When earthquakes squeeze quartz crystals, the mineral generates electricity that attracts gold particles. Pierre Longnus via Getty Images Earthquakes may help prospectors strike gold: When these ...

Christopher Voisey receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Minerals Research Institute of Western Australia. Humanity’s fascination with gold stretches back thousands of years.

Earthquakes may cause gold nuggets to form in quartz by generating an electric field that attracts gold dissolved in fluid forced up from deep underground. Enormous gold nuggets are often associated ...