Pearl or parasite enters a bivalve mollusk and settles inside the shell. The mollusk, irritated by the intruder, forms a pearl sac of external mantle tissue cells and secretes the calcium carbonate and conchiolin to cover the irritant. This secretion process is repeated many times, thus producing a pearl. Natural pearls come in many shapes, with perfectly round ones being comparatively rare. Typically, the build-up of a natural pearl consists of a brown central zone formed by columnar calcium carbonate (usually calcite, sometimes columnar aragonite) and a yellowish to white outer zone consisting of nacre (tabular aragonite). In a pearl cross-section
Pearl and the Puppets Pearl and the Puppets Pearl and the Puppets was a band from Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire in Scotland. The band comprised singer/songwriter Katie Sutherland (vocals/guitar), Blair McMillan (drums), Gordon Turner (guitar), Scott Clark (bass) and Michael Abubakar (keyboard). Sutherland's voice has been described as being similar to that of Regina Spektor and Dolores O'Riordan. Pearl and the Puppets were signed to the Universal Republic record label and headlined the Solus Tent at the Wickerman Festival, in Scotland. Pearl and the Puppets supported Elton John at Glasgow's SECC on 10 June 2009. In the run-up to the appearance, on Friday 5 June