Geo-Institute Forums
[NEW POST] BefuddledPM214
4:11 AM 06-16-23
Help! My Triaxial Data Doesn’t Make Any Sense
Hello engineers. I have recently received Consolidated Undrained test results back from a trusted laboratory that has never given me issues before, but I am left scratching my head with their latest report. A little bit about the sample: Clayey Sand (SC), reddish brown to dark brown, obtained 8.5 to 10.5 feet bgs, some metal scraps, apparent bioluminescence, LL 30, PI 12.
My issue with the report: first of all, the results came back in a very bizarre spreadsheet format with no apparent data processing (as the lab technician working on the draft report apparently couldn’t be located?) and it was clear that the confining pressures I specified (5, 15, 30 psi) were exceeded from the get-go – and somehow the values they chose never held stable during the test. Excess pore pressures were measured as increasingly negative throughout, and the volume change would lead me to believe the sample expanded far outside the apparatus. Has anyone ever seen anything like this?
[REPLY] LabratoryRetriever_2
7:17 AM 6-16-23
Hello, Befuddled. Normally I would ask to see a data file before sharing my thoughts, but can you tell me more about the “metal scraps” and “bioluminescence” that you mentioned? Those are very unusual characteristics for a soil sample… where was this sample obtained?
[REPLY] Ben_Tonight4
7:43 AM 06-16-23
Ditto to Lab’s question – why would you put a sample with metal scraps in a trx?? Why was it glowing??
[OP REPLY] BefuddledPM214
8:10 AM 06-16-23
Trust me, it wasn’t my idea to test the sample in that condition! I even proposed using magnets to try to move some of the metal around without disturbing the soil too much. But the client (newly referred to our firm, very mysterious?) insisted we make no adjustments to the condition of the sample as delivered.
We theorized that the glowing was a fungus or something. The client said not to worry about it. The sample is apparently from a ranch in rural North Carolina.
[REPLY] Ben_Tonight4
9:31 AM 06-16-23
What kind of strength parameters can you extrapolate from the data, if any?
[OP REPLY] BefuddledPM214
9:45 AM 06-16-23
The results are super unusual! High friction angle before any strain is measured, then strain just takes off to moon before the test ends. The stress paths are unlike anything I’ve seen in twenty years.
[REPLY] ShearJoy12
9:53 AM 06-16-23
Alright, I have to chime in here and say – off the record – my local UFO group has been observing a ton of activity above some North Carolina towns lately. My two cents: you’re testing soil from a UFO Landing Site.
[REPLY] LabratoryRetriever_2
10:47 AM 06-16-23
^^^LOL this guy has clearly cracked the case (jk jk!)
Any updates? Can we see the data you do have?
[OP REPLY] BefuddledPM214
1:20 PM 06-17-23
Sorry for the delay in responding – I no longer have access to the data and cannot share it. In fact, it’s probably best if I don’t say anything more about the sample. I think we can chalk it up to lab error, truthfully. Does anyone know how to delete a post on here?
[REPLY] ShearJoy12
2:57 PM 06-17-23
I TOLD YOU! They’re trying to hush this up now. I wonder if there was an alien lifeform in that sample...? I’ve already sent two DMs to Befuddled. Will share if they get back to me.
[MODERATOR REPLY] MIB123
2:59 PM 06-17-23
There’s nothing to see here, folks. Enjoy the weekend.
[REPLY] Ben_Tonight4
5:19 PM 06-20-23
Alright everyone, check this out: I called one of my buddies who works in a lab in NC and shared some of the details from this thread. He told me a (very busy) lab tech went off the grid last week and only just returned to work. Refused to talk about where he’s been and claims a sample busted up a triaxial test apparatus so the whole thing was “thrown out” (no repair??). My buddy also says there’s a new guy in the office who “glows in the dark.” This whole thing is bizarre!
