Lanthanide · element 58
Cerium
Sparks when struck. The most common rare earth.
Only 0.1% of people are Cerium. (estimated)
If you're Cerium
You throw sparks when you're hit and you're much more common than your family name suggests. Quick, bright, and everywhere once people start looking.
The 'flint' in a lighter is mostly cerium, which sparks when scraped, and it polishes every phone screen.
How to get along with Cerium
Do
- Strike them with an idea; they spark.
- Use them often; they're more common than you think.
- Let them polish the rough edges of things.
Don't
- Don't confuse sparks with fire.
- Don't file them under 'rare' and forget them.
When it goes wrong: They throw sparks when hit. Aim them at something flammable and useful.
Atomic profile
Every element is placed on six personality dimensions derived from its chemistry. Your answers are placed on the same six, and the closest element wins. How the scoring works
- Reactivity
- 7
- Sociability
- 5
- Stability
- 9
- Energy
- 4
- Rarity
- 4
- Warmth
- 6
Cerium in literature
- Kate Croy — The Wings of the Dove, Henry James (1902)
- Gilbert Blythe — Anne of Green Gables, L. M. Montgomery (1908)
- Tom Tulliver — The Mill on the Floss, George Eliot (1860)
Characters from public-domain works, chosen for the same traits. Company, not a verdict.
Closest personalities
The elements whose profiles sit nearest to Cerium's. If you got Cerium, one of these was probably your runner-up.
Other lanthanides
LaLanthanumPrPraseodymiumNdNeodymiumPmPromethiumSmSamariumEuEuropiumGdGadoliniumTbTerbiumDyDysprosiumHoHolmiumErErbiumTmThuliumYbYtterbiumLuLutetium