauty Of A Diamond: 36. The beauty of a diamond comes from the light that passes through it or is reflected from it. Light is something that we take for granted, without recognizing that it is made up of countless rays shooting in all directions. To understand how light makes the beauty of a diamond, we have to think of it in terms of individual rays.
When a ray of light strikes a diamond, 18 percent is reflected allowing 82 percent to enter the stone. As a ray of light enters the diamond, it changes direction according to the refractive index and then keeps going until it strikes the inside of another facet. If it strikes that facet within the critical angle (24.1º), it goes on through and leaves the diamond. Otherwise, it bounces off in a new direction, still within the stone.
The proportioning of the diamond and the cutting of the facets to precise angles are designed so that as much light as possible can go into the stone from the top, bounce around inside, and then come back out the top again with brilliance, fire and scintillation. A diamond whose proportions are too deep will leak light through the facets below the girdle. One whose proportions are too shallow will also leak light, and it may have a fish eye dead spot on top.
The larger the diamond, of course, the larger the top surface area that can admit light. However, small diamonds are just as efficient in their handling of light and produce just as beautiful an effect.
37. Brilliance. Brilliance, fire and scintillation are often confused. In the strictest sense, brilliance is the intensity of the reflections of white light from the diamond that meet the eye when we look down into it. These are the internal reflections of light from the inside surfaces of the facets below the girdle. Because it is so hard, the diamond takes a high polish and so gives off more brilliance surface reflections than does any other gem. So the diamond’s brilliance comes from its internal and external reflections of light.
38. Fire. The diamond’s ability to break up a ray of white light into all colors of the spectrum gives it fire. The dispersion is greater than any other precious gem. The width of this dispersion, the amount of fire, is least when a ray of light leaves the diamond at an angle (24.1°) near the perpendicular. So the 32 facets between the girdle and the table are placed to take maximum advantage of the diamond’s power of dispersion, to give the diamond the most fire possible.
39. Scintillation. The nursery rhyme sings, ‘Twinkle, twinkle, little star…like a diamond in the sky.’ Scintillation is that twinkling or flashing of light from the facets of a diamond as it moves. This depends primarily on three things: the sizes of the pavilion facets below the girdle; the number of facets visible to the eye as the diamond moves; and the high polish or luster of the facets reflecting the light. Scintillation explains why diamonds are so much more beautiful when they are in motion while being worn than they are at rest. Moving either the eye or the light source will also cause scintillation.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
When a ray of light strikes a diamond, 18 percent is reflected allowing 82 percent to enter the stone. As a ray of light enters the diamond, it changes direction according to the refractive index and then keeps going until it strikes the inside of another facet. If it strikes that facet within the critical angle (24.1º), it goes on through and leaves the diamond. Otherwise, it bounces off in a new direction, still within the stone.
The proportioning of the diamond and the cutting of the facets to precise angles are designed so that as much light as possible can go into the stone from the top, bounce around inside, and then come back out the top again with brilliance, fire and scintillation. A diamond whose proportions are too deep will leak light through the facets below the girdle. One whose proportions are too shallow will also leak light, and it may have a fish eye dead spot on top.
The larger the diamond, of course, the larger the top surface area that can admit light. However, small diamonds are just as efficient in their handling of light and produce just as beautiful an effect.
37. Brilliance. Brilliance, fire and scintillation are often confused. In the strictest sense, brilliance is the intensity of the reflections of white light from the diamond that meet the eye when we look down into it. These are the internal reflections of light from the inside surfaces of the facets below the girdle. Because it is so hard, the diamond takes a high polish and so gives off more brilliance surface reflections than does any other gem. So the diamond’s brilliance comes from its internal and external reflections of light.
38. Fire. The diamond’s ability to break up a ray of white light into all colors of the spectrum gives it fire. The dispersion is greater than any other precious gem. The width of this dispersion, the amount of fire, is least when a ray of light leaves the diamond at an angle (24.1°) near the perpendicular. So the 32 facets between the girdle and the table are placed to take maximum advantage of the diamond’s power of dispersion, to give the diamond the most fire possible.
39. Scintillation. The nursery rhyme sings, ‘Twinkle, twinkle, little star…like a diamond in the sky.’ Scintillation is that twinkling or flashing of light from the facets of a diamond as it moves. This depends primarily on three things: the sizes of the pavilion facets below the girdle; the number of facets visible to the eye as the diamond moves; and the high polish or luster of the facets reflecting the light. Scintillation explains why diamonds are so much more beautiful when they are in motion while being worn than they are at rest. Moving either the eye or the light source will also cause scintillation.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
Friday, October 05, 2007
Myanmar's Rubies - Bloody Color, Bloody Business
Carmel Crimmins writes about international outrage over the Burmese generals' brutal crackdown on pro-democracy rallies + possible trade ban by the European Union on Myanmar's gemstones, a leading export earner in the impoverished country.
If it works, it's going to be conflict rubies. If the trade sanctions work (I wish them good luck) then ruby prices will definitely go up + there will be behind the scene deals without disclosure. There are people who are addicted to rubies and they may not care so much about human rights abuses in Burma. They have deep pockets, a big safe + no memory. But if the consumers really care for the Burmese people, and if they stop buying rubies it's going to be Catch-22. There will be job losses, many traders who specialize in Burmese rubies may go out of business +++++. What are the alternatives? There are a few ruby producing mines scattered around the world but the productions are sporadic + qualites vary + they may not be suitable for treatment (s) in order to enhance the color / clarity. The issue is will it work. We don't have the same compliance mechanism like the diamond industry. The colored gemstone industry is fracture-filled with special interest (s) groups. They have one story for the world and media and another for the trade. Let's watch and wait.
More info @ http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSMAN5177620071004?sp=true
If it works, it's going to be conflict rubies. If the trade sanctions work (I wish them good luck) then ruby prices will definitely go up + there will be behind the scene deals without disclosure. There are people who are addicted to rubies and they may not care so much about human rights abuses in Burma. They have deep pockets, a big safe + no memory. But if the consumers really care for the Burmese people, and if they stop buying rubies it's going to be Catch-22. There will be job losses, many traders who specialize in Burmese rubies may go out of business +++++. What are the alternatives? There are a few ruby producing mines scattered around the world but the productions are sporadic + qualites vary + they may not be suitable for treatment (s) in order to enhance the color / clarity. The issue is will it work. We don't have the same compliance mechanism like the diamond industry. The colored gemstone industry is fracture-filled with special interest (s) groups. They have one story for the world and media and another for the trade. Let's watch and wait.
