Bismuth is a brittle metal with a pink hue, and it lends its name and color to a famous household item: Pepto-Bismol.

Humans have been using bismuth for centuries; researchers found bronze made with 18 percent bismuth in the ruins of Machu Picchu, Peru. The element has been a medical ingredient for more than a century--though, presumably, medicine didn't taste so much like bubble gum back then.