Gold

Gold is a yellow metallic chemical element with the symbol Au. It highly sought after due to it being considered a precious metal due to its appearance and high level of malleability making it easy to work with. For this reason it is often used in the manufacture of jewelry, it is not uncommon to find rings, brooches etc made from gold with other precious metals of gemstones set into them, however due to the relative expense of gold jewelry made from solid gold is not particularly prevalent in everyday life and it is more likely that gold jewelry with actually be made from an alloy of gold or from a cheaper metal with a gold plating to add to the appearance. Aside from the factor of cost an additional reason for using an alloy of gold rather than solid gold for jewelry, or indeed any of its other uses, is the previously mentioned fact that it is extremely soft for a metal and therefore is prone to denting.

A further application for gold is its use in some electrical cables due to its high level of conductivity. Gold is often used in the tips of cables for use in high-end hi-fi systems and other audio visual devices as the conductivity of gold is alleged to deliver a higher level of clarity and quality.