Have you ever been close to something that smells bad? Have you noticed that the farther you get from that something, the less it smells, and the closer you get, the more it smells? Well forces sort of work in the same way.
Forces behave according to a fancy law called the inverse-square law. To be technical, an inverse-square law is any physical law stating that some physical quantity or strength is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source of that physical quantity.
The inverse-square law applies to quite a few phenomena in physics. When it comes to forces, it basically means that the closer an object comes to the source of a force, the stronger that force will be on that object. The farther that same object gets from the force’s source, the weaker the effect of the force.
Mathematically we can say that doubling the distance between the object and the source of the force makes the force 1/4th as strong. Tripling the distance makes the force 1/9th as strong. Let’s play with this idea a bit.
Here’s what you need:
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The best way is to use a magnet whose sides have already been marked north and south. Put one side of that magnet against one side of your magnet. Like poles will repel. Opposite poles will attract. You can search online stores for “magnets marked north and south”. click here for an example from Amazon.
Hi. How do you determine which end of the magnet is the south and north pole? TY!
It is best to use a strong magnet. If the magnet isn’t strong enough, it may not be able to lift the paperclip.
I can’t believe I did it !!!!!!!!!!!!!! But does it matter how strong it is??
I’m not quite sure what you mean by gravity hold. Can you please explain so I can understand your question?
what is the differentness between gravity pull and gravity hold
I made a chain of six paper clips and had 2 of the same magnets as you did needed a 2nd person and the chain floated in the air ( it tolk many tries because the magnets wanted to brake the chain ) but it was fun now in my & your experiment how is it related to gravity?
Thanks
Which one are you looking for?
I’m having trouble finding the experiments i want to do ;u;
can you help me?
I CANT WAIT TO DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sure! Take a flashlight to bed tonight and play with it. Do you notice how when you pull the flashlight away from the wall, the spot of light on the wall gets dimmer? If you start at the wall, that’s where it’s the brightest. When you back up across the room, the brightness on the wall decreases. If the light source gets twice as far away, the brightness gets four times dimmer. 4 is the square of 2.
Can you explain the inverse square law to a 6 year old please
What a fun question! I actually gave this to one of my favorite astronomers, and here’s the reqponse:
I don’t know much about Jupiter’s and Saturn’s magnetic fields. I don’t know if their magnetic fields coincide with their poles of rotation. I know Earth’s doesn’t. Assuming that Jupiter has the stronger magnetic field. I think it does because it rotates so quickly. Also assuming that Jupiter’s magnetic field coincides with its rotational poles. Also assuming that you align the cow magnet’s north pole with with Jupiter’s north pole and vise versa with the south poles, all things being equal, the magnet will crash into Jupiter’s equator. Or do I have it backward? Do like poles attract or repel? I do have it backward. Spin your magnet 180 degrees. Also it may be a trick question because I don’t know if Jupiter and Saturn have the same magnetic polarity at their north poles of rotation. Realize that the Earth has swapped its magnetic polarity over time. If Jupiter and Saturn have opposite polarities at their north poles of rotation, then it really depends on the alignment of your magnet when you release it. It could be repelled by Jupiter and attracted by Saturn or vise versa. There are other factors involved, such as the equators of rotation of Jupiter and Saturn aren’t exactly in the same plane. Also timing is important. Do you release the magnet when Jupiter and Saturn are closest or when they are on opposite sides of the sun. No easy answer to this one. Depends on initial conditions and a whole lot of assumptions.
In reality, a cow magnet released between Jupiter and Saturn will probably stay in that orbit until the sun dies. Hope this gives you some food for thought!
If I was to put a cow magnet into space between Jupiter and Saturn what planet would it go to and which pole would it go to?
Yes – the more aligned the domains are inside the material, the stronger the magnet is going to be. Neodymium magnets are among the strongest you can purchase inexpensively.
If I was to put a cow magnet into space between Jupiter and Saturn what planet would it go to and which pole would it go to?