[REPLY] LabratoryRetriever_2
7:23 PM 06-20-23
Lol this reminds me of a podcast my boyfriend made me listen to on a road trip last summer. It was something about “UFOs that deposited canisters” into fields in Kentucky. The farmers dug them up and they were empty… except some glowed blue. Most people assumed it was a prank.
[REPLY] ShearJoy12
7:28 PM 06-20-23
The Corinth Canisters of 1987! Oh my goodness it’s happening again!
[REPLY] Ben_Tonight4
9:57 AM 06-21-23
Apparently the new lab employee in North Carolina (who may or may not glow in the dark) is really good at his job and that makes up for him having no real identifying paperwork. He doesn’t even want to be paid. He just keeps saying how much he likes “Earth soil” as he puts together immaculate reports.
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
11:37 AM 06-21-23
Earth soil is far superior to Martian soil. Your Matt Damon would never be able to grow potatoes like in that movie. I am learning a lot here.
[REPLY] ShearJoy12
11:45 AM 06-21-23
@ItsTheNewGuy14 are you trolling us??
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
11:49 AM 06-21-23
Mineral conditions on Mars are most like your volcanic regions. Mars soil contains some nutrients but no organic material, and solar radiation engages perchlorates which make microbial life unsustainable. Yours was the closest inhabited planet so we came here to help answer The Question.
[REPLY] LabratoryRetriever_2
12:17 PM 06-21-23
I’ll play along! What question??
[REPLY] Ben_Tonight4
12:40 PM 06-21-23
FYI, it looks like what NewGuy is saying could be right. Check out these links:
https://www.space.com/37402-mars-life-soil-toxic-perchlorates-radiation.html
https://news.uga.edu/geologists-study-martian-soil-fertility/
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
1:34 PM 06-21-23
Your Starman once asked, “Is there life on Mars?” We have most likely answered this, negatively.
[REPLY] ShearJoy12
1:40 PM 06-21-23
OMG. The aliens have heard David Bowie!?
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
1:45 PM 06-21-23
David Bowie is one of the galaxy’s top streaming artists.
[REPLY] LabratoryRetriever_2
2:01 PM 06-21-23
Lol okay.. tell us more about soils on other planets!!
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
2:08 PM 06-21-23
Some planets’ soils contain deep and disconnected lenses of ice and dormant bacterial growth. These are many eons away from sophistication. Other planets have nutrient-rich soil but no water and stagnate until we come around and cultivate them. Earth’s soil is the most unique we have discovered, containing many essential elements along with carbon-rich life that facilitates future growth.
[REPLY] ShearJoy12
2:25 PM 06-21-23
What are you planning on doing with the soil? Are you reporting back to your planet on any of this?
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
3:13 PM 06-21-23
I am only tasked with studying the soil. I am not permitted to remove any of it from this planet, for reasons of both potential contamination and galactic ethics. The microbial life in Earth’s soil does not readily consent to interplanetary transport.
[REPLY] LabratoryRetriever_2
3:17 PM 06-21-23
I can’t believe I’m asking this, but what do the microbes in the soil tell you?
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
3:28 PM 06-21-23
Archaeans are hardworking nutrient refreshers. Bacteria and protozoa are very interested in the affairs of the insect community. The fungi are philosophical and believe in the unity of all things. Viruses feel badly when they cause crop failure. None of the microbes are particularly interested in your concepts of shear strength and permeability, as I suppose you are not overly concerned with their activities.
[REPLY] ItsTheNewGuy14
3:31 PM 06-21-23
You Earthlings are very lucky to have such vibrant and useful soil. As my fellow travelers and I scour the galaxy for life, you walk upon it every day. You grow nourishing food in it, build structures with it, and bury many important things in it. Soil is a beautiful thing. I am pleased to have seen it here on Earth.
[MODERATOR REPLY] MIB123
4:01 PM 06-21-23
While this has certainly been… interesting to read, I think we’ve moved far beyond the original question. Start a group DM to share these wild ideas if you’d like, but I’m closing this thread.
[THREAD ARCHIVED – NO NEW POSTS PERMITTED]