A mineral is a naturally occurring substance, representable by a chemical formula, that is usually solid and inorganic, and has a crystal structure.
Minerals are the building blocks of rocks. They are non-living, solid, and, like all matter, are made of atoms of elements. There are many different types of minerals and each type is made of particular groups of atoms. The atoms are arranged in a network called a crystal lattice. The following definitions on what constitutes a mineral were taken from several different sources and are arranged by year:  1 A mineral is an element or chemical compound that is normally crystalline and that has been formed as a result of geological processes (Nickel, E. H., 1995).  2 Minerals are naturally-occurring inorganic substances with a definite and predictable chemical composition and physical properties.. ( 3 O' Donoghue, 1990). A mineral is a naturally occurring inorganic solid, with a definite chemical composition, and an ordered atomic arrangement. This may seem a bit of a mouthful, but if you break it down it becomes simpler. 1  Minerals are naturally occurring. 2  They are not made by humans. 3  Minerals are inorganic. A mineral is a naturally occurring substance, representable by a chemical formula, that is usually solid and inorganic, and has a crystal structure. It is different from a rock, which can be an aggregate of minerals or non-minerals and does not have a specific chemical composition. A mineral, by definition, is. . . 1  Inorganic, which means that it is not made by a living organism. 2  A solid. 3  Has a regular crystal structure. 4  Made by nature which means minerals are not made, directly or indirectly, from human activity. 5  Has a predictable chemical formula.
http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/geology/min_intro.html http://www.webmineral.com/Mineral_Definition.shtml http://www.oum.ox.ac.uk/thezone/minerals/define/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineral http://kidsloverocks.com/html/mineral.html
what is a minerals