Magma 50%, because eventually the melted rock mass becomes a crystal-and-melt mush that can then ascend "en masse" as a diapir, which may then cause further decompression melting. The degree of partial melting is critical for determining what type of magma is produced. The degree of partial melting required to form a melt can be estimated by considering the relative enrichment of incompatible elements versus compatible elements. Incompatible elements commonly include potassium, barium, caesium, and rubidium. Rock types produced by small degrees of partial melting in the Earth's mantle are typically alkaline (Ca, Na), potassic (K) and/or peralkaline (high aluminium to
Obsidian manufacture cutting and piercing tools and it has been used experimentally as surgical scalpel blades. The translation into English of "Natural History" written by Pliny the Elder of Rome shows a few sentences on the subject of a volcanic glass called obsidian ("lapis obsidianus"), discovered in Ethiopia by Obsidius, a Roman explorer. Obsidian is the rock formed as a result of quickly cooled lava, which is the parent material. Extrusive formation of obsidian may occur when felsic lava cools rapidly at the edges of a felsic lava flow or volcanic dome or when lava cools during sudden contact with water