Art of Memory
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Memory Challenge: The First 20 Elements

Type the first twenty elements of the periodic table in order, from hydrogen to calcium, one at a time. Only the last one you typed stays on screen, and one wrong name ends the test.

Level 9 路 Advanced

The First 20 Elements

Type one element at a time. Only the last one stays on screen, and one wrong element ends the test.

  • 20 elements
  • About 2 minutes
  • Pass with all 20

No signup needed to play.

How to Remember the First 20 Elements

Turn each element into a picture and chain them into a story. A hydrogen balloon floats up to a helium balloon, which pops onto a lithium battery, and so on to calcium.

Learn them in four runs of five: hydrogen to boron, carbon to neon, sodium to phosphorus, and sulfur to calcium. Each run is short enough to repeat in one breath.

Practise this list with Periodic Panic .

The Challenges

The easiest is first. Each one is harder than the last.

0 of 10 passed

  1. Level 1 路 Starter

    Letter Frequency

    12 letters 路 About 1 minute 路 pass at 10 of 12

    Badge: Quick Study

    Your next challengeTake the test: Letter Frequency

  2. Level 2 路 Starter

    Zodiac Signs in Order

    12 signs 路 About 2 minutes 路 pass with 2 mistakes or fewer

    Badge: Storyteller

    Take the test: Zodiac Signs in Order

  3. Level 3 路 Starter

    Backwards Alphabet

    26 letters 路 About 1 minute 路 pass by reaching A

    Badge: Rewind

    Take the test: Backwards Alphabet

  4. Level 4 路 Intermediate

    Canada's Provinces and Territories

    13 names 路 2 minutes 路 pass at 11 of 13

    Badge: Coast to Coast

    Take the test: Canada's Provinces and Territories

  5. Level 5 路 Intermediate

    The 50 U.S. States

    50 states 路 6 minutes 路 pass at 45 of 50

    Badge: State Sweep 路 Practice in US States and Capitals matching game

    Take the test: The 50 U.S. States

  6. Level 6 路 Intermediate

    U.S. State Capitals

    10 states a round 路 About 2 minutes 路 pass at 8 of 10

    Badge: Capital Finder 路 Practice in US States and Capitals matching game

    Take the test: U.S. State Capitals

  7. Level 7 路 Advanced

    U.S. Presidents in Order

    47 presidencies 路 About 4 minutes 路 pass with all 47

    Badge: Unbroken Chain 路 Practice in US Presidents Memory Game

    Take the test: U.S. Presidents in Order

  8. Level 8 路 Advanced

    Capitals of Europe

    10 countries a round 路 About 2 minutes 路 pass at 8 of 10

    Badge: Border Crosser 路 Practice in Capital Cannon

    Take the test: Capitals of Europe

  9. Level 9 路 Advanced

    The First 20 Elements

    20 elements 路 About 2 minutes 路 pass with all 20

    Badge: Lab Ready 路 Practice in Periodic Panic

    This challenge

  10. Level 10 路 Expert

    100 Digits of Pi

    100 digits 路 About 4 minutes 路 pass with all 100

    Badge: Summit 路 Practice in Guess Pi or Pi Runner

    Take the test: 100 Digits of Pi

The Answers

Show the answers
  1. Hydrogen
  2. Helium
  3. Lithium
  4. Beryllium
  5. Boron
  6. Carbon
  7. Nitrogen
  8. Oxygen
  9. Fluorine
  10. Neon
  11. Sodium
  12. Magnesium
  13. Aluminium
  14. Silicon
  15. Phosphorus
  16. Sulfur
  17. Chlorine
  18. Argon
  19. Potassium
  20. Calcium

See all the memory challenges.