<unk>  is a chemical element with the symbol<unk>  and atomic number 30.<unk>  is a slightly brittle metal and melts at 700 degrees plus and has a silvery-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic table. In some respects,<unk>  is chemically similar to magnesium: both elements exhibit only one normal oxidation state (+2), and the<unk> 2+ and Mg2+ ions are of similar size.<unk>  is the 24th most abundant element in Earth's crust and has five stable isotopes. The most common<unk>  ore is sphalerite <unk>  blende), a<unk>  sulfide mineral. The largest workable lodes are in Australia, Asia, and the United States.<unk>  is refined by froth flotation of the ore, roasting, and final extraction using electricity (electrowinning). Brass, an alloy of copper and<unk>  in various proportions, was used as early as the third millennium BC in the Aegean area and the region which currently includes Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kalmykia, Turkmenistan and Georgia. In the second millennium BC it was used in the regions currently including West India, Uzbekistan, Iran, Syria, Iraq, and Israel.<unk>  metal was not produced on a large scale until the 12th century in India, though it was known to the ancient Romans and Greeks. The mines of Rajasthan have given definite evidence of<unk>  production going back to the 6th century BC. To date, the oldest evidence of pure<unk>  comes from Zawar, in Rajasthan, as early as the 9th century AD when a distillation process was employed to make pure<unk> . Alchemists burned<unk>  in air to form what they called "philosopher's wool" or "white snow". The element was probably named by the alchemist Paracelsus after the German word Zinke (prong, tooth). German chemist Andreas Sigismund Marggraf is credited with discovering pure metallic<unk>  in 1746. Work by Luigi Galvani and Alessandro Volta uncovered the electrochemical properties of<unk>  by 1800. Corrosion-resistant<unk>  plating of iron (hot-dip galvanizing) is the major application for<unk> . Other applications are in electrical batteries, small non-structural castings, and alloys such as brass. A variety of<unk>  compounds are commonly used, such as<unk>  carbonate and<unk>  gluconate (as dietary supplements),<unk>  chloride (in deodorants),<unk>  pyrithione (anti-dandruff shampoos),<unk>  sulfide (in luminescent paints), and dimethylzinc or diethylzinc in the organic laboratory.<unk>  is an essential mineral, necessary for prenatal and postnatal development.<unk>  deficiency affects about two billion people in the developing world and is associated with many diseases. In children, deficiency causes growth retardation, delayed sexual maturation, infection susceptibility, and diarrhea. Enzymes with a<unk>  atom in the reactive center are widespread in biochemistry, such as alcohol dehydrogenase in humans. Consumption of excess<unk>  may cause ataxia, lethargy, and copper deficiency.
Zinc
Iron
Biotin
Copper 
Folate
Calamine
Basilicon
Sybil 