"Powered by dinosaurs" bumper sticker?

by **ROCKMAN** » Wed 02 Mar 2016, 22:45:08

D - Technically you couldn't be more wrong. LOL. Much of the world's oil was generated from the remains of very tiny marine animals called FORAMINIFERA, like diatoms. You can search both terms for the details.

by **Synapsid** » Thu 03 Mar 2016, 00:05:21

RCKMN,

It's easier to type if you leave out the vowels!

Forams, as you say, are animals. Diatoms are algae.

You put that sentence in there just to poke me. Denial is useless.

by **ROCKMAN** » Thu 03 Mar 2016, 10:05:57

Syn - You're really pissing me off now. LOL. Yes: as you know I get a tad annoyed at armchair quarter backs that don't do a 60 second web search to find out the facts. So yes...you f*cked up my snare. To expand on Syn's comment: Diatoms are a major group of algae, and are among the most common types of phytoplankton. And in addition to sourcing oil forams are very useful fossils used to micro-age rocks and identify the depositional environment. Their great value is that the are so tiny that they even survive the drill bit and are recovered on the shale shakers.

We already know you're the smartest SOB in the room so shut up and stopped spoiling the fun. LOL.

by **Synapsid** » Thu 03 Mar 2016, 13:59:45

Gosh ROCKMAN, I was taken in completely by your subtle plot.

Apologies.

by **Subjectivist** » Thu 03 Mar 2016, 16:51:22

Seems how the two geology experts are talking about it, am I correct in thinking that diatoms are the main source for the material that forms limestone over geologic time periods?

by **ROCKMAN** » Thu 03 Mar 2016, 22:12:08

Sub - Actually there are multiple sources of the calcium carbonate mineral that forms limestone: from the accumulation of shell, coral, algal and fecal debris. And diatoms actually don't make limestone since they are a silicon dioxide based mineral (like quartz) and not calcium. If you ever ran a water filtration system (like a pool) you might have used diatomaceous earth as the filter medium.

by **Subjectivist** » Thu 03 Mar 2016, 22:16:57

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ROCKMAN', 'S')ub - Actually there are multiple sources of the calcium carbonate mineral that forms limestone: from the accumulation of shell, coral, algal and fecal debris. And diatoms actually don't make limestone since they are a silicon dioxide based mineral (like quartz) and not calcium. If you ever ran a water filtration system (like a pool) you might have used diatomaceous earth as the filter medium.

by **Ulenspiegel** » Fri 04 Mar 2016, 05:39:54

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('DesuMaiden', 'T')echnically it is incorrect because fossil fuels were created from the organic matter of PLANT not ANIMAL life. Petroleum was formed from dead algae and microscopic organisms in prehistoric seas eons ago.

by **ROCKMAN** » Fri 04 Mar 2016, 08:32:03

Sub - And think how many folks with pools don't realize they are filtering their water through the skeletons of millions of dead animals. Might freak some of them out.LOL