More info @ http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSMAN5177620071004?sp=true
The Devil And Daniel Webster
Greatest Opening Film Lines (The Devil and Daniel Webster - 1941):
You're only wasting your time writing speeches like that. Why worry about the people and their problems? Think of your own.
I liked this one.
You're only wasting your time writing speeches like that. Why worry about the people and their problems? Think of your own.
I liked this one.
Instant Online Demographic Information
Here is an interesting link www.targetmailers.com which helps jewelers to pull a list of prospects in their area based on household income, net worth, gender, age, credit card usage and so on. I think this may work only in the US, but other countries could learn from the concept.
Why The Gold Market Is An Investor's Best Friend
(via Moneyweek) Martin Denholm explains the concept + the dos and dont's + other viewpoints @ http://www.moneyweek.com/file/33065/why-the-gold-market-is-an-investors-best-friend.html
Diamonds And Flowers
(via JCK) Here is an interesting article on diamond vs. flowers by Ben Janowski. The entire column is worth a read. http://jckonline.com/article/CA6486021.html
Basel II and Dave’s Brilliant ‘Financial Striptease’
Chaim Even-Zohar writes about the impact of the Basel II bank capital adequacy requirements on diamantaires businesses + the Dave Lapa (Belgium diamantaire) story + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp
The Top Ten - Summer 2004
Milton Esterow writes about unique collectors + the things top collectors should have (deep pockets, big closets, no memory) + other viewpoints @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1575
The ARTnews 200
by The Editors of ARTnews
Annual (2004) list of the world’s top collectors @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1574
The ARTnews 200
by The Editors of ARTnews
Annual (2004) list of the world’s top collectors @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1574
Selling Diamonds
(via Diamond Promotion Service) 31. Cleaving. When a rough diamond is to be divided ‘with the grain’, it is cleaved. The cleaver sets the stone in a dop, or holder, and he uses another diamond to scratch a groove along the division line. Then he inserts a square-edged knife into the groove and taps it back sharply with a mallet. If everything is right, the stone splits cleanly. If the division line has not been placed properly (or followed accurately), the diamond can shatter.
Cleaving is considered the most dramatic of all the steps in diamond cutting because the whole future of the diamond rides on that one tap of the mallet. When the stone is a large and important one, that can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars.
32. Bruting. The next cutting step is bruting, which is also called rounding or girdling. This forms the girdle, which is the basic dimension of the finished diamond.
The bruter sets the stone in a dop and fixes the dop in a lathe which spins at high speed. Using another diamond set in the end of a long bruting stick, he gradually grinds off the corners until the spinning diamond is round at its thickest part. In the process he partially rounds the diamond in the bruting stick, and this is later put on the lathe to finish its own bruting.
Diamonds finished in the round or brilliant cut go through the bruting step in this way. Those finished in the oval, marquise and pear shape cut usually go through the same step, but by a slightly different process. Emerald-cut diamonds have their girdles formed in a different way.
33. Blocking. The primary facets of the diamond are ground onto it by the blocker. He works with a cast iron plate called a scaife, impregnated with oil and diamond dust, which revolves like the turntable of a phonograph. He sets the diamond in a holder and lowers it onto the spinning plate, and he has to change its position for every facet.
The table, which is the largest facet of the diamond, is usually the surface formed when the stone is sawed or cleaved. The girdle has been formed with its plane parallel to the table. Now the blocker grinds a facet between the table and the girdle at an angle of 34.5º to the plane of the girdle. Then he grinds two more facets, one on either side exactly between the first two. These are called crown or bezel facets. Then he turns the stone over and grinds four corresponding pavilion facets below the girdle, each 41º to the girdle plane.
In the second stage of blocking, he grinds four more bezel facets above the girdle, each exactly between two of the first four facets, and four more pavilion facets to correspond. It takes a long time for each facet to be ground, and the blocker has to check the process constantly to see that not too much is being ground away on any one facet.
At this point the diamond looks like the familiar gem. It has 17 facets—8 bezel facets and the table above the girdle, and 8 pavilion facets meeting in a point below the girdle. The blocker then grinds off the point in a tiny culet facet that is exactly parallel to the table and the plane of the girdle.
For diamonds that are 50 to the carat or smaller, this can be the end of the line. Such diamonds, with only 18 facets, are called single cuts.
34. Brillianteering. This is the final cutting step for 58-facet diamonds, which are called full cuts. The brillianteerer works with the same scaife that the blocker used, and he cuts the last 40 facets.
Of these, 24 are placed in threes between the 8 bezel facets; two extend up from the girdle, and the third extends down from the table. The other 16 are placed in pairs between the pavilion facets, extending down from the girdle. As each new facet is cut, of course, it changes the shape of the adjoining facets.
Cutting is a long, exacting and expensive process. Cutters are skilled craftsmen who must use the judgment gained by long years of experience to bring out the full beauty of a diamond. Automation is beginning in the cutting industry, with smaller diamonds.
35. Shapes. The finished diamond may have any of several shapes, each of which is also called a cut. The brilliant cut, or round, is the most popular of all diamond shapes. Round diamonds can be finished, with 17 or 18 facets, in sizes so small that they will run more than 200 to the carat. This type of brilliant is known as single or eight cut.
The oval cut, as its name implies, is an elongated round. The marquise cut is rounded in the middle and pointed at each end, like a weaver’s shuttle. The pear shape is rounded at one end and pointed at the other. The heart shape is essentially a pear shape with a notch in the rounded end.
The proportion of length to width may vary within each of these ‘fancy’ cuts so that is possible, for example, to have both ‘thin’ pear shapes and ‘fat’ pear shapes. Each of these cuts has the same 58 facets as the brilliant cut, but the shapes of the facets are different. Some larger diamonds in these cuts have girdles thick enough for additional facets around them.
The emerald cut (and its companion, the square cut) also has 58 facets, all of which are very close to rectangular. There are 24 facets and the table above the girdle, and 24 facets and the culet below; the remaining 8 facets are around the girdle.
Any of these shapes may be used as the solitaire or principal diamond in an engagement ring. They may also be used in other types of jewelry. The advantage of the fancy shapes for the cutter is that they usually can be cut from irregular pieces of rough with less loss of weight than a round can be cut. Their advantage for the customer is that they tend to look larger than a round diamond of the same weight.
But these are not the only shapes of diamonds being cut today. For the most part, the others are small diamonds which are set as side stones in rings or as secondary stones in other types of jewelry. Usually they are cut in these shapes to get maximum weight out of irregular small pieces of rough.
The baguette is thin and rectangular, like an emerald cut with 17 facets. The tapered baguette is wider at one end than the other, like a tall trapezoid. The trapeze follows the standard trapezoid shape, with the long sides parallel and the short sides angled toward each other.
