Test Your Metal! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Titanium

Titanium is a chemical element with an atomic number of 22 and is identified as Ti on the periodic table. Titanium was first discovered in Cornwall England in 1791 by William Gregor. It is appropriately named in honor of the Titans of Greek mythology.

This metal has a myriad of different uses including the manufacture of spacecraft, airplanes, ships, sports equipment, and even prosthetic limbs.

Answer: Rubidium

Rubidium is a metal with an atomic number of 37 and is identified as Rb on the periodic table. Rubidium was first identified by Gustav Kirchhoff and Robert Bunsen in 1861 through the use of flame spectroscopy. Rubidium is used in the manufacture of thermoelectric generators, spin-exchange relaxation-free magnetometers, and atomic clocks.

Answer: Iron

Iron is a Group 8 element with an atomic number of 26, identified as Fe on the periodic table. According to the intergalactic "Wikipedia" oracle, iron is the 6th most abundant element in the whole Universe. The oracle also states that iron is formed "as the final exothermic stage of stellar nucleosynthesis, by silicon fusion in massive stars." Thank goodness for your nuclear physics degree so that you can explain that to me. I do know that iron must be a pretty old metal because it makes an appearance in the fourth chapter of Genesis and man-made objects comprised of this metal have been dated to around 5000 BC.

Answer: Vanadium

Vanadium is an element with an atomic number of 23 and is identified on the periodic table as simply the letter V. The element was discovered by Andres Manuel del Rio in 1801. It is named for Vanadis, the Scandinavian goddess of beauty and fertility. Ironically, extreme levels of vanadium oxide can lead to infertility in humans.

Answer: Indium

Indium is a silvery lustrous gray metal. It has an atomic number of 49 and uses the chemical symbol In. Indium was discovered by Ferdinand Reich and Hieronymous Theodor Richter in 1863. The element is relatively rare. Radioactive indium has also been used in some cases for tracing movement of certain proteins and white blood cells through the body.

Answer: Arsenic

Arsenic is a grey metalloid with an atomic number of 33 and the designation of As on the periodic table. This metal was discovered by Albertus Magnus back in 1250. Arsenic is perhaps best known for its toxic properties and has been well established as a herbicide and a poison. Contamination of groundwater by arsenic agents causes illness and death of countless millions of people throughout the world.

Answer: Silver

Thank goodness for an easy metal to identify you think to yourself. Silver is a soft, white, transition metal with an atomic number of 47 and a chemical symbol of Ag. Along with iron, its discovery predates 5000BC. Silver has a plethora of uses, most notably as a medium for currency, jewelry, and precious artifacts. Silver also has the highest conductivity of any metal.

Answer: Tungsten

Tungsten, or wolfram, has an atomic number of 74 and takes W as its symbol on the periodic table. Torbern Bergman in 1781 is credited with this element's discovery. Tungsten is a unique metal in that it has a low vapor pressure, high tensile strength and a remarkably high melting point of 3,422 degrees Celsius (6,192 degrees Fahrenheit). Tungsten has been used in the manufacture of light bulbs, cathode-ray tubes, weapons, and rocket heads.

Answer: Aluminium

Forgive me, I know your ancestors were from America and they spelt the metal as aluminum. Aluminum, or aluminium, can be found in the Boron group and has an atomic number of 13. On the periodic table it is denoted by the letters Al. This metal is one of the most versatile on account of its low density and its ability to resist corrosion.

Interestingly, the statue of Eros in London's Piccadilly Circus is cast in aluminium. Other uses of this metal include: construction of cars, ships, airplanes, houses, baseball bats, cooking utensils, packaging materials, tin cans, money, and even solid rocket fuel.

Answer: Radium

I hope you kept your gloves on when you handled this last sample. Radium has an atomic number of 88 and a designation of Ra on the periodic table. The element was discovered by Pierre Curie and Marie Curie in 1898. All of Radium's isotopes are naturally radioactive. Exposure to radium has been shown to cause cancer and other related illnesses. Marie Curie's premature death has been linked to handling this element.