Quartz

Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. Its crystal structure is a continuous framework of SiO₄silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical formula of SiO₂.

There are many different varieties of quartz, several of which are semi-precious gemstones. Since antiquity, varieties of quartz have been the most commonly used minerals in the making of jewelry and hardstone carvings, especially in Europe and the Middle East.

Etymology

The word "quartz" is derived from the German word "Quarz" and its Middle High German ancestor "twarc", which probably originated in Slavic, cf. Czech tvrdý ("hard"), Polish twardy ("hard"), Serbian and Croatian tvrd ("hard").

The Ancient Greeks referred to quartz as κρύσταλλος (krustallos) derived from the Ancient Greek κρύος (kruos) meaning "icy cold", because some philosophers (including Theophrastus) apparently believed the mineral to be a form of supercooled ice. Today, the term rock crystal is sometimes used as an alternative name for the purest form of quartz.

Crystal oscillator

A crystal oscillator is an electronic oscillator circuit that uses the mechanical resonance of a vibrating crystal of piezoelectric material to create an electrical signal with a precise frequency. This frequency is commonly used to keep track of time, as in quartz wristwatches, to provide a stable clock signal for digital integrated circuits, and to stabilize frequencies for radio transmitters and receivers. The most common type of piezoelectric resonator used is the quartz crystal, so oscillator circuits incorporating them became known as crystal oscillators, but other piezoelectric materials including polycrystalline ceramics are used in similar circuits.

Quartz crystals are manufactured for frequencies from a few tens of kilohertz to hundreds of megahertz. More than two billion crystals are manufactured annually. Most are used for consumer devices such as wristwatches, clocks, radios, computers, and cellphones. Quartz crystals are also found inside test and measurement equipment, such as counters, signal generators, and oscilloscopes.

Quartz (publication)

Quartz (qz.com) is a global digital-only business news publication. It is owned by Atlantic Media Co., the publisher of The Atlantic, National Journal, and Government Executive. Its team of 150 staff members was pulled together from prominent brands in business journalism: Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, and The New York Times." The four initial sponsors of Quartz were Boeing, Chevron, Cadillac, and Credit Suisse. Quartz's core market is global business people, with its focus on international markets. Its news articles cover global economy news, ranging from geo-political conflicts to policies and regulations.

History

Name

The name "Quartz" was chosen for various reasons. The name "Quartz" is named after a type of mineral that can be found all over the world and contributed to intense geological activity. The ability of this mineral would then associate with the brand identity, creating new brand's character: global, disruptive and digital. Furthermore, "Quartz" contains two of the rarest letters in English Language, Q and Z, making it a special-looking word. When referring to the Quartz publication website, they took off all the ordinary characters leaving behind qz.com, making it a distinctive website. Also, the fact that there are fewer letters to type into a small mobile keyboard makes it a more user-friendly website.

Think!

Think! may refer to:

See also

Thought

Thought can refer to the ideas or arrangements of ideas that result from thinking, the act of producing thoughts, or the process of producing thoughts. Although thought is a fundamental human activity familiar to everyone, there is no generally accepted agreement as to what thought is or how it is created. Thoughts may or may not arise in the mind from the product of subconscious brain processing.

Because thought underlies many human actions and interactions, understanding its physical and metaphysical origins, processes, and effects has been a longstanding goal of many academic disciplines including psychology, neuroscience, philosophy, artificial intelligence, biology, sociology and cognitive science.

Thinking allows humans to make sense of, interpret, represent or model the world they experience, and to make predictions about that world. It is therefore helpful to an organism with needs, objectives, and desires as it makes plans or otherwise attempts to accomplish those goals.

Etymology and usage

Think (About It)

"Think (About It)" is a funk song recorded by Lyn Collins and released as a single on James Brown's People Records in 1972. The recording was produced by Brown (who also wrote the song) and features instrumental backing from his band The J.B.'s. It was the title track of Collins' 1972 debut album.

Sampling

Along with "Funky Drummer" and "Funky President," "Think (About It)" is one of the most frequently sampled James Brown productions, having been used on tracks by dozens of hip hop and dance music artists. The song appeared on the 16th volume of the Ultimate Breaks and Beats compilation series in 1986, shortly before the release of the E-mu SP-1200 sampler in 1987. This resulted in "Think" being sampled heavily in the ensuing years. Both the song's main rhythmic groove and a vocal passage known as the Yeah! Woo! break have been used as samples.

Perhaps the first song to sample "Think" was "Go On Girl" by Roxanne Shante in 1987 (produced by Marley Marl) followed by "My Groove Gets Better" from her album "Bad Sister." A few months later, the same 4-bar loop of "Yeah! Woo!" appeared as the basis for Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock's "It Takes Two."