The triangle is a three-sided stone, as the name implies. The kite shape looks like a kite, or two triangles of different sizes. The lozenge is like the diamond pip on a playing card, or two triangles of equal sizes. The half moon has the shape of a crescent.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
Cleaving is considered the most dramatic of all the steps in diamond cutting because the whole future of the diamond rides on that one tap of the mallet. When the stone is a large and important one, that can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars.
32. Bruting. The next cutting step is bruting, which is also called rounding or girdling. This forms the girdle, which is the basic dimension of the finished diamond.
The bruter sets the stone in a dop and fixes the dop in a lathe which spins at high speed. Using another diamond set in the end of a long bruting stick, he gradually grinds off the corners until the spinning diamond is round at its thickest part. In the process he partially rounds the diamond in the bruting stick, and this is later put on the lathe to finish its own bruting.
Diamonds finished in the round or brilliant cut go through the bruting step in this way. Those finished in the oval, marquise and pear shape cut usually go through the same step, but by a slightly different process. Emerald-cut diamonds have their girdles formed in a different way.
33. Blocking. The primary facets of the diamond are ground onto it by the blocker. He works with a cast iron plate called a scaife, impregnated with oil and diamond dust, which revolves like the turntable of a phonograph. He sets the diamond in a holder and lowers it onto the spinning plate, and he has to change its position for every facet.
The table, which is the largest facet of the diamond, is usually the surface formed when the stone is sawed or cleaved. The girdle has been formed with its plane parallel to the table. Now the blocker grinds a facet between the table and the girdle at an angle of 34.5º to the plane of the girdle. Then he grinds two more facets, one on either side exactly between the first two. These are called crown or bezel facets. Then he turns the stone over and grinds four corresponding pavilion facets below the girdle, each 41º to the girdle plane.
In the second stage of blocking, he grinds four more bezel facets above the girdle, each exactly between two of the first four facets, and four more pavilion facets to correspond. It takes a long time for each facet to be ground, and the blocker has to check the process constantly to see that not too much is being ground away on any one facet.
At this point the diamond looks like the familiar gem. It has 17 facets—8 bezel facets and the table above the girdle, and 8 pavilion facets meeting in a point below the girdle. The blocker then grinds off the point in a tiny culet facet that is exactly parallel to the table and the plane of the girdle.
For diamonds that are 50 to the carat or smaller, this can be the end of the line. Such diamonds, with only 18 facets, are called single cuts.
34. Brillianteering. This is the final cutting step for 58-facet diamonds, which are called full cuts. The brillianteerer works with the same scaife that the blocker used, and he cuts the last 40 facets.
Of these, 24 are placed in threes between the 8 bezel facets; two extend up from the girdle, and the third extends down from the table. The other 16 are placed in pairs between the pavilion facets, extending down from the girdle. As each new facet is cut, of course, it changes the shape of the adjoining facets.
Cutting is a long, exacting and expensive process. Cutters are skilled craftsmen who must use the judgment gained by long years of experience to bring out the full beauty of a diamond. Automation is beginning in the cutting industry, with smaller diamonds.
35. Shapes. The finished diamond may have any of several shapes, each of which is also called a cut. The brilliant cut, or round, is the most popular of all diamond shapes. Round diamonds can be finished, with 17 or 18 facets, in sizes so small that they will run more than 200 to the carat. This type of brilliant is known as single or eight cut.
The oval cut, as its name implies, is an elongated round. The marquise cut is rounded in the middle and pointed at each end, like a weaver’s shuttle. The pear shape is rounded at one end and pointed at the other. The heart shape is essentially a pear shape with a notch in the rounded end.
The proportion of length to width may vary within each of these ‘fancy’ cuts so that is possible, for example, to have both ‘thin’ pear shapes and ‘fat’ pear shapes. Each of these cuts has the same 58 facets as the brilliant cut, but the shapes of the facets are different. Some larger diamonds in these cuts have girdles thick enough for additional facets around them.
The emerald cut (and its companion, the square cut) also has 58 facets, all of which are very close to rectangular. There are 24 facets and the table above the girdle, and 24 facets and the culet below; the remaining 8 facets are around the girdle.
Any of these shapes may be used as the solitaire or principal diamond in an engagement ring. They may also be used in other types of jewelry. The advantage of the fancy shapes for the cutter is that they usually can be cut from irregular pieces of rough with less loss of weight than a round can be cut. Their advantage for the customer is that they tend to look larger than a round diamond of the same weight.
But these are not the only shapes of diamonds being cut today. For the most part, the others are small diamonds which are set as side stones in rings or as secondary stones in other types of jewelry. Usually they are cut in these shapes to get maximum weight out of irregular small pieces of rough.
The baguette is thin and rectangular, like an emerald cut with 17 facets. The tapered baguette is wider at one end than the other, like a tall trapezoid. The trapeze follows the standard trapezoid shape, with the long sides parallel and the short sides angled toward each other.
The triangle is a three-sided stone, as the name implies. The kite shape looks like a kite, or two triangles of different sizes. The lozenge is like the diamond pip on a playing card, or two triangles of equal sizes. The half moon has the shape of a crescent.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
Thursday, October 04, 2007
Oil Crash Movie
(via Doors Report) After Al Gore's 'An Inconvenient Truth' comes another blockbuster: 'Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash'.
This film tells the story of 'how our civilization's addiction to oil puts it on a collision course with geology'. A succession of oil experts in crumpled suits come to a startling, but logical conclusion: our industrial society, built on cheap and readily available oil, must be completely re-imagined and overhauled. Or....
Useful link:
http://www.oilcrashmovie.com/film.html
This film tells the story of 'how our civilization's addiction to oil puts it on a collision course with geology'. A succession of oil experts in crumpled suits come to a startling, but logical conclusion: our industrial society, built on cheap and readily available oil, must be completely re-imagined and overhauled. Or....
Useful link:
http://www.oilcrashmovie.com/film.html
Panyu, China
Panyu, located in the city of Guangzhou, hosts more than 300 jewelry-manufacturing companies. According to government statistics, jewelry exports from Hong Kong in 2006 totaled $5.49 billion, of which $1.16 billion worth of jewelry was manufactured in Panyu.
Why Gold Is Better Than Paper Money
(via Moneyweek) Bill Bonner of Daily Reckoning writes about investing in gold + other viewpoints @ http://www.moneyweek.com/file/12195/why-gold-is-better-than-paper-money.html
Classics Of Everyday Design
(via The Guardian) Jonathan Glancey's everyday design classics @
Jonathan Glancey's classics of everyday design
Classics of everyday design No 2
Classics of everyday design No 3
Classics of everyday design No 4
Classics of everyday design No 5
I liked it.
