Hello to everbody

As you may have guess my name is Paolo G. Biffi.
I am a mineral collector since about 1978-1979, when I was a very young boy. As a matter of fact I participate to mineral collecting since at least 1975, with my brother, but the oldest samples still in my collection dated back to 1978-79.
Among them an interesting Helvite sample from Codera Valley, found about 15 years in advance of the officially reported discovery date, which I left abandoned in a corner for several years as nobody was able to identify it.

My main collecting and research interests are: Pegmatite Minerals worldwide, Alpine Minerals, and local & regional systematic mineralogy of Italy, with special care to Lombardy, Piedmont, Tuscany and Sardinia.

I am interested in micro-minerals but I am not a micromounter, I generally collect minerals of systematic interest in samples sized from thumbnails to miniature, even if hosting millimetric sized xxls.

I am Co-author of unfortunately only few articles on the "Rivista Mineralogica Italiana" (Am I a bit lazy, or do I work too much?).

In 1986, I got a 4 year degree in Geology (Master equivalent), with a thesis about Disseminated Ni-Fe-Cu sulphides hosted in the ultramafic rocks of the Finero Ultrabasic Complex (Southern Alps).
I am a Professional Geologist in the Oil Industry since 1988.

In 1996 I participated, with friends, to the discovery of the in situ mineralization of the Se rich paragenesis at the Baccu Locci Mine, Sardinia, later described by the staff of the Univerisity of Milan in various articles. It was one of my best successes in the career as mineral collector.