Modern society depends on minerals in countless ways. From the roads we drive, to the buildings we live in and the airplanes we fly. Only a few minerals such as talc are used as they are mined from the earth. Most minerals go through several processing steps before they become usable materials.

Minerals are found everywhere in nature, but only occasional found in amounts sufficient for economic extraction. The location of such minable deposits, their origin, size and ore grade are the work of geologists, while mine and process engineers design the extraction  and mineral processing methods.