Jonathan Glancey's classics of everyday design
Classics of everyday design No 2
Classics of everyday design No 3
Classics of everyday design No 4
Classics of everyday design No 5
I liked it.
The Quintessential Designer
(via The Guardian) Ian Sample writes about Jonathan Ive, the genius behind iBook and iMac, and latterly the ubiquitous iPod range + his rise to public prominence with the return to Apple of ebullient chief executive Steve Jobs + other viewpoints @ http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/design/story/0,,1992361,00.html
The Cult Of Leica
Anthony Lane writes about Leica camera + the brand and its evolution since 1925 + the major-league names that were associated with the Leica brand + other viewpoints @ http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/09/24/070924fa_fact_lane
Moving Mountains, Walking On Water
Ann Landi writes about Earthworks, Land Art, or Earth Art by major artists like Robert Smithson, Walter De Maria, James Turrell, and Michael Heizer + newcomers and the impact + other viewpoints @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1540
Selling Diamonds
(via Diamond Promotion Service) Diamond Cutting: 28. The beauty of a gem diamond depends on the way it handles light. Diamond cutting unlocks this beauty.
The ancient Indian lapidaries learned that the surfaces of a diamond could be polished by rubbing another diamond against them. This enabled the diamond to reflect more light, and in ancient times the diamond was called the Venus stone because of its brightness. In the 15th century important discoveries were made which resulted in even brighter stones through the grinding of additional facets or planes. More than two centuries later a Venetian cutter named Peruzzi invented the 58-facet form for round diamonds that is basic to today’s cutting. In 1919 Marcel Tolkowsky, a physicist, developed the relationship of facet angles that is considered ideal for modern cutting.
Antwerp and Israel are the largest diamond cutting centers in the world. Other important centers are Amsterdam, United States, India, West Germany and South Africa. Cutting is also done on a lesser scale in England, Puerto Rico, Russia, France and Portugal. Each center has gradually, over the years, come to specialize in cutting a particular quality of diamonds. Cleavages and chips are, in the main, worked in Antwerp; stones and shapes in the United States; and melee in Amsterdam, Israel and West Germany.
29. Marking. The first step in diamond cutting is an examination of the rough stone by the planner, usually a master cutter. Using his loupe, or magnifying glass, he studies every aspect of the stone. For very large diamonds, this study can go on for months, but for the average diamond the study is done in a few minutes. Nevertheless, every diamond must be studied, no matter how small it is.
The planner has to be conscious of two factors. Under normal circumstances, a rough diamond loses more than half its weight in the cutting process; so the planner has to determine the finished shape that will retain as much weight as possible. Most diamonds contain natural imperfections, or inclusions; so that planner has to position the finished shape and direct the cutting so that as many inclusions as possible can be ground away and the remaining inclusions will offer minimum interference with the passage of light through the stone. Sometimes, to eliminate a major inclusion, the planner will have a stone cut smaller than it could be.
Then he marks the diamond with India ink to indicate how the cutting will go. The principal mark shows how the stone must be divided. An octahedron crystal is usually divided just above the middle, and both parts are cut into round diamonds. An irregular piece of rough may be divided into several pieces, and each piece will be cut into a finished gem. When a piece of rough is already close to the shape of a finished gem, it may not be divided at all but just ground down into the finished shape.
30. Sawing. Most octahdedron crystals, and many irregular shapes, are divided ‘against the grain’, and so they are sawed. Only diamond will cut diamond; therefore, the saw is a thin disk of phosphor bronze, its edge coated with a paste of oil and diamond dust. The saw is mounted vertically and spins at high speed. The diamond is set into a clamp so that it can be lowered against the saw’s edge in the plane along which it must be divided. Gravity keeps the stone against the saw while it is being cut.
It takes hours to cut through even a small diamond. However, one sawyer can handle a batter of saws, checking each stone at intervals to ensure that is being sawed correctly. The deviation of even a hair can affect the finished gem.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
The ancient Indian lapidaries learned that the surfaces of a diamond could be polished by rubbing another diamond against them. This enabled the diamond to reflect more light, and in ancient times the diamond was called the Venus stone because of its brightness. In the 15th century important discoveries were made which resulted in even brighter stones through the grinding of additional facets or planes. More than two centuries later a Venetian cutter named Peruzzi invented the 58-facet form for round diamonds that is basic to today’s cutting. In 1919 Marcel Tolkowsky, a physicist, developed the relationship of facet angles that is considered ideal for modern cutting.
Antwerp and Israel are the largest diamond cutting centers in the world. Other important centers are Amsterdam, United States, India, West Germany and South Africa. Cutting is also done on a lesser scale in England, Puerto Rico, Russia, France and Portugal. Each center has gradually, over the years, come to specialize in cutting a particular quality of diamonds. Cleavages and chips are, in the main, worked in Antwerp; stones and shapes in the United States; and melee in Amsterdam, Israel and West Germany.
29. Marking. The first step in diamond cutting is an examination of the rough stone by the planner, usually a master cutter. Using his loupe, or magnifying glass, he studies every aspect of the stone. For very large diamonds, this study can go on for months, but for the average diamond the study is done in a few minutes. Nevertheless, every diamond must be studied, no matter how small it is.
The planner has to be conscious of two factors. Under normal circumstances, a rough diamond loses more than half its weight in the cutting process; so the planner has to determine the finished shape that will retain as much weight as possible. Most diamonds contain natural imperfections, or inclusions; so that planner has to position the finished shape and direct the cutting so that as many inclusions as possible can be ground away and the remaining inclusions will offer minimum interference with the passage of light through the stone. Sometimes, to eliminate a major inclusion, the planner will have a stone cut smaller than it could be.
Then he marks the diamond with India ink to indicate how the cutting will go. The principal mark shows how the stone must be divided. An octahedron crystal is usually divided just above the middle, and both parts are cut into round diamonds. An irregular piece of rough may be divided into several pieces, and each piece will be cut into a finished gem. When a piece of rough is already close to the shape of a finished gem, it may not be divided at all but just ground down into the finished shape.
30. Sawing. Most octahdedron crystals, and many irregular shapes, are divided ‘against the grain’, and so they are sawed. Only diamond will cut diamond; therefore, the saw is a thin disk of phosphor bronze, its edge coated with a paste of oil and diamond dust. The saw is mounted vertically and spins at high speed. The diamond is set into a clamp so that it can be lowered against the saw’s edge in the plane along which it must be divided. Gravity keeps the stone against the saw while it is being cut.
