Short answers, pulled from the story.
Carl Auer von Welsbach discovered neodymium in 1885 while separating the substance didymium into two distinct elements. He used spectroscopic analysis to isolate the new element and its green twin praseodymium from the sample. Pure neodymium would not be isolated until 1925 after years of refinement.
The first commercial application of neodymium arrived in 1927 when Leo Moser created neodymium glass. Moser named this glass Alexandrite and it appeared lavender under daylight while shifting to pale blue under fluorescent light. American manufacturers like Heisey and Fostoria widely emulated this glass in the 1930s.
Scientists discovered the strongest permanent magnets known to science in the 1980s by alloying neodymium with iron and boron. These NdFeB magnets are essential to the electric motors of hybrid and electric vehicles and the generators of wind turbines. They also enable the miniaturization of computer hard disk drives and professional loudspeakers.
The Nd:CaWO4 laser was developed in 1961 marking the first use of a lanthanide element for generating laser radiation. This laser generates infrared light at wavelengths between 1047 and 1062 nanometers. Neodymium-doped crystals are also used to create high-powered lasers converted into green light for commercial pointers and medical devices.
Neodymium is found in minerals such as monazite and bastnäsite and is distributed widely across the globe. Major mining areas include China, the United States, Brazil, India, Sri Lanka, and Australia. China controls the majority of the world's reserves and production capacity.
Neodymium has no known biological role in most organisms but is essential to some methanotrophic bacteria living in volcanic mudpots. Neodymium metal dust is combustible and poses an explosion hazard while neodymium compounds are of low to moderate toxicity. Ingested neodymium salts are regarded as more toxic if they are soluble than if they are insoluble.