Are you telling me they put them in front of actual rocks and let them lick them in finals?
Im sure it’s required. I got a geology buddy and he said this is pretty normal for identification of rocks. So I bet its a required skill to tell spicy rocks from rocky rocks.
Was a thing when I took geo in first year, rock test (and the professor) was kinda a legend within engineering.
Geology degree here - you identify some rocks by licking them. Licking most rocks will give you no information. But in a final, honestly, nobody would bat an eye if you licked all of them, just in case.
I have to know, how was sanitation handled? did you each student have an individual sample, or were you all licking a communal rock?
Yes. I have a geology degree. How else am I supposed to distinguish apatite from halite. I’ve licked many rocks. Mineralogy, petrology, and sedemenary Rocks and fossils all had finals that involved having 50 rocks in front of you to identify
Oh wow I’ve never expected that I’m used to university being full academia with no hands on on anything
Yeah geology is fun. Lots of hands on stuff, class camping trips out to the field usually once a semester at least. Then there’s field camp which is a couple months in the wilderness mapping outcrops and studying local geology. I think it’s one of the most fun majors you can do, but I’m biased.
I did Zoology, half my classes had us either identifying dead animals (whole / parts) or dissecting them. One of my tests was identifying the sex, age, and species of waterfowl just by their severed wings. I also did a summer plant class where all we did was walk trails and identify plants.
Geologists identify rocks in the field that way sometimes.
https://www.iflscience.com/why-do-geologists-lick-rocks-70107
