alchymista:

Day 6: Interesting Facts About Carbon
Atomic Symbol: C; Atomic Number: 6; Atomic Mass: 12.0107 

1. Carbon is the basis for organic chemistry, and thus all living organisms, due to its ability to bond with itself and countless other elements. 
2. In solid elemental form, it can form one of the hardest substances (diamond), and also one of the softest (graphite).
3. Carbon has no limits to its usefulness; being used for graphite, diamonds, lubricant, drilling, fossil fuels, in smoke detectors, carbon-fiber, radiocarbon dating, and much, much more.
4. Carbon’s history dates back to around 3750 BC., when it was first used by the Egyptians and the Sumerians for reducing copper, zinc, and tin ores to make bronze.

Image: Diamond, a cubic carbon crystal, is the hardest known mineral.