The main industrial uses of gold are dentistry and electronics. It's the best conductor of electricity. I've got gold inlays and crowns, they are much better than amalgam, which contains mercury and falls apart eventually, and gold doesn't leave a funny taste in your mouth. I've got gold jewelry, it never turns green, never gives me a rash, the gold surface never wears away, so even though it costs more than silver or gold plate, it lasts much longer and is much better value. Gold's high reflectivity and resistance to oxidation makes it a useful material for certain lenses, e.g., the reflector mirror on the Mars Orbiter's laser altimeter. Very thin layers of gold, which is very flexible when hammered thin, form attractive surfaces on such varied items as the gold domes of churches, and the gilded edges of luxurious books, and decorative motifs on leather goods, etc., etc., etc. Gold salts are used to treat certain forms of arthritis. That's all I can think of, so I looked it up on the internet, and found out that one ounce of gold can be used to coat 1,000 feet of glass, and that the reflective glass can cut heating and cooling costs by 40%.
gold.org |
