Earth used to look like Mars. Here’s why that changed. | Robert Hazen

### 🪨 **Minerals: The Silent Architects of Life** *— A Mineralogist’s Perspective* --- #### 💎 Minerals Are Everywhere - They power our **technology**, **transport**, **agriculture**, and even **biology**. - Every living thing on Earth depends on minerals — **you, me, and the food we eat**. --- #### 🧠 Minerals Tell Stories - Each mineral is a **time capsule**, holding clues to Earth’s **4.5-billion-year history**. - They're **information-rich**, revealing how our planet evolved over time. --- #### 🌱 The Origin of Life - Life couldn’t have started without minerals: → They acted as **catalysts**, **reactants**, and **protective surfaces** → Essential for the chemistry that sparked life --- #### 🌍 Earth’s Colorful Evolution - **Black**: Born covered in dark basalt rock - **Blue**: Rains and oceans gave rise to a water-covered world - **Gray**: Plate tectonics created granite continents - **Red**: Oxygen-rich life rusted the surface - **White**: Ice Age turned the world into a frozen planet - **Green**: Life colonized land, transforming Earth yet again --- #### 🦴 Life and Minerals Co-Evolved - Life didn’t just adapt **on Earth** — it adapted **with Earth**. - Minerals gave us: → **Shells, teeth, bones** → The tools for survival and evolution - This is the story of **the geosphere and biosphere evolving together**. --- ### 🔁 Final Thought: > “We wouldn’t be here talking about minerals... > **if minerals hadn’t made us possible.**” --- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices