Rare earths are currently dominating talks on electric vehicles, wind turbines and cutting-edge defence gear. Yet most readers frequently mix up what “rare earths” truly are. Seventeen little-known elements underwrite the tech that runs modern life. Their baffling chemistry kept scientists scratching their heads for decades—until Niels Bohr
How Niels Bohr Cracked the Rare-Earth Code
Rare earths are today steering talks on EV batteries, wind turbines and next-gen defence gear. Yet many people often confuse what “rare earths” actually are. These 17 elements seem ordinary, but they anchor the gadgets we carry daily. For decades they mocked chemists, remaining a riddle, until a quantum pioneer named Niels Bohr rewrote the ru