Everyday Uses for Magnets

...and that's coming up after this.

[recorded tagline]: 96.3!

--As a radio DJ, I'm surrounded
by permanent magnets all the time--

like this one here,
found in my headphones...

and these, found in the big speakers.

And there's even one in this microphone.

[birdsong]

--And would you believe

there's a link between cows and magnets,
as our vet explains?

--The cow magnet will sit in
the front stomach of the cow,

where it can attract
hazardous pieces of metal--

like this bit here, which the cow
may eat by mistake.

While this piece of metal can
roam free in the cow's stomach,

it could puncture the stomach wall
and cause the cow a lot of harm...

but while it remains attached
to the magnet, it can cause no harm at all.

--Permanent magnets are useful,

but sometimes you need a magnet
that can be controlled:

a magnet that can be switched on and off,
like the one at the scrap yard.

It helps to move bits of metal
from one place to another.

Doctors use temporary magnets, too.

--As an eye surgeon, sometimes
we have to remove tiny bits of metal

which become embedded in
the backs of people's eyes.

And if you look at this x-ray,
you can see this tiny little fragment

here at the back of this person's eye;
and this could cause serious damage.

And we remove those fragments
using an electromagnet, like this one.

Now here we see,
with the electromagnet off,

it's not able to lift up a bit of metal
like this paper clip.

But when I turn the magnet on,
we're able to lift up that paper clip.

And that's how, as an eye surgeon,
we use electromagnets

to remove bits of metal from the eye.

--Magnetism gets everywhere!

--There's a magnet in anything

that has a motor,
like your hair dryer or microwave.

There's a magnet in your telephone!

In a computer!

In a video recorder--and your TV!