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Geophysicist Defends Star Wars: The Last Jedi’s Crait Scene From Critics


Star Wars: The Last Jedi might have gotten itself a whole lot of commercial success when it hit cinemas last year, but the film also ended up being one of the most polarizing installments in the Star Wars franchise, dividing the Star Wars franchise into two.

While some fans enjoyed seeing The Last Jedi play around with fan expectations, others didn't quite appreciate how the film messed around with Star Wars lore. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) turning into a hermit, Rose Tico (Kelly Marie Tran) and Finn (John Boyega) making a run on Canto Bight - critics of the film also continually try to find different moments in the film they hate.

One of these moments it seems is when a Resistance soldier tastes the ground on Crait, telling his companions that it tastes just like salt.

To many critics of The Last Jedi, the scene is unnecessary and strange.

However, according to an actual geophysicist, researchers often use their own tastes buds to try to identify the minerals in the field they're exploring.

On Twitter, Mike McKinnon, a field geophysicist, disaster researcher and sci-fi science consultant has just taken some of his time to defend The Last Jedi from critics. Posting on the social media site, McKinnon tried to clarify why the Resistance soldier on Crait used his tongue to identify its minerals.

"Evaporites are soft (scratch with your fingernail), but the easiest way to ID between halite vs sylvite is salty vs sour. IDing sand vs clay is the cutoff between gritty or not. Fossils stick to your tongue. You don't NEED to lick rocks; it's just faster & easier," McKinnon explained. "I don't lick every wild rock I meet, and licking lab samples is just gross. But if you're out doing field rock ID, you already know enough to keep your tongue away from arsenopyrite & don't waste your time nibbling granite. Not all geoscientists lick rocks. I'm geophysics — 95% of my rock ID is recreational, & it's been at least a year since I last licked a rock. But it's not an inherently ridiculous concept worthy of mockery."

While it might seem pretty ridiculous to those who aren't familiar with the field, it looks like licking rocks to identify minerals isn't as strange as critics of The Last Jedi hail it to be.

The next installment in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, Star Wars: Episode IX, is set for release on December 20, 2019.

Read: Star Wars Legend Mark Hamill Supports Kelly Marie Tran After She Addresses Fan Harassment

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