It takes hours to cut through even a small diamond. However, one sawyer can handle a batter of saws, checking each stone at intervals to ensure that is being sawed correctly. The deviation of even a hair can affect the finished gem.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Bangkok Gems And Jewelry Fair
According to Vichai Assarasakorn, chief executive of the BGJF organizing committee, the show went beyond expectation in the wake of adverse impacts like the sluggish global economy and, more recently, the U.S. sub-prime loan fallout + more than 10 national groups from such markets as Europe, India, Russia and the United States met with exhibitors at the fair.
According to Thailand's Minister of Commerce Krik-krai Jirapaet, gems and jewelry exports last year exceeded $3.6 billion, up 12.7 percent from the previous year. In the first seven months of this year, gems and jewelry exports increased 5.41 percent year-on-year to $2.18 billion.
The next edition of the Bangkok Gems and Jewelry Fair will take place from Feb. 27-March 2, 2008.
According to Thailand's Minister of Commerce Krik-krai Jirapaet, gems and jewelry exports last year exceeded $3.6 billion, up 12.7 percent from the previous year. In the first seven months of this year, gems and jewelry exports increased 5.41 percent year-on-year to $2.18 billion.
The next edition of the Bangkok Gems and Jewelry Fair will take place from Feb. 27-March 2, 2008.
When's The Best Time To Buy Gold?
Moneyweek writes about the tight supply and growing demand of gold + the market trends + other viewpoints @ http://www.moneyweek.com/file/12405/whens-the-best-time-to-buy-gold.html
The Top 50
The Guardian profiles UK's brightest/biggest designers + their concepts @ http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/design/story/0,,2159165,00.html
The Istanbul Biennial
Peter Schjeldahl writes about The Istanbul Biennial, one of the first non-Western biennials, and one of only a few in Muslim countries + its fun-filled, earnest concepts + other viewpoints @ http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/artworld/2007/10/08/071008craw_artworld_schjeldahl
About The Turner Prize
(via The Guardian) Jonathan Jones writes about the Turner prize + other viewpoints @ http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/news/story/0,,2181514,00.html
Useful links:
Turner prize 2007
In pictures: the shortlisted artists
About Mark Wallinger
Adrian Searle on Mark Wallinger's State Britain
What do you think of State Britain?
State Britain in pictures
Adrian Searle on Wallinger's Trafalgar Square sculpture
Mark Wallinger's 1995 Turner prize entry
About Zarina Bhimji
Adrian Searle reviews Documenta
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown on Muslim artists in Britain
Zarina Bhimji official site
Haunchofvenison.com: biography of Bhimji
About Nathan Coley
Adrian Searle on 2005's macabre summer shows
Doggerfisher.com: see works by Nathan Coley
About Mike Nelson
News: Art on drugs in Margate
Jonathan Jones talks to Mike Nelson
Mike Nelson's 2001 Turner prize entry
Tate: Mike Nelson profile
Mike Nelson at Frieze Art Fair
Special report
Full coverage: Turner prize 2006
Useful links:
Turner prize 2007
In pictures: the shortlisted artists
About Mark Wallinger
Adrian Searle on Mark Wallinger's State Britain
What do you think of State Britain?
State Britain in pictures
Adrian Searle on Wallinger's Trafalgar Square sculpture
Mark Wallinger's 1995 Turner prize entry
About Zarina Bhimji
Adrian Searle reviews Documenta
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown on Muslim artists in Britain
Zarina Bhimji official site
Haunchofvenison.com: biography of Bhimji
About Nathan Coley
Adrian Searle on 2005's macabre summer shows
Doggerfisher.com: see works by Nathan Coley
About Mike Nelson
News: Art on drugs in Margate
Jonathan Jones talks to Mike Nelson
Mike Nelson's 2001 Turner prize entry
Tate: Mike Nelson profile
Mike Nelson at Frieze Art Fair
Special report
Full coverage: Turner prize 2006
Orthodox Bulldozer
Konstantin Akinsha writes about the background of rising nationalism and Orthodox assertiveness by Russian Orthodox activists + the influential members of the congregation of St. Nicholas in Pyzhi (whose archpriest, Alexander Shargunov, is a well-known radical fundamentalist) + the Sakharov Museum controversy + other viewpoints @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1521
Selling Diamonds
(via Diamond Promotion Service) 21. The diamonds are separated from the concentrate in the final steps of recovery. Until recently, this was done primarily by grease tables or grease belts. Diamonds are water-resistant; therefore when the concentrate is sluiced over tables or moving belts coated with a heavy grease, the diamonds stick to the grease and the rest of the material is washed away. Then the diamonds and grease are scraped up and put into boiling water which cleans away the grease.
22. The latest development for this final recovery is X-ray separation. A diamond fluoresces in an X-ray beam. The diamondiferous concentrate passes a beam. The fluorescence triggers a photoelectric cell, which in turn, trips a jet of air that blows the diamond out of the main stream. When another mineral passes the electronic eye, nothing happens. This method of separation is incredibly fast, and it’s more than 99 percent effective.
23. In alluvial mines, the diamonds are usually found among the gravels and other material lying on the bedrock. The sand or earthen overburden is scraped up and dumped in an other location. Then the diamond-bearing gravels are scooped up and taken away for the recovery treatment. Every crevice of the bedrock is swept clean with brooms to make sure that they get all the diamonds. The recovery process is essentially the same as for ore from the open cast and underground mines.
24. The ratio of diamonds within the diamond-bearing rock is very low. In some mines, to recover one ounce of diamonds—which is 142 carats—the miners have to dig as much as 112,000,000 ounces of material—which is 3500 tons. Furthermore, the average size of the rough diamonds is less than a carat. So in one ounce of rough—142 carats—there may be only half a dozen stones larger than a carat, and a couple of hundred smaller than half a carat.
25. Of the total world production of rough diamonds, only about 20 percent are capable of being cut into gem diamonds. The rest are put to industrial use for the cutting, grinding and polishing of a great variety of materials used in manufacturing. The gem-industrial ratio varies from country to country. Production in the Republic of Zaire (DR Congo) runs more than 98 percent industrial while that of South-West Africa is more than 90 percent gem.
26. Broadly, diamonds are sorted in the following categories: stones, which are octahedral in shape and look like two four-sided pyramids joined at their bases; cleavages, or broken and blocky pieces; macles, which are triangular stones usually with a herring-bone line around them; and flats, or thin but cuttable diamonds. Stones and shapes weighing less than one carat in the rough are known as melee. Cleavages under one carat in the rough are known as chips. Bort, ballas and carbonado are varieties of diamond used only in industry.
