Everyone knows that diamonds can cut glass. However, do you know why? Diamonds are the hardest mineral according to Mohs scale of hardness. Mohs scale of hardness is a list, devised in 1812 by German scientist Frederich Mohs, of ten minerals in order of hardness. The higher the number, the harder the mineral. Diamonds are the highest at 10, but glass has a hardness of about 6. Since diamonds are harder than glass, diamonds can do damage to glass. The list is:
1 Talc
2 Gypsum
3 Calcite
4 Fluorite
5 Apatite
6 Orthoclase
7 Quartz
8 Topaz
9 Corundum
10 Diamond
Our fingernails are about 2.5. Geologist use this concept in the field to get a general idea of the minerals within rock layers they encounter. Of course, geologists will also take samples back to test in a lab. The differences in hardness are not uniform, but these minerals were chosen because they were widely available at the time.
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