Magnets, powerful man-made machines designed to harness the energy in high magnetic fields, are one of the most effective tools available to scientists. Biologists might use magnet technology to study the structure of a particular protein, to understand its function in the human body.
Chemists can use it to see how organic materials react with each other.
Physicists could use it to study the properties of superconducting materials. Engineers might use it to test the strength and agility of new materials to make, say, electrical conduits. Scientists come from all over the world to the laboratory in Tallahassee's Innovation Park, which opened in 1993. Physicist James Brooks is one such user, a recent Boston University transplant who's studying organic superconducting metals. Our group moved down a few years ago to take advantage of the facilities here, and we have not been disappointed.