Minecraft's 1.17 Caves and Cliffs update may be months away, but it seems that we get more information about it every week. This time, we learned that a Minecraft developer read a Wikipedia article for inspiration on the new amethyst crystals being added in 1.17.
At the beginning of October, we learned that the next big update to Minecraft would be called Caves and Cliffs. This update will include new mobs, like the Glow Squid; new cave types, like the Mesh caves; and a new copper ore. Of course, the Minecraft Live event that introduced these elements didn't elaborate on much, leading many to wonder what the specifics of the new additions would be.
While we still don't have a solid idea of what the amethyst crystals will be capable of, we do know where to look for ideas on what could be coming. During a Q&A on October 30, a group of developers was asked if you would be able to craft binoculars, as well as a spyglass, with the new crystals. While developer Corey Scheviak said that, no, you will not be able to craft binoculars, he did tell us how they thought to add the spyglass.
Apparently, Scheviak was sitting in bed—thinking of what the team could do with crystals—when he decided to google the word "crystal". That led him to through a Wikipedia page on everything that crystals can do. He explains that, "I gave her [Agnes Larsson] like 50 ideas, and she was like, 'That one! That one right there! The spyglass!'"
In our attempt to replicate that search (we went to Wikipedia and searched "uses for crystals") we found a lot of interesting potential uses—including redstone and health applications. For example, crystals have been used to create radios and as healing remedies in the real-world. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to think that these uses would easily translate to your Minecraft world.
Scheviak said that there is "at least one" additional use for crystals coming in 1.17 and one that he is hoping will be added in. Although he did not elaborate on what those would be, he did reference the list of items (that he got from Wikipedia) before mentioning this. Time will tell what will be added, but the possibilities are fascinating, even if those possibilities won't include colored lights.