Arkansas State press. [volume] (Little Rock, Ark.) 1941-1959, 1945-07-20
Magnet Puzzle
Still Unsolved
Scientists Fail to Fathom
Secret They've Studied
For 5000 Years.

NEW lOAh. - Inc Coiiiiiiol mag
net is still a mystery. For more
than 5000 years people have pom
dered the question, what is magnet
ism? But no one has ever given
the answer,
Today magnets have countless APP
plications. They've gone to war. In
airplanes. in tanks. in motors OF all
kinds. in secret fighting equipment
whose nature cannot be told, Chill
dren have been fascinated by them
for centuries. Scientists have used
them to experiment. Because Of re-
cent developments. their future
promises to bring US many new
products for home and industry.
Yet no one can explain their essen
tial nature.
At General Electric, a leading
magnet producer, one magnet made
In a special assembly has been re-
corded as lifting 4, $50 times its own
weight. says the Chicago Tribune.
Engineers have called this the most
powerful magnet In the world.
Has Many Possibilities.
Because Of the rapid progress
made in perfecting permanent mag
nets for wartime applications, ex-
perts predicted that in postwar days
many new products will be intro
duced. using them as TIE core Of
their mechanism. They foresaw
such commercial possibilities as q
coffee maker that automatically
turns down the heat when the COT
fee Is done, letting 1t stay warm
but not allowing it to become over
cooked, an electric fatiron that au-
tomatically switches of the Juice
when the iron is even momentarily
out Of use, magnetic wire re-
corder, an ingenious device that can
record 66 minutes Of continuous
speech on a spool Of wire no larger
than doughnut. and many more
time savers and conveniences.
Asserting that permanent magnets
have not yet reached their full ma
turity. research engineers said that
much remains to be learned about
them. though more progress has
been made In their development In
the last decade than IN the previous
800 years. They attributed this re-
markable advancement to the in
PRODUCTION Of new alloys which have
magnetic properties more powerful
Is well a. more resistant to out
side sources Of characterization.
Permanent magnets are those
that will retain their magnetic prop
critics indefinitely. Probably their
Oldest and most familiar useful form
is the compass needle. According ia
legend, the Chinese Emperor Hoang-
II used a magnet In this form to
GUIDE his chariot In 2600 b. G.
New Alloys Available.
From this simple beginning per-
manent magnets have been devel-
oped to such an extent that, during
World War II their use has enabled
fighting men to replace bulky, heavy
equipment with portable models Of
reduced size and weight, has made
possible hundreds Of devices for air.
planes, and has also permitted an
increase in the sensitivity Of many
measuring and electrical cemmuni-
cation instruments.
Ten years ago there we're four
materials out Of which permanent
magnets were commonly fash
Toned, said the engineers. To-day
at least 10 alloys. each Of which
shows astounding properties, are
available"
Permanent magnets are used
most extensively in the fields Of COM
munication and measurement, but
they have also found great many
additional and varied applications.
In the home they are frequently en-
ployed In such timesaving devices
as electric coasters, coffee percola-
tors, ironing machines, and electric
refrigerators. Hearing aids and
telephones, as well as many latches
and locks, make use Of them. Prob
ably their biggest single application
Is In radio receivers. where much Of
the success of improved quality Of
sound and tone is the result of i'm
proved magnets. In industry,
where magnets are used in both
control and power equipment, they
are found In ignition magnetos,
many small motors, meters and in
struments and numerous other de-
vices.