[meteorite-list] Re: "Bessey Specks"

From: MexicoDoug <MexicoDoug_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Wed Oct 18 00:42:35 2006
Message-ID: <000e01c6f26f$cc8f68c0$36a0a1ac_at_thedawning>

Ed wrote:

"You left out childrens gift from among the uses of
Bessey Specks - the "wow" effect of specks of Mars and
the Moon on them is pretty good - good hunting - Ed"

No oversight intended, Ed, I think you're right on the money as being a
little kid with a little imagination in the appreciation of such matchboxed
gems can greatly help:

How true, yes, how true, said the big kangaroo...
That Speck you'll not foil
With a dip in hot Beezlenut-oil
After all, "Not from the Sun in the summer. Nor from rain when it's
fall-ish,
I'm going to protect that Speck. No matter how small-ish!"

Through cyber-space jungles, the news quickly spread:
"He talks to a 'Bessey Speck'! He's out of his head!
Just look at its stalk, a 'Bessey Speck' on a flower!"
Dean walked, worrying, almost an hour.
"Should I put the Speck down?." Dean thought with alarm.
"If I do, these small 'rites may come to great harm.
I can't put it down. And I won't! After all
A 'rite's a 'rite. No matter how small.
Which the market quite bought, unless it's a 'wrong.
That these giants joining, not toiling too long,
For a new name's coining for Specks in a bag,
Please not to forget a green label or tag.
Then Blaine-n-Dean stopped walking.
The Speck-voice was talking!
"My friends," came the voice, "you're very fine friends.
You've helped all us folks on this Bessey Speck no ends.
You've saved all our chondrules, our fissures and pores
You've saved all our molecules and pallasite cores."
"You mean." Blaine gasped, "you have structures there, too?"
"Oh, yes," piped the voice. "We most certainly do.
"I know," called the voice, "I'm too small to be seen
But I'm Matrix of a town that is friendly and clean.
Our features, to you, would seem terribly small
But to us, who aren't big, they are wonderfully tall.
My town is called New-ville, for I am a New
And we News of the world are all grateful to you."

*Any similarity between these characters and any other characters is purely
coincidental.

Best wishes, Doug (with a lot of help from Dr. Theodore S. Geisel -the other
Dr. Seuss-)


--- MexicoDoug <MexicoDoug_at_aim.com> wrote:

