Magnetic Sense
A month ago Wired ran a story about people implanting tiny magnets in their fingertips so they can feel magnetic fields. Suddenly they can sense AC current in electrical cords, electric motors, the fields given off by transformers, and anti-theft gates in stores. Very intriguing, but stories of infected fingers and broken magnet pieces embedded under the skin didn’t sound fun.
Today as I was cleaning junk off my desk I found a tiny magnet. This suggested an experiment: would simply gluing the magnet to my finger be enough for me to feel magnetic fields? Super glue seemed the obvious choice but after two dried-out tubes I had to settle for wood glue.
Surprisingly, it actually worked. I could feel the motors running inside my electric razor. I could sense the AC current in the cord for our toaster oven, and could feel when the oven’s thermostat clicked on & off. The strongest field I found was from the AC adapter for our handheld vacuum. I could feel it from several inches away. Very, very cool.
Update: Lots of question from diggers, so let’s get some answers up:
Why? Because the idea of feeling magnetic fields intrigued me. What? You’ve never wanted to sense invisible magnetic fields? Never been jealous of geese with their internal compasses? Probably one of those things where if you have to ask, you’ll never understand.
Did I rip off my skin? No. It was only wood glue for goodness sake. I could barely get to to stay on my finger. I was originally going to try super glue but I couldn’t find any (all my tubes of super glue were dried out…why does that always happen?). Super glue isn’t that bad, though. The worst outcome is that you have a stupid magnet stuck to your finger for a few days. (I’m not responsible if you use too much glue and hurt yourself, don’t be stupid).
What about damaging your TV/floppy disks/credit cards/hamster? Well, just don’t go near your TV or credit cards while you have it glued on your finger. And who uses floppy disks anymore? Just use a little common sense: if you wouldn’t do it with a magnet, don’t do it with a magnet which is glued on your finger.
Why not use tape/band aid/something else? I tried tape, it didn’t seem to work. I think the glue did a better job of transmitting vibrations to my skin
What did it feel like? It felt like the magnet was buzzing, like a cell phone on vibrate but weaker. Another way to describe it is as a slight tingling.
July 13th, 2006 at 1:59 pm
Cool, how powerful is the magnet? Will any type of magnet work do you know?
July 13th, 2006 at 9:11 pm
It just showed up on my desk, I have no idea where it originally came from
It is a disk 1 cm in diameter, 1 mm thick. It is strong enough to hold up a hammer. I would expect any reasonably strong, small magnet would work…it is just vibrating in response to the alternating magnetic fields. Dead hard drives might be a potential source of appropriate magnets, I’m not sure.
July 13th, 2006 at 10:01 pm
Will it come off without ripping the skin off?
July 14th, 2006 at 12:45 am
I have some about that size… I ripped them out of my old laptop’s internal speakers. I might just have to try it sometime… It’s always sounded cool but yeah, infected fingers are never good, and I want to keep my sense of touch exactly how it is.
July 14th, 2006 at 12:48 am
lol, this is great! you made my day.
July 14th, 2006 at 12:49 am
Sounds like a neodym magnet. Small and very powerful. But is it not irritating to get stuck to all those metallic objects?
Cool trick if it works.
July 14th, 2006 at 12:54 am
***Surprisingly, it actually worked. I could feel the motors running inside my electric razor. I could sense the AC current in the cord for our toaster oven, and could feel when the oven’s thermostat clicked on & off.***
I fell that kinda stuff normally, maybe I’m just really “Sensitive” but it’s no real miracle, Motors and Magnets Vibrate and some people can just feel it naturally…
July 14th, 2006 at 12:56 am
Did the superglue not attach the magnet successfully, or had you just run out of glue before trying?
July 14th, 2006 at 1:34 am
it sounds like a NIB magnet super strong found in HDDs and stuff…
July 14th, 2006 at 1:44 am
Dead hard drives have the best magnets, the best part about them is that the metal attached to the magnets make excellent keychains..
July 14th, 2006 at 1:47 am
Did it rip your skin off when you took the magnet off? :p
July 14th, 2006 at 1:55 am
Dude thats pimp. Must try this out. Thank you wonderful internet for all the things you give me.
