Playing the Meteorite Market

摘要

Laurence Garvie can't stop thinking about the rock that's still out there, the one he doesn't have, the specimen that might explain how the solar system formed or even the origin of life on Earth. That's why, on a windy February morning in Phoenix, he escorts two men into Arizona State University's meteorite room, a solid concrete vault lined with metal cabinets containing the collection Garvie manages: thousands of stones from the moon, Mars and the asteroid belt. The men bear little resemblance to Garvie, a meteoriticist with a balding pate and too many pens in his pocket. In contrast, Ruben Garcia and Bob Cuc-chiara are fast-talking meteorite dealers dressed in blue jeans and sweatshirts. They've just driven 100 miles from Tucson, where they've been scouring the annual Gem, Mineral and Fossil Showcase for meteorites to trade with Garvie. As Cucchiara silently looks over the room, Garcia starts pulling bits of rusty metal out of his pack.