> Hello Adam, Listees,
>
> Bessey Speck
> (1) A commercially marketed, submillimeter-sized,
> granular or irregular,
> intentionally broken petreus meteoritical fragment
> which collectors prize as
> a token possession of an expensive meteorite or of
> one with limited
> distribution, typically used more as a
> conversational piece or to
> satisfactorily fill a primal participatatory
> instinct for collection and
> coat-tailing on the "wow-effect" of possession of
> the parent specimen.
> Compare to "Particle", "Stardust", "Crumb", "Micro"
> and "Micromount".
> (2) Any, almost microscopic-sized particle
> originating from a larger (macro)
> meteorite specimen.
>
> Note, I'm not disagreeing with Adam' response to Ed
> in the sense that the
> term micromount is a term in the toolbox, although I
> think the word particle
> is more descriptive for most of our uses. I am
> agreeing with Michael Blood
> that the term Bessey Speck has a place.
>
> The questionably honorific term "Bessey Speck" seems
> like a much more
> descriptive term to me than micromount for many
> collectors. To me a
> "micromount" implies some sort of serious grand plan
> of scientific
> investigation or illustration of specific
> attributes. Size alone doesn't
> count, as much as purpose. For example, Stardust
> particles are not
> micromounts unless prepared that way despite Adam's
> definition, and they are
> not Bessey Specks, though micro-Besseyspeckies are
> certainly hypothetically
> possible.
>
> "Bessey Speck" consideres that not all particles
> commercially sold in venues
> like eBay find scientific use regardless of who is
> doing the selling. That's
> where Bessey Speck is a unique and interesting term.
> Adam's definition
> clearly has the weighted meaning toward a usually
> higher "scientific" use in
> observing material properties: appreciation with
> binocular microscope,
> better developed crystals, etc... The short comment
> in that definition
> "obtaining for less," especially given the profit
> and pleasure motives
> between buyers and sellers, really seems quite out
> of place to me. Adam's
> post wasn't clear, at least for me, if he disagreed
> with the use of the term
> Bessey Speck or just was offering Ed an alternate
> (which I definitely agree
> with Adam in doing).
>
> I am not comfortable with the term micromount being
> more properly used for
> specimens purposefully shattered into small bits
> with a sledge for the
> unadulterated and pure pleasure of collectors
> filling holes in their
> collections, a majority of which are not "better
> appreciating" their samples
> in a binocular microscope which many don't have nor
> have too much motivation
> to get.
>
> Didn't "Bessey Speck" usage start with Dean's Mars
> rock sales many years
> before most of our times? I am trying to remember
> Kevin Kitchinka's
> comments in "The Art of Meteorite Collecting" (don't
> have handy here) where
> an explanation of the etymology of this colorful
> term was published and my
> Mars' comment references. Bessey Specks, though,
> gets the point across much
> better for me! It's ll in the intended use and
> market. While I don' think
> a "Micromount" is an appropiate common sense
> description for something not
> carefully prepared and mounted to exhibit some
> characteristic, heck - if
> their not even carefully mounted...
>
> So, unless Dean objects to being immortalized in
> this fashion, that is my 2
> centavos.
> Doug
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Adam Hupe" <raremeteorites_at_comcast.net>
> To: <meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com>
> Sent: Tuesday, October 17, 2006 2:53 PM
> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Re: "Bessey Specks"
>
>
> The term micromount has been used for decades to
> describe this type of
> specimen.
>
> Micromount:
>
> Micromount is term used by mineral collectors and
> rockhounds to describe
> mineral specimens that are best appreciated using a
> binocular microscope.
> Micromount specimen collecting has a number of
> advantages, specimens take up
> less space, rare minerals can be obtained for less
> and smaller crystals are
> more perfectly developed.
>
>
> All the best,
>
> Adam
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "E.P. Grondine" <epgrondine_at_yahoo.com>
> To: <meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com>
> Sent: Tuesday, October 17, 2006 7:07 AM
> Subject: [meteorite-list] Re: "Bessey Specks"
>
>
> > Hi Michael, list -
> >
> > I see you list your Bessey Specks as "frags".
> >
> > (Your price of $25 seems very fair for Nakla
> specks,
> > but I already picked up Mars Bessey Specks for
> > childrens' gifts at Christmas from Hupe.)
> >
> > Clearly, there is a need for a more elegant term
> than
> > "Bessey Specks" for these. Does anybody have any
> > proposals? If not, is Dean(?-stroke damage) Bessey
> > going to be immortalized by having these formally
> > named after him?
> >
> > Hupe also sent the Bessey specks in small tubes
> > suitable for young hands, along with 1 nice pair
> of
> > cards (BTW I need a second pair of cards for the
> > second set of tubes, Greg), instead of gelatin
> > capsules.
> >
> > Perhaps microscope slides would be more suitable
> for
> > adult use, but as I don't remember any discussion
> of
> > these on the list, I'm bringing it up now.
> >
> > good hunting -
> > Ed
> >
> > --- Michael L Blood <mlblood_at_cox.net> wrote:
> >
> >> Greetings fellow space treasure lovers,
> >> This post includes a fabulous, large
> iron
> >> and an entire new
> >> page of historic calls.
> >>
> >> FIRST:
> >> A beautiful 6.5 Kg / 14.3 Lb S-A Shrapnel piece
> that
> >> appears for all
> >> the world to be an oriented shield on one side
> and a
> >> flat, oriented
> >> specimen heading to the left in a downward angle
> on
> >> the other side.
> >> This piece includes an custom build
> display
> >> stand to facilitate
> >> a very impressive display of its virtues.
> >> If no one snaps this up on sale it will
> go
> >> into my catalog
> >> at $3,250- but the first to contact me will take
> it
> >> in this sale for 2,750-
> >> (price includes shipping and insurance inside the
> >> US)
> >> This spectacular piece can be seen at:
> >>
> >>
> http://community.webshots.com/album/554884324rEfSPa
> >>
> >> SECOND:
> >> I have set up an entire page dedicated to hammers
> ?
> >> meteorites that have
> >> struck man made objects, animals or humans. This
> is
> >> a collection of the
> >> most impressive of all the recorded meteorite
> falls
> >> in history. I have 35
> >> different recorded falls (including Bessey Specks
> of
> >> Sylacauga, Yurtuk and
> >> Burnwell). About half of the falls can also be
> found
> >> elsewhere with diligent
> >> searching ? and you will find my prices are as
> low
> >> as anyone's. The others
> >> cannot be had anywhere else. They are priced
> >> according to cost. This page
> >> is
> >> worth checking out even if you don't want to buy
> >> anything ? it was 5 years
> >> in the making and includes historical photos,
> links,
> >> etc. See at the URL
> >> below:
> >>
> >>
> http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/Hammers.html
> >>
> >> Pieces on the Hammer page will be marked "SOLD"
> as
> >> orders come in ?
> >> so, if it is still listed when you email me, it
> is
> >> available.
> >>
> >> PayPal preferred (sent to this email
> >> address) Visa/Mastercard
> >> and personal checks gladly accepted.
> >> Happy Hunting! Michael
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> >
> > __________________________________________________
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>
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Received on Wed 18 Oct 2006 12:42:18 AM PDT