Tungsten Vs. Tungsten Carbide

One question I get asked all the time by my colleagues is what the big difference is between tungsten and tungsten carbide. The answer is that the first one, tungsten, is a metal. The second one, tungsten carbide, is a ceramic material made by reacting the tungsten metal with carbon to form a super strong material about as tough as diamond. When people talk about tungsten rings, what they actually mean are tungsten carbide rings. However, since most people don't have the materials science background that I do, they don't realize that there is any difference at all. And so they use the phrase 'tungsten ring' and 'tungsten carbide ring' interchangeably. Silly, no? But there it is. When you're talking tungsten jewelry, there is no difference between the two.