I love you, I love you, I love you sweetheart of all my dreams [first line of chorus]

Performers: Bubbles Shelby, Allan WalkerPiano and Voice (with lyrics

Findings Report: Virtual Workshop on ‘Resilient Supply of Critical Minerals’

Executive SummaryOn August 2-3, 2021, the Thomas J. O’Keefe Institute for Sustainable Supply of Strategic Minerals at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) hosted the NSF-funded virtual workshop ‘Resilient Supply of Critical Minerals’. The workshop was convened via Zoom and attracted 158 registrants, including 108 registrants from academia (61 students), 30 registrants from government agencies, and 20 registrants from the private sector. Four topical sessions were covered: A. Mineral Exploration and Source Diversification.B. Supply Chain and Policy Issues.C. Improving Mineral Recycling and Reprocessing Technologies.D. Technological Alternatives to Critical Minerals. Each topical session was composed of two keynote lectures and followed by a breakout session that was designed to identify promising pathways towards increasing critical supply chain resilience in the United States. During each breakout session, participants were asked to address five questions: Q1. What are the roadblocks that affect the resilient supply of critical minerals?Q2. What are the most pressing research needs?Q3. What opportunities can lead to the fastest and biggest impact?Q4. What skills training is required to meet future workforce demands?Q5. What other questions should be asked, but are commonly overlooked? Several issues that limit critical mineral supply chain resilience in the United States were identified and discussed in all breakout sessions, including: 1. Insufficient understanding of domestic critical minerals resources. To address this issue, workshop participants highlighted the need for (i) more geologic research to identify new and evaluate existing resources; and (ii) a qualitative and quantitative assessment of critical minerals that may be recovered as by/co-products from existing production streams.2. Technical limitations of current mineral processing and recycling technologies. To address this issue, workshop participants highlighted the need for (i) innovative mineral processing technologies, including more environmentally friendly chemicals/solvents, and (ii) automated recycling technologies for appliances and e-waste. Participants also highlighted the need for a centralized and simplified way to collect recyclable materials, and incentives for the public to participate in recycling.3. Long permitting processes for mining and mineral processing operations, with often unpredictable outcomes. To address this issue, workshop participants suggested the development of new critical mineral focused policies with faster processing times and more transparent / predictable decision-making processes.4. The negative public image of mining and mineral processing operations. To address this issue, workshop participants suggested to design public outreach / education initiatives and to include local communities into decision-making processes.5. Limited availability of a critical mineral workforce. To address this issue, workshop participants suggested an increased focus on critical mineral specific skill training in higher education institutions, and advanced training of the existing workforce

Using cryptotephra to link Neanderthal and AMH Middle Paleolithic sites in NW Italy.

Establishing robust and reliable chronologies at archaeological sites is essential for understanding the sequence and timing of past events. At Middle and Upper Paleolithic sites like Arma Veirana and Riparo Bombrini, robust chronologies are especially important for answering questions regarding the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition in Europe. Arma Veirana is located in the Ligurian pre-Alps of northwest Italy and Riparo Bombrini is located along the Mediterranean coast, about 80 km away. Both sites have deposits that overlap in age and contain cultural industries attributed to Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans (AMH). Stratigraphic evidence suggests that Neanderthals may have been present at Arma Veirana while AMHs were present at Riparo Bombrini, making it an ideal area to understand the interactions and dynamics of these two species during a key transitional phase. Cryptotephra, also known as microscopic volcanic ash, were recently identified at Arma Veirana in a stratigraphic unit known as the Black Mousterian (BM). AMS radiocarbon dates of charcoal samples collected in the BM, range from 43,781 to 43,121 (68.2%) cal. Yr. BP. Because these dates are close to the measurement limit of radiocarbon, the presence of cryptotephra provides a way to test these existing dates as well as establish a precise isochron to correlate with other sites. Major element chemistry obtained by electron microprobe indicate that the shards found in the BM layers are high silica rhyolite (>75 wt. %) with FeO < 1 wt.%. Trace elements by LA-ICP-MS show depletions in Ba, Sr, and Eu and an enrichment in Th, U and Pb. Both major and trace chemistries show unique geochemical signatures and are rare for volcanoes in the central Mediterranean region. The source volcano is currently unknown; however, this unique chemistry eliminates volcanoes from Iceland, North America, Canaries or Azores, and Aeolian Islands. Potential source volcanoes are located in Turkey (Acigol Dagi Volcano), the Carpathian Mountains (Ciomadul Volcano) and Greece (Nisryos volcano and Santorini Caldera). To test the hypothesis that Neanderthals were displaced from the coast when modern humans arrived in the region, I will take cryptotephra samples at Riparo Bombrini in the summer of 2018 with the goal of directly linking both sites. Identifying the same cryptotephra horizon at Riparo Bombrini will provide an unprecedented temporal correlation between the two sites. This will lead to a better understanding of Neanderthal and AMH interactions during the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition in Europe

Humans thrived in South Africa through the Toba eruption about 74,000 years ago.

Approximately 74 thousand years ago (ka), the Toba caldera erupted in Sumatra. Since the magnitude of this eruption was first established, its effects on climate, environment and humans have been debated. Here we describe the discovery of microscopic glass shards characteristic of the Youngest Toba Tuff-ashfall from the Toba eruption-in two archaeological sites on the south coast of South Africa, a region in which there is evidence for early human behavioural complexity. An independently derived dating model supports a date of approximately 74 ka for the sediments containing the Youngest Toba Tuff glass shards. By defining the input of shards at both sites, which are located nine kilometres apart, we are able to establish a close temporal correlation between them. Our high-resolution excavation and sampling technique enable exact comparisons between the input of Youngest Toba Tuff glass shards and the evidence for human occupation. Humans in this region thrived through the Toba event and the ensuing full glacial conditions, perhaps as a combined result of the uniquely rich resource base of the region and fully evolved modern human adaptation