Around A.D. 79, Roman author Pliny the Elder wrote in his Naturalis Historia that concrete structures in harbors, exposed to the constant assault of the saltwater waves, become “a single stone mass, impregnable to the waves and every day stronger.” He wasn’t exaggerating. While modern marine concrete structures crumble within decades, 2,000-year-old Roman piers and […]

A mineral discovered by retired University of Utah medical technologist Joe Marty recently received the inaugural Mineral of the Year award for 2014 by the International Mineral Association. Marty discovered the winning mineral, ophirite, roughly 25 years ago at the Ophir Hill Consolidated mine of Utah. The mine, located in the Ophir district in the Oquirrh […]