12
$\begingroup$

All right, I saw everybody making and solving fun puzzles on this site and I just had to join in and make one of my own!


I live in a neighborhood, and me and my neighbors are nine,

Three above, three below, and one on each side.

Their doors are all numbered with initials like mine,

And which door is whose? Well, let me be your guide!


The man who lives above me is a beautiful kind,

He makes cars for a living, and he's a real pretty doll.

But the woman below me is tough, heavy and blind,

She's nasty and cruel and doesn't like me at all.

The woman to my left loves jewelry - she's a twin,

She gets confused for her sister, and hangs with technology folk,

While the man to my right is from dangerous kin,

But despite his fragile temper, he helps when bones are broke.


Now you've met four of my neighbors, one at a time,

But the real question now is, who am I?


Hint (24 hours elapsed):

I have added a tag that you may find helpful in your search.

$\endgroup$
2
  • $\begingroup$ The science tag is a huge spoiler... $\endgroup$
    – WhatsUp
    Commented Aug 18, 2020 at 22:20
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ @WhatsUp It may have been, I just figured it would be a good hint for those who were stuck. The clues in hindsight may have been a bit too vague and I didn't want it to be too much of a stumper :) $\endgroup$
    – Sciborg
    Commented Aug 18, 2020 at 22:46

1 Answer 1

7
$\begingroup$

I think you are

Niobium

I live in a neighborhood, and me and my neighbors are nine,

The Periodic Table

Three above, three below, and one on each side.

This tells us the element is somewhere in the middle (not at the edges).

Their doors are all numbered with initials like mine,

Atomic numbers and chemical symbols

The man who lives above me is a beautiful kind,
He makes cars for a living, and he's a real pretty doll.

Vanadium - vanadium steel is used for applications in axles, crankshafts, gears, and other critical components of a car. Named after Vanadis, the old Norse name for the Scandinavian goddess of beauty.

But the woman below me is tough, heavy and blind,
She's nasty and cruel and doesn't like me at all.

Tantalum - a hard metal and dark in colour and is named after Tantalus, a villain from Greek mythology.

The woman to my left loves jewellery - she's a twin,
She gets confused for her sister, and hangs with technology folk,

Zirconium - zirconium dioxide is used as a diamond substitute (which is the twin here, I think), to augment jewellery. An isotope of zirconium has been applied to the tracking and quantification of molecular antibodies with positron emission tomography (PET) cameras.

While the man to my right is from dangerous kin,
But despite his fragile temper, he helps when bones are broke.

Molybdenum - The most common isotopic molybdenum application involves molybdenum-99, which is a fission product. It is a parent radioisotope to the short-lived gamma-emitting daughter radioisotope technetium-99m, a nuclear isomer used in various imaging applications in medicine.

Now you've met four of my neighbors, one at a time,
But the real question now is, who am I?

Although not 100% sure, I think you are niobium.

$\endgroup$
2
  • $\begingroup$ This is it, well done! As always you are the master of riddles :) $\endgroup$
    – Sciborg
    Commented Aug 18, 2020 at 17:34
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks @Sciborg this is a very clever riddle. $\endgroup$
    – hexomino
    Commented Aug 18, 2020 at 17:35

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.