Magnets

September 13, 2012

Magnets, what fun they are to play with. I have a magnetic game in my living room. It has a magnetic base and is covered with metal diamond shaped pieces. It’s fun to see how high you can pile them or what designs you can make. 

I also have a tool I can use to pick up pins and needles or stray paper clips. It has a magnet on the end, and it extends so I can reach things that have gotten away in corners or have fallen under furniture. Another magnetic tool I’ve used was helpful in picking up the nails in our yard left behind when a new roof was put on our house. 

Magnets are used for piloting a plane or sailing a ship, for running TVs and DVD players, and are even in your telephone and appliances. Having a MRI involves the use of a magnet, and that smooth ride you feel while on a monorail train comes from the use of an electromagnet. 

Magnets are used in the health field, too. They can be used to treat arthritis, sports injuries, and chronic pain in some people. 

I’ve actually had issues with magnetism for most of my life. Just ask my husband who finally gave up on me wearing a watch (they always stopped). The house we live in has had problems with things I attribute to a magnetic field. The cable boxes are continually acting up and leaving repairmen just scratching their heads. We’ve had issues with our laptops, and our friend who works on them has decided we have a magnetic field around our house. I’m actually wondering if our house isn’t built on a bed of magnetite, a natural magnet. Whatever it is, I guess I have a magnetic personality!

If you’re interested in learning more about magnets, you might enjoy these:

• What Makes a Magnet?
• Magnetism: A Question and Answer Book
• Science Experiments with Magnets
• Magnetism
• The Science of Electricity and Magnetism
• The Mystery of Magnets
• Magnetism: An Investigation

Laurel B.
Lone Jack Branch