GO 340 - Week Three

Hello Gemstone Students!
Hey, terrific summary reports on websites that provide information on gemstone and gemmology education. Let us hear from more of you!?!
Everyone in the class has received assignments 1 and 2; however, some of you have returned the completed assignments and some have not. What's up? Silence does not work in an online class or a campus class that meets only once a week. Communication is important and email is a wonderful tool for that - use it!
Homework 3 is on the way via email and here are some gem tidbits to wet your appetite for more...

*On January 16, 1934 the 726 carat Jonker diamond was found in Pretoria, South Africa! It was found by Jacobus Jonker and he received $315,000.00 for the rough stone. Mr. Harry Winston acquired the stone and it was cleaved/cut/polished into eleven emerald cuts and one marquise cut, ranging from 125.35 to 5.3 carats (The Diamond Dictionary). "The Jonker IV, an emerald cut, weighed 30.70 carats and sold at Southeby's in New York in 1968 for $305,000" (http://www.mirolcentre.com/mirol/diamond/famous_diamond.html, Famous Diamonds, information retrieved 1/30/2009. Thanks to the content provider, Mirol Diamond Invest). View the Jonker diamond at http://www.brysonburke.com/20_jonker.html (Information retrieved 1/30/2009. Thanks to the content provider, Bryson Burke Diamond Corporation).

*Garnet is the birthstone for January. This gemstone occurs in every color of the rainbow, including blue, which is an extremely rare color for garnet. Jump ahead in the course and visit the course webpage on garnet at http://www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/garnet.htm.

Comments...questions?

Welcome to GO340 Gemstones and Gemology!

2009 is a new academic semester with new beginnings for the gemstones course - hence, the blog! For this course, a blog is a means of communicating as a group instead of one-to-one as has been in the past. While I will use this as one way of conveying course direction and information, it will also be an avenue to post interesting gemstone and gemology news and trivia! So you are responsible for posting here too and significant contributions will be a portion of your grade - yikes! Is this what it means to participate in a distance education course?!? Yes...

I look forward to seeing and hearing from you this semester via blog, email, and in person when possible. The blog is a way to get the word beyond the classroom and confining password protected course software; however, the campus version of this class will meet Tuesday evenings, 6-9 pm, Science Hall room 127, beginning January 27. Everyone -campus and distance student alike- is welcome to attend local and regional field trips and specifics will be forthcoming on these events.

If you are enrolled in this course for university credit, please email me, saber@emporia.edu, and introduce yourself as well as give me your preferred email address. The subject line should read GO340 Checking in! If your email address changes during the semester, notify me immediately. You can access the course at www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/. Obtain the textbook, begin lecture and text readings shown in the syllabus, and take the fun introductory quiz to test your knowledge and see a little of what to expect during the semester.

Susie