27. Synthetic diamonds for industrial uses are being manufactured by subjecting graphite compounds to tremendous heat and pressure in giant presses. Synthetic gem diamonds have been made in laboratory experiments, but only at great cost, far more than the cost of natural gem diamonds.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
22. The latest development for this final recovery is X-ray separation. A diamond fluoresces in an X-ray beam. The diamondiferous concentrate passes a beam. The fluorescence triggers a photoelectric cell, which in turn, trips a jet of air that blows the diamond out of the main stream. When another mineral passes the electronic eye, nothing happens. This method of separation is incredibly fast, and it’s more than 99 percent effective.
23. In alluvial mines, the diamonds are usually found among the gravels and other material lying on the bedrock. The sand or earthen overburden is scraped up and dumped in an other location. Then the diamond-bearing gravels are scooped up and taken away for the recovery treatment. Every crevice of the bedrock is swept clean with brooms to make sure that they get all the diamonds. The recovery process is essentially the same as for ore from the open cast and underground mines.
24. The ratio of diamonds within the diamond-bearing rock is very low. In some mines, to recover one ounce of diamonds—which is 142 carats—the miners have to dig as much as 112,000,000 ounces of material—which is 3500 tons. Furthermore, the average size of the rough diamonds is less than a carat. So in one ounce of rough—142 carats—there may be only half a dozen stones larger than a carat, and a couple of hundred smaller than half a carat.
25. Of the total world production of rough diamonds, only about 20 percent are capable of being cut into gem diamonds. The rest are put to industrial use for the cutting, grinding and polishing of a great variety of materials used in manufacturing. The gem-industrial ratio varies from country to country. Production in the Republic of Zaire (DR Congo) runs more than 98 percent industrial while that of South-West Africa is more than 90 percent gem.
26. Broadly, diamonds are sorted in the following categories: stones, which are octahedral in shape and look like two four-sided pyramids joined at their bases; cleavages, or broken and blocky pieces; macles, which are triangular stones usually with a herring-bone line around them; and flats, or thin but cuttable diamonds. Stones and shapes weighing less than one carat in the rough are known as melee. Cleavages under one carat in the rough are known as chips. Bort, ballas and carbonado are varieties of diamond used only in industry.
27. Synthetic diamonds for industrial uses are being manufactured by subjecting graphite compounds to tremendous heat and pressure in giant presses. Synthetic gem diamonds have been made in laboratory experiments, but only at great cost, far more than the cost of natural gem diamonds.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
How Green Was My Valley
Greatest Opening Film Lines (How Green Was My Valley - 1941):
I am packing my belongings in the shawl my mother used to wear when she went to the market. And I'm going from my valley. And this time, I shall never return. I am leaving behind me my fifty years of memory. Memory. Streams that the mind will forget so much of what only this moment has passed, and yet hold clear and bright the memory of what happened years ago - of men and women long since dead.
I liked this one.
I am packing my belongings in the shawl my mother used to wear when she went to the market. And I'm going from my valley. And this time, I shall never return. I am leaving behind me my fifty years of memory. Memory. Streams that the mind will forget so much of what only this moment has passed, and yet hold clear and bright the memory of what happened years ago - of men and women long since dead.
I liked this one.
Common Gemstone Treatments
A number of gem materials are treated to alter their appearance. Temperatures may vary considerably depending on the material and the desired effect. In some cases relatively low temperatures may cause the desired change (s).
Amber may be heated to produce a number of desired changes. Most commonly it is heated to induce discoid fractures known as ‘sun spangles’ that some consider desirable. It may also be heated to change yellow material to a darker, more orange brown color, thereby resembling naturally age-oxidized material. Cloudy amber containing a myriad of tiny gas bubbles may be clarified by heating, usually while immersed in an oil medium (rapeseed or linseed oil). The presence of sun spangles is generally assumed to imply treatment whereas the heat oxidation and clarification processes are not normally detectable.
Aquamarine, a beryl variety, most commonly occurs in nature as a blue-green stone, the color from which it derives its name (meaning seawater). Today, however, a purer blue is more marketable. Heat treatment is therefore used to remove the yellow component of its color, leaving the stable blue. The same treatment is used to remove the yellow component from some peachy morganite beryl, resulting in a purer pink color. Because of the relatively low temperatures used, heat treated aquamarine and morganite rarely show the type of heat-treated damage used to determine heat treatment in some corundum, so detection is generally not possible.
One of the commercially more significant varieties of quartz is amethyst. The stone is heated to improve the color of dark-toned material by bleaching out some of the purple color and/or removing a smoky component. In both cases the heating (partially or completely) reverses radiation-induced structural damage that produced color centers. Heating to high temperatures is routinely used on amethyst from some sources to produce the yellow quartz variety, citrine. It is believed that practically all of the citrine on the market today is the result of such treatments. Some amethyst, upon heating, will convert to citrine in some zones and not others; this results in the bi-colored amethyst-citrine variety that has marketed under the trade name Ametrine.
Some brown to orange topaz owes its color to a combination of a chromium-produced pink component and color-center-produced yellow-to-brown component. Heating such materials repairs the structural damage that produces the yellowish component, leaving only the stable pink color. This process, which requires relatively low temperatures, is referred to as ‘pinking’. The material reportedly shows stronger dichroism than untreated natural pink topaz. Heating is also a step in the production of some irradiated blue topaz, as some irradiation sources will produce color centers for both blue and yellow to brown colors. The heating removes the yellowish component, leaving the more stable blue color.
Amber may be heated to produce a number of desired changes. Most commonly it is heated to induce discoid fractures known as ‘sun spangles’ that some consider desirable. It may also be heated to change yellow material to a darker, more orange brown color, thereby resembling naturally age-oxidized material. Cloudy amber containing a myriad of tiny gas bubbles may be clarified by heating, usually while immersed in an oil medium (rapeseed or linseed oil). The presence of sun spangles is generally assumed to imply treatment whereas the heat oxidation and clarification processes are not normally detectable.
Aquamarine, a beryl variety, most commonly occurs in nature as a blue-green stone, the color from which it derives its name (meaning seawater). Today, however, a purer blue is more marketable. Heat treatment is therefore used to remove the yellow component of its color, leaving the stable blue. The same treatment is used to remove the yellow component from some peachy morganite beryl, resulting in a purer pink color. Because of the relatively low temperatures used, heat treated aquamarine and morganite rarely show the type of heat-treated damage used to determine heat treatment in some corundum, so detection is generally not possible.
One of the commercially more significant varieties of quartz is amethyst. The stone is heated to improve the color of dark-toned material by bleaching out some of the purple color and/or removing a smoky component. In both cases the heating (partially or completely) reverses radiation-induced structural damage that produced color centers. Heating to high temperatures is routinely used on amethyst from some sources to produce the yellow quartz variety, citrine. It is believed that practically all of the citrine on the market today is the result of such treatments. Some amethyst, upon heating, will convert to citrine in some zones and not others; this results in the bi-colored amethyst-citrine variety that has marketed under the trade name Ametrine.
