Speaking of the relationship between rocks and human beings, we should admit that rocks have played a very important role in the process of human civilization and evolution. Rocks have indeed formed a very close relationship with us humans. As early as the Stone Age, in order to survive, our ancestors began to use hard rocks to make various simple labor tools for hunting and cutting food. Through archaeological discoveries, as early as 500,000 years ago, there were tens of thousands of stone tools left by primitive humans. Engels once said: man can make a stone knife from the first rock with both hands, and finally he has completed a decisive step from ape to man. With the progress of human beings and the continuous development of mining industry, rocks have been recorded. About the early Warring States Period BC, there was a book about rocks and minerals, Shan Hai Jing, which can be said to be one of the earliest books on rocks in the world.

At present, many historical sites preserved to this day are rock buildings. For example, the world-famous Great Wall in Wan Li is said to be made of stones from all over the country; Dunhuang Grottoes in Gansu and Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang recorded the intelligence and superb artistic level of ancient working people. The forest of steles in Xi and the "Thousand Tang Zhi Zhai" in Xin 'an, Luoyang, these paintings and calligraphy carved on stones provide valuable information for studying the characters and history of China. Beijing is a famous ancient capital of the Five Dynasties with rich cultural relics. Stone monuments, stone temples, stone beasts and other stone cultural relics can be seen everywhere, which constitutes a unique metropolis in Beijing. A large number of facts show that the development of human culture is inseparable from rocks.

The continuous understanding of nature has promoted the deepening and development of petrology research, people's understanding of rock properties has become more and more profound, and the fields of using rocks to benefit mankind have become more and more extensive.

Mineral resources are the material basis of national economic development, and rich minerals are very important reserve resources for the development and progress of national science and technology. Rocks contain a lot of minerals, and many rocks are closely related to minerals. Deposits usually grow in rocks, and in most cases, rocks are irregularly distributed around ore bodies, forming the surrounding rocks of ore bodies. For example, coal and oil shale are produced in sedimentary rocks rich in plant fossils; Minerals such as iron, manganese, aluminum, phosphorus and salt are also produced in sedimentary rocks. Minerals in magmatic rocks are also rich, such as chromite and nickel ore in basic rocks and ultrabasic rocks; Many deposits of nonferrous metals and rare earth elements occur in granite. In addition, primary diamonds are only produced in kimberlite. In China's old metamorphic rocks, precious metals such as gold and silver are relatively developed due to metamorphism, which makes them rich in minerals. Metamorphism can also form mineral deposits, such as carbonaceous shale or coal which can become graphite ore after metamorphism; High alumina clay can be transformed into corundum ore by metamorphism. In addition to the above, some rocks are minerals themselves. For example, magnesite, the main component is magnesium carbonate; Limestone is mainly composed of calcite; Dolomite is composed of dolomite.

People use the chemical composition and physical properties of rocks, and after processing, they can be used in architecture, decoration, chemical industry, metallurgy and many other aspects. For example, limestone can be used to make cement and plastics; Dolomite can be used to make refractories: perlite is used as thermal insulation material; Basalt can be used to burn cast stone; Clay can be used to make ceramics; Gravel can pave the road; Coal can be used as fuel; Volcanic zeolite can be used as natural molecular sieve and so on.

Granite and marble are widely used as architectural decorative stones because of their gorgeous appearance, hardness and wear resistance.

Many important buildings in China, such as the Great Hall, Memorial Hall, Library, Grand Theatre, Gymnasium, etc. It's made of rocks. In recent years, with the improvement of people's living standards, these elegant building stones have gradually entered thousands of households, which has played a icing on the cake for beautifying the room.

Rocks have also created many beautiful natural landscapes and become famous scenic spots at home and abroad. For example, Guilin is known as "the first landscape in the world", which is caused by long-term weathering and erosion in limestone areas; The stone forest in Kunming is also the cause. There are also many scenic spots in areas where volcanic rocks are developed, such as Tianchi in Changbai Mountain and Jingbo Lake in Mudanjiang, which have long been good places for people to travel in summer. It is no exaggeration to say that rocks involve almost every field of human life.