About

This Old Rock project was launched in 1998 to study Geo-Science and share the wonderment. A few years later county officials advised we look into the Citizen Science programs. Citizen science is a term that describes projects in which volunteers partner with scientists to answer real-world questions. These volunteers can work with scientists to identify research questions, collect and analyze data, interpret results, make new discoveries, develop technologies and applications, as well as solve complex problems.

A group of students young and old searching our tailing piles for keepers.

Founding Principals: John and Catherine French

Below are photos from one of our interactive outreach programs.

A group of students explore and learn at a STEM Educational Science Camp. The big rock has been named California's "Friendship Rock" and has been shared with several thousand eager earth scientists. This intrepid explorer used his camera as a microscope. We also use an inexpensive "Plugable" USB microscope to look at what was created inside this fault-line geological event. The hydro-thermal environment allowed for the deposition (and or alteration) of almost any mineral to be captured in quartz. What do you see? 1) Pyrite cubes 2) Rutile 3) Tourmaline 4) Cosalite 5) Amethyst 6) Copper 7) Carbon Dioxide bubbles 8) Unknown.