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Opera. Maria Stuarda. La Battaglia Di Legnano. Reflections on South Africa,...
Yesterday I went into the night, and experienced a new palette of pleasure. Today I watched two operas: Maria Stuarda (seen often before) and La Battaglia Di Legnano (not hitherto seen). In a pale...
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Mining Proposals for Filter Pressed Tailings: Greens Creek to El Morro
Paarl is the only South African brandy I can get in Vancouver. It is rough—not like cognac—but rather the flavor of the veldt & bush, of scrub & dust, of a long-forgotten home &...
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Fort Knox, Alaska. A Driver of the Local Economic Engine.
A reader of this blog sent me this link. It is a 2011 report on the economic benefits of the Fort Knox mine in Alaska. Although the report is from 2011, it still presents some statistics worthy of...
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Easter weekend for miners; Opera; Orpheus and Euridice.
On the mines of South Africa, a long time ago, Easter was a special occasion. It was the end of summer and the beginning of autumn; it was a long weekend when even the miners did not work; it was a...
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History and Now: The Rio TInto Mine, Mountain City Nevada
Here is a bit of history about an obscure mine that is now a Superfund site. This came to my inbox a while ago and now seems a good time to publish the story presented here as received. My family has...
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The True Price & Value of Gold: A Massive Scam or The Cost of a Suit?
The expensive clothes store at the entrance to our office building is advertising “two hand-made suits for $1,500.” This tells that the price of gold will decrease a lot more. For historically the...
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Mining Layoffs Mount: A Harbinger of a Deeper Crash
I am sworn to secrecy on this fact: a big mining company is about to layoff about half their head-office staff. (PS. In fact the number is to reduce staff from 130 to 30.) Why this should be a...
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Prinsloo of Prinsloosdorp and Freddi Kaniki of Wits. Times must change.
More than a hundred years have passed; much has changed; and yet so much about mining is the same. This thought is prompted by reading Prinsloo of Prinsloosdorp by Douglas Blackburn. First published...
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Judgement in Tailings Managment
Professor Jere Jennings who taught so many of us now-old civil engineers in mining used to say: “When you have read everything there is to read, when you have done all the calculations possible, then...
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Going Mining Underground
Underground is the essence of mining. As a kid of perhaps ten-years old, my father took me a mile down a shaft of the mine where he worked as a mine captain. Somewhat fearful, I followed him close...
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Mining History. The U.S. Navy. And Personal Freedom.
My son is a Commandant in the U.S. Navy; anything I write here is prejudiced by that fact. This weekend I read Niall Ferguson’s The Great Degeneration and I watched the movie Lincoln. What a...
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Mine Closure: Who Pays Giant Costs?
At this link is my EduMine course on Mine Closure: The Basics of Success. One issue I do not address in the course is a looming tendency, namely should we tax existing mines to pay for closure of old...
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Geosynthetics in Mining
Mining involves the design, construction, operation, and closure of many geotechnical structures, including: access roads, structural building pads & foundations, ponds, tailings facilities, heap...
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Mining Meeting Etiquette
Today I was in one of those meetings that remind you of Napoleon’s management dictum. He said people are either of low or high intelligence, and they are either of low or high energy. He said: “Those...
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Strathcona Lodge; Strathcona Park; Vancouver Island, B.C.
The absence of postings this week is the result of erratic & sporadic email connectivity. I was at one of those mining sites far from the modern world. Great to be back in the visceral world of...
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Fish Lake, Taseko, and Anti-mining Activists
A perfect summer day. Last night to the Bard on the Beach Twelfth Night, a great production all round. No mumbling; no action on the hidden balcony; lots of humor; many laughs; and great acting....
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The definitive mining comic book
I have never come across a comic book in which the hero is a miner. I have never read a comic book in which mining is praised or even shown to be a provider of the basics of life. Maybe it is time...
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Mining Jobs for Philosophers
Jill has a masters degree in philosophy. Her specialization is logic. She is employed by a mining company. You may well ask why a masters in philosophy would be employed by a mining company. Joe,...
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Theoretical vs Practical Mining Universities. Think Jwaneng Diamonds in...
Today I lunched with a professor from one of those old-line, prestigious universities. He bemoaned the fact that his department has changed. “It was previously focussed on practical engineering. We...
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Escobal Mine Success. First Shipment of Concentrate. Invest!
I have posted more than 1,800 postings on this blog. If that were made into a book it would be a thick book. Would anybody have the courage to turn these postings [edited] into a book? Would...
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