Some brown to orange topaz owes its color to a combination of a chromium-produced pink component and color-center-produced yellow-to-brown component. Heating such materials repairs the structural damage that produces the yellowish component, leaving only the stable pink color. This process, which requires relatively low temperatures, is referred to as ‘pinking’. The material reportedly shows stronger dichroism than untreated natural pink topaz. Heating is also a step in the production of some irradiated blue topaz, as some irradiation sources will produce color centers for both blue and yellow to brown colors. The heating removes the yellowish component, leaving the more stable blue color.
Designers' London
(via The Observer) It's all about top designers and their inspirations + the places and spaces in London that motivates them most + other viewpoints @ http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/design/story/0,,2162272,00.html
Damien Hirst Speaks
(via The Guardian) I really liked Damien Hirst's artwork because it inspiring + the way he connects the dots is remarkable.
Useful links:
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/visualart/story/0,,2180929,00.html
Damien Hirst: Beyond Belief
On the blog
Jonathan Jones: Buy the skull for the nation
Related articles
06.06.2007: Jonathan Glancey: Now you, too, can own a version of Damien's £50m skull
04.06.2007: Who would pay £50m for Hirst's skull?
02.06.2007: Diamonds are a skull's best friend
25.10.2006: Jonathan Jones: Fresh out of ideas
20.06.2006: Charlotte Higgins meets maverick British artist Damien Hirst
24.10.2005: The bell tolls for Hirst's tried and tested work
01.09.2005: Hirst snaps up rotting Gothic manor
13.06.2005: Hirst ditches plans to use photograph from scene of unsolved murder
07.04.2005: Hirst show 'terrible', say New York critics
04.03.2005: Damien Hirst, Gagosian, London
28.01.2005: Eternal city finds holy site for Hirst
16.01.2005: Hirst shark sold for £7m
27.11.2003: Hirst buys his art back from Saatchi
The Hirst Files
06.10.2001: Part 1: Student works, butterflies and corpses
06.10.2001: Part 2: Lost weekends, Charles Saatchi and Pharmacy
07.10.2001: Part 3: Rows with Matthew Freud, his comeback, and how to buy a very big fish
25.10.2006: Jonathan Jones: Fresh out of ideas
Useful links:
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/visualart/story/0,,2180929,00.html
Damien Hirst: Beyond Belief
On the blog
Jonathan Jones: Buy the skull for the nation
Related articles
06.06.2007: Jonathan Glancey: Now you, too, can own a version of Damien's £50m skull
04.06.2007: Who would pay £50m for Hirst's skull?
02.06.2007: Diamonds are a skull's best friend
25.10.2006: Jonathan Jones: Fresh out of ideas
20.06.2006: Charlotte Higgins meets maverick British artist Damien Hirst
24.10.2005: The bell tolls for Hirst's tried and tested work
01.09.2005: Hirst snaps up rotting Gothic manor
13.06.2005: Hirst ditches plans to use photograph from scene of unsolved murder
07.04.2005: Hirst show 'terrible', say New York critics
04.03.2005: Damien Hirst, Gagosian, London
28.01.2005: Eternal city finds holy site for Hirst
16.01.2005: Hirst shark sold for £7m
27.11.2003: Hirst buys his art back from Saatchi
The Hirst Files
06.10.2001: Part 1: Student works, butterflies and corpses
06.10.2001: Part 2: Lost weekends, Charles Saatchi and Pharmacy
07.10.2001: Part 3: Rows with Matthew Freud, his comeback, and how to buy a very big fish
25.10.2006: Jonathan Jones: Fresh out of ideas
Hanging On
(via The Guardian) In my view, provided proper safeguards were in place museums and galleries should be free to sell off works of art and other objects from their collections.
Useful link:
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/visualart/story/0,,2179460,00.html
Useful link:
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/visualart/story/0,,2179460,00.html
The 10 Most Expensive Living Artists
Kelly Devine Thomas profiles the most expensive living artists @ http://artnews.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=1520
Selling Diamonds
(via Diamond Promotion Service) Diamond Mining: 15. It is believed that diamonds were formed by heat and pressure, millions of years ago, deep within the earth. Later, the magma in which the diamonds were embedded was forced to the surface through fissures like the throats of ancients volcanoes. This material then cooled into formations that we call ‘pipes’. Diamond pipes are being mined today in Botswana, Siberia, South Africa and Tanzania.
16. However, all these formations did not remain intact. Exposed to rain and heat cold for millions of years, many diamond-bearing pipes weathered away. Because the diamonds were so hard, they didn’t break up like the other material. Rather, they were carried along by streams and rivers. When their size or specific gravity was too much for the force of the water, they dropped to the river beds. These are called alluvial deposits, and most of the world’s diamonds come from alluvial mining. The pipe mine in Botswana was discovered by geologists who backtracked from an alluvial deposit along the course of an ancient river.
17. In certain areas of southern Africa, it is believed that some rivers carried diamonds all the way to the Atlantic Ocean, where wave wash deposited them in marine terraces. Some of these terraces are now on dry land, where they are being mined. There is another theory that the diamonds were washed up on the beaches from volcanic pipes on the ocean floor.
18. A diamond pipe is usually composed of a rock-like material called kimberlite, or blue ground. When a diamond pipe is mined, the first step is to dig into it from the surface, like the excavation for a huge building. This is called open-cast mining. It can continue until the hole is too deep for the ore to be brought to the surface easily, but this depth can be 800 to 1000 feet. The Finsch Mine in South Africa, the Williamson Mine in Tanzania and the Orapa Mine in Botswana are open cast mines.
19. When the hole gets too deep, the mine goes underground. Vertical shafts are sunk into the ‘country rock’ away from the pipe. Although there are different methods for underground mining, the basic technique is to drive horizontal tunnels from the shafts into the pipe and then to dig out the diamond-bearing ore from below. This, of course, makes the hole deeper, and the tunnels are driven at successively lower levels until the entire pipe has been mined out, leaving only a hole where the pipe had been. The Big Hole at Kimberley, now the site of a diamond museum, is what remains after the Kimberley Mine was mined out in 1914; now filling with water, it is 1335 feet deep, one of the deepest man-made holes on earth.
