Ages 7 to 14 years. Metal ores are one of the Earth's most common minerals. Metals are useful in all types of industry because they last a long time, are conductors of electricity, and can be easily shaped. Since the first metal alloy was created more than 6,000 years ago during the Bronze Age, people have recognised the potential of extracting metallic elements from rock. This book traces the history, uses, methods of extraction, and future of one of our most versatile resources. Topics include: early use of metals during the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, and the Copper Age; which countries have the most deposits of metal ores, and how much metal different countries use; extracting metals from ores by use of smelting, flotation, and leaching; the equipment that geologists use to locate metal deposits in ore; the lives of miners, including their working conditions, the equipment they use, and the dangers that they encounter working in open-pit and underground mines; the role that recycling plays in saving our environment and how metals are recycled.