v16n6 From the Editors

What is your Preferred Hydrothermal Beverage?

Millions of people around the world start their day with a hot, energizing beverage. For most people, according to a 2014 study by Euromonitor International, the pick-me-up of choice is either tea or coffee. If you ask a resident in the Americas or in Western Europe, they will most likely say that coffee is best, whereas residents in Asia and Eastern Europe would disagree and say that tea is the way to go. In fairness, there are many individuals who are happy with either.

You may be wondering why we are discussing tea and coffee in an international magazine of mineralogy, petrology, and geochemistry. The answer is that both are “hydrothermal beverages”. Whether you use a French press, espresso machine, coffee maker, or a tea kettle, brewing that perfect cup of tea or coffee typically requires hot water interacting with tea leaves or coffee grounds. The water itself must be at just the right temperature to perfectly extract the desired chemicals of flavor (and the caffeine, of course!). However, if the water is too hot, then the tea/coffee might end up bitter or sour. Unpleasant flavors are not appreciated first thing in the morning! But we do all appreciate the expert talent of the barista or the tea connoisseur when we sip that perfect brew.

As with tea and coffee, we can also appreciate the scientists who research Earth’s hydrothermal fluids. These scientists work tirelessly to develop a robust understanding of how hydrothermal fluids are formed, traverse Earth’s crust, interact with country rock, form valuable ore deposits, and how they can be used as a source of renewable energy. We hope that as you sip your hydrothermal beverage of choice you will also enjoy reading the hydrothermal review articles in this issue.

Looking Back on 2020

As part of every years’ final “From the Editors”, we like to thank the many people who have contributed to Elements over the course of the previous year. But before we do so, we want to acknowledge that 2020 was a year unlike any other in the history of Elements. The global pandemic impacted all of us in profound and, for many, sometimes tragic ways. The challenges that our readers, editors, authors, participating societies, and advertisers faced in 2020 makes it even more meaningful to thank our contributors. We greatly appreciate all your efforts!

There are many individuals and organizations who we want to acknowledge. First and foremost are the 18 participating societies, and their members, who support this magazine. Without them, Elements would not exist. Next, it was the wise financial oversight provided by the Elements Executive Committee that meant we could produce a high-quality publication for our readership, despite the economic challenges posed by a pandemic. We also want to acknowledge the staff at the Mineralogical Society of America who continued to provide everyday business operations, even when working remotely. Thank you Johanne Caron, of the Mineralogical Association of Canada (MAC), who faithfully balanced our finances for audit and tax reporting while also navigating the MAC through the challenges posed by the pandemic to that society, including its annual meeting. The Elements editorial team thanks these societies and individuals for their commitment to the magazine.
We also like to thank the 16 guest editors and 78 authors who contributed thematic content to the six issues of volume 16, and we thank our feature editors who coordinated the CosmoElements, Meetings Calendar, Parting Shots, Elements Toolkit, and Life in Science columns. We also acknowledge the reviewers, our copyeditor Patrick Roycroft, and our graphic artist Michel Guay, all of whom worked tirelessly to bring this magazine to you.

In addition, we deeply appreciate our advertisers for their continued support. Please take the time to visit their websites or to speak with their representatives and learn more about their products, services, or conferences. Those that advertised in 2020 were as follows:

12th International Kimberlite Conference https://12ikc.ca/

Bruker AXS https://www.bruker.com/

CAMECA https://www.cameca.com/

CrystalMaker® Software http://www.crystalmaker.com/

Excalibur Minerals Corporation https://www.excaliburmineral.com/

Geological Society of London https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/

Gemological Institute of America (GIA) https://www.gia.edu/

International Association of Geoanalysts http://www.geoanalyst.org/

International Centre for Diffraction Data https://www.icdd.com/

International Mineralogical Association https://ima-mineralogy.org/

Materials Research Society https://www.mrs.org/

ProtoXRD https://www.protoxrd.com/

Savillex https://www.savillex.com/

Scott-Smith Petrology Inc. http://scottsmithpetrology.com/

University of St. Andrews (Scotland) https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/earth-sciences/

University of Wisconsin (USA) http://geoscience.wisc.edu/geoscience/

WITec https://www.witec.de/

Finally, we want to extend our appreciation to Allen Press (https://www.allenpress.com/) for printing Elements and to APC Postal Logistics, LLC (https://www.apc-pli.com/) for shipping each issue out to you.

2021 PREVIEW AND FUTURE ISSUES

Our line-up is complete through 2021 (see our preview for 2021 on pages 370 and 371). If you have ideas for a thematic issue, please contact one of our principal editors and submit a proposal for consideration. Our editorial team will meet in February 2021 to set the line-up for 2022. More information about publishing in Elements can be found at http://elementsmagazine.org.

Jon Blundy, John Eiler,
Richard Harrison, and Jodi Rosso