Help with my rock sample mix-up after a lab spill

I was sorting through some granite samples in the lab yesterday. My hand slipped and I knocked over a tray of labeled specimens. Now all the little rocks are mixed together on the floor. I tried to pick them up, but I can't remember which piece came from where. The labels are smudged from the water I used to clean the mess. How do I even begin to sort them out again? Is there a trick to telling similar rocks apart? I feel like I ruined weeks of work in one clumsy moment. Maybe I should have used a better storage system from the start?

3 comments

3 Comments

hugo_green881mo ago

Label smudges don't matter if you know your rocks.

the_patricia1mo ago

Actually @hugo_green88, clear labels help OTHER people identify your rocks too.

margaret_gonzalez251mo agoTop Commenter

My friend Mark once mixed up six granite samples but sorted them by their unique quartz patterns, unlike @hugo_green88's smudged label method.