A loose term for the less common metallic elements. They include the alkaline-earth metals (barium, calcium, and strontium), beryllium, bismuth, cadmium, cobalt, gallium, germanium, hafnium, indium, lithium, boron, silicon, manganese, molybdenum, rhenium, selenium, tantalum, niobium, tellurium, thallium, thorium, titanium, tungsten, uranium, vanadium, zirconium, and the rare earths.