We have a cow magnet it is really strong is there a magnet that is stronger?
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Cool
Hello. My name is Kyle. I observed the more paper clips tied on to the string the weaker the force.
Hi. I think this project is cool but i can’t do distance right. Awesome anyways!
#Science
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed the project! 🙂
that was very cool progect i am glad that my mom got this for me and my sister Debbie Dobsons children
Good question! The iron in the paper clip is attracted to either end of the magnet… did you notice that? If you were using another magnet instead of a paperclip, then you’d notice a attraction-repulsion effect like you’re mentioning.
My name is Oleksiy
What if we shoot a paper clip in space would the paper clip go to north pole or the south pole????
I will have my team connect with you right away to check the status of your account!
We no longer have access to this unit?
Awesome question! There’s a whole section about just that right here.
hey aurora how does a magnet work
Without seeing your magnet, it’s hard to say, but how do you know it’s strongest int he middle? The poles are the area that if you put the magnet in a pile of paperclips, it’s the ends that the most amount of paperclips stick to.
Hi Aurora,
Our rare earth magnet was strongest in the middle, between the poles. Is this because of the larger surface area? We’re not sure.
Thanks
This experiment was really fun.
not hehe 🙁 🙁 is how i feel about it 🙁 🙁 (
Cool – let me know how it goes! You’ll need a couple more magnets to hold it in the right position. 🙂
Hey, I was wondering, what if we “expand” on this experiment (for students 12+ or something like that)?
We could make the paper clip ACTUALLY FLY around the room!
All we would need is some form of non-magnetic counterweight (like 2 pennies). We could tie the clip to one end and the pennies to the other, and hold the magnet above the paper clip, giving it freedom to maneuver in mid-air.
Just a thought. 😉
Christian McCoy, age 14
My daughters loved this experiment.
It is so cool!!!!! I love it!!!
I love this experiment! I found it easier if you use a giant magnet it will “fly” better! 🙂
Nope – make it any height you like! So glad you had fun!!
This experiment was like soooooooooo cool! It was so cool that the paperclip was flying and it was……….just.. soo cool! I have a question though . Does the string have to be 4- inches? It’s kind of a weird question I was just asking hehe. 🙂
-Jennifer
12 years old
The placement of the magnet depends on the strength if its magnetic field. The magnet in the video might be stronger than yours – are there other magnets you can try to test this out for yourself?
how do you do it so easy and have the magnet so far away?
just tried it it took me ten tries to get it three inches and half a centmieter but it is so cool i made a wall display did you know that it works with tape on it two but so cool!!!!!!! thanks miss aurora
hi i havent tried it yet but that is becuase im not at home im ate my moms office im on my cumpter i think that you are so nice i just started today
hi i havent tried it yet but that is becuase im not at home im ate my moms office im on my cumpter i think that you are so nice i just started today im making my bed room a science lag i already have a micsricope
This is so cool ! I wish everything was magnetic, so I could do this experiment with everything I own. Your experiments are sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
cool! I was never really wowed by science before my family and I subscribed to supercharged science. Sometimes I get on this website 4 fun !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi. 🙂
This experiment was awesome! I usually dread science, but then I started this program and now I can’t wait for science! BTW- I noticed that when the paper clip is attracted to the magnet, even if you put your hand between the magnet and the paper clip, it doesn’t block the pull of the magnet. I just thought it was kinda cool! 🙂
Annika Blomquist, 12 years old 🙂
Hi. :).At first our paper clip did not fly. Then my little brother succeeded. I think his rope is shorter than mine.
Great expirement!!!!!! 🙂
Seva Cable, 9 yrs. old.
Andrew McClintick wrote: “How is it related to gravfity?”
You can easily see how the magnetic force is much greater than the gravitational force, as the paper clip flies up. This experiment is in the “Force” section to help demonstrate the relative strengths of the difference forces and also the different fields. Great question!
How is it related to gravfity?
Lois