20. After the diamond-bearing ore is brought to the surface from either open cast or underground mine, it is put through a long and complex recovery process. The ore is broken up in mills that exert enough force to break the kimberlite, but not the diamonds it contains. Then the broken ore goes through a series of washings, jiggings and screenings that remove much of the waste material. Then what’s left is put into huge tanks that look like mud puddles; the liquid is heavier than water, however, so that the diamonds and other heavier minerals can sink to the bottom in a concentrate while the lighter waste material floats off.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
16. However, all these formations did not remain intact. Exposed to rain and heat cold for millions of years, many diamond-bearing pipes weathered away. Because the diamonds were so hard, they didn’t break up like the other material. Rather, they were carried along by streams and rivers. When their size or specific gravity was too much for the force of the water, they dropped to the river beds. These are called alluvial deposits, and most of the world’s diamonds come from alluvial mining. The pipe mine in Botswana was discovered by geologists who backtracked from an alluvial deposit along the course of an ancient river.
17. In certain areas of southern Africa, it is believed that some rivers carried diamonds all the way to the Atlantic Ocean, where wave wash deposited them in marine terraces. Some of these terraces are now on dry land, where they are being mined. There is another theory that the diamonds were washed up on the beaches from volcanic pipes on the ocean floor.
18. A diamond pipe is usually composed of a rock-like material called kimberlite, or blue ground. When a diamond pipe is mined, the first step is to dig into it from the surface, like the excavation for a huge building. This is called open-cast mining. It can continue until the hole is too deep for the ore to be brought to the surface easily, but this depth can be 800 to 1000 feet. The Finsch Mine in South Africa, the Williamson Mine in Tanzania and the Orapa Mine in Botswana are open cast mines.
19. When the hole gets too deep, the mine goes underground. Vertical shafts are sunk into the ‘country rock’ away from the pipe. Although there are different methods for underground mining, the basic technique is to drive horizontal tunnels from the shafts into the pipe and then to dig out the diamond-bearing ore from below. This, of course, makes the hole deeper, and the tunnels are driven at successively lower levels until the entire pipe has been mined out, leaving only a hole where the pipe had been. The Big Hole at Kimberley, now the site of a diamond museum, is what remains after the Kimberley Mine was mined out in 1914; now filling with water, it is 1335 feet deep, one of the deepest man-made holes on earth.
20. After the diamond-bearing ore is brought to the surface from either open cast or underground mine, it is put through a long and complex recovery process. The ore is broken up in mills that exert enough force to break the kimberlite, but not the diamonds it contains. Then the broken ore goes through a series of washings, jiggings and screenings that remove much of the waste material. Then what’s left is put into huge tanks that look like mud puddles; the liquid is heavier than water, however, so that the diamonds and other heavier minerals can sink to the bottom in a concentrate while the lighter waste material floats off.
Selling Diamonds (continued)
Monday, October 01, 2007
Different Types Of Star Gemstones
In general, star gemstones occur in fewer minerals. In theory, if right conditions were present, almost any mineral could produce asterism.
In a star ruby or sapphire, titanium oxide is exsolved as fine needles of rutile. They orient themselves in three directions, intersecting at 60° and 120° within the same plane producing beautiful stars. The most desirable black star sapphires are those which exhibit the golden star and can be many times more valuable than the more common white-rayed black star sapphires. The asterism of black star sapphire is due to perfectly oriented intergrowth of elongated hematite lamellae. Asterism can be produced in certain types of non-asteriated corundum by moderate heating, if a piece of natural corundum contains enough titanium oxide. Star rubies and sapphires can also be produced by surface diffusion technique, with red and blue being the most common.
Synthetic star corundums by the Verneuil (flame fusion) process are made by adding 0.1-0.3% of titanium oxide to the mixture. The stones are known as Linde stars in the trade and are currently manufactured in several colors, with red and blue being the most common. Identification of synthetic star corundum is not difficult because the needles are usually much smaller than those in the natural stone, and they are more evenly distributed.
Star quartz is sometimes used to imitate star sapphire. The silk usually consists of rutile intersecting in three directions or sillimanite (fibrolite). This may result in a four-rayed star or a six depending upon how the stone is oriented.
Star diopside and star entstatite are two inexpensive stones which are confused with one another. Both display 4-ray stars which meet at almost 90° and one ray is slightly more diffused than the other.
Star beryl is an unusual type. Brown in color and displaying a weak 6-rayed star, it bears a strong resemblance to black star sapphire. The star results from plates of ilmenite and hematite which are oriented in certain positions parallel to the basal plane. These plates also appear to give the stone its dark brown color; if viewed parallel to the plates, clear transparent areas are seen.
The color of star spinel varies from reddish purple to black, with most being quite dark in tone. If the stone is cut so that base is parallel to an octahedron face, a 6-rayed star will be seen; if the stone is cut so that the base is parallel to a cube face, a 4-rayed will be seen. In either case, additional stars will be seen around the girdle. Asterism may also be seen in almandine garnet and moonstone.
In a star ruby or sapphire, titanium oxide is exsolved as fine needles of rutile. They orient themselves in three directions, intersecting at 60° and 120° within the same plane producing beautiful stars. The most desirable black star sapphires are those which exhibit the golden star and can be many times more valuable than the more common white-rayed black star sapphires. The asterism of black star sapphire is due to perfectly oriented intergrowth of elongated hematite lamellae. Asterism can be produced in certain types of non-asteriated corundum by moderate heating, if a piece of natural corundum contains enough titanium oxide. Star rubies and sapphires can also be produced by surface diffusion technique, with red and blue being the most common.
Synthetic star corundums by the Verneuil (flame fusion) process are made by adding 0.1-0.3% of titanium oxide to the mixture. The stones are known as Linde stars in the trade and are currently manufactured in several colors, with red and blue being the most common. Identification of synthetic star corundum is not difficult because the needles are usually much smaller than those in the natural stone, and they are more evenly distributed.
Star quartz is sometimes used to imitate star sapphire. The silk usually consists of rutile intersecting in three directions or sillimanite (fibrolite). This may result in a four-rayed star or a six depending upon how the stone is oriented.
Star diopside and star entstatite are two inexpensive stones which are confused with one another. Both display 4-ray stars which meet at almost 90° and one ray is slightly more diffused than the other.
Star beryl is an unusual type. Brown in color and displaying a weak 6-rayed star, it bears a strong resemblance to black star sapphire. The star results from plates of ilmenite and hematite which are oriented in certain positions parallel to the basal plane. These plates also appear to give the stone its dark brown color; if viewed parallel to the plates, clear transparent areas are seen.
The color of star spinel varies from reddish purple to black, with most being quite dark in tone. If the stone is cut so that base is parallel to an octahedron face, a 6-rayed star will be seen; if the stone is cut so that the base is parallel to a cube face, a 4-rayed will be seen. In either case, additional stars will be seen around the girdle. Asterism may also be seen in almandine garnet and moonstone.
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