I got a spare Neodymium Magnet around here somewhere….. =P
July 14th, 2006 at 1:56 am
Try to do a few more experiments and post the results here! I guess many people are interested.
July 14th, 2006 at 2:12 am
I guess it must be neodymium magnet.. I’ve heard these things are pretty strong, even the small ones…
July 14th, 2006 at 2:15 am
Yup, I take apart my dead hard drives for the magnets, they are the most powerful I’ve found. Also break apart quite easily (at least the ones I’ve got so far), so can fragment into a piece that fits on a finger without probs
July 14th, 2006 at 2:17 am
Just out of curiosity, what would be the purpose of this?
July 14th, 2006 at 2:33 am
Dude! that sounds cool….i just found me a small magnet too…think i am gonna try this…Again very cool .
July 14th, 2006 at 2:59 am
Sounds like a Neodymium (aka. rare-earth) magnet. They are dirt cheap to buy:
http://www.unitednuclear.com/magnets.htm
http://www.rare-earth-magnets.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=21&KeyWords=Disc&All=True
Make sure you get N40 or better when you buy Neodymium magnets
July 14th, 2006 at 3:41 am
Actually — the magnets in hard drives are electromagnets, and are only turned on when writing to the disk. So they wouldn’t be suitable…just and FYI.
July 14th, 2006 at 3:43 am
I tried using the magnet out of a cd drive, the one that clamps the cd down. Glued it onto my finger wiht crazy glue. That works perfectly
Be careful when taking the magnet off, i ripped off some skin xD
July 14th, 2006 at 3:47 am
Sounds like it came from a set of broken headphones.
July 14th, 2006 at 4:03 am
Hard drive magnets are a bit too large and strong. I’ve got a few attached to my fridge and they take prying with a flat-blade screwdriver to detatch. Small speaker magnets or something from Radio-Shack might be a better source. Perhaps clippings from one of those rubberized magnetic tool strips. Although that might be too weak, it would be a cheap expiriment.
July 14th, 2006 at 4:06 am
I guess you describe a so-called supermagnet. Supermagnets are extremely powerful. Take a look here http://www.supermagnete.de/eng/magnets.php?group=blocks_big
July 14th, 2006 at 4:23 am
lucky for me then, i have a stack of six dead hard disks
July 14th, 2006 at 4:27 am
I think your talking about a rare-earth magnet. They are incredibly strong, and you can get them in diffrent sizes.
http://www.rare-earth-magnets.com/ has a lot for sale.
July 14th, 2006 at 4:28 am
Here ya go.
http://www.meci.com/product_info.php/products_id/3800095
$.50 per or 3 for $1 : Super Neodymium Magnets
Sounds like they would do the trick, though they look to be about 2-3 mm thick.
July 14th, 2006 at 4:31 am
Possibly a neodynium (sp?) magnet? Can’t think of any other magnets as strong as that.
Possilby post a picture of this magnet, it may have came off some sort of high end headphone earbud.
July 14th, 2006 at 4:47 am
your on digg.com
July 14th, 2006 at 4:54 am
Here’s a link to a site selling 3×1 (mm) rare earth magnets:
http://www.indigo.com/magnets/gphmgnts/metric-neodymium-rare-earth-magnets.html
…in case any diggers care.
July 14th, 2006 at 5:07 am
Sounds like it’s a rare earth magnet.
July 14th, 2006 at 5:09 am
Zovirl, careful there. Hard drive magnets are usually made out of rare earth materials and so are incredibly strong.
July 14th, 2006 at 5:18 am
Good thing noone left a small dog on your desk, they’re really hard to attach to your fingers, especially when you try wood glue. I recommend super glue if you’re going to try this with a dog.
I find, somehow, I can sense the presence of various meats, the strongest sensation is when you run your dog-finger past the ass of another dog. Very, very cool.
July 14th, 2006 at 5:20 am
Neodium boron magnets are very strong, however don’t use too strong a magnet, you’ll risk “damaging” stuff that is sensitive to strong magnetic fields ( crt monitors/tv’s ).
July 14th, 2006 at 5:28 am
these may be a bit too strong but they come in the right shape
http://www.unitednuclear.com/magnets.htm
July 14th, 2006 at 5:29 am
You’re looking for ‘rare earth magnets’:
http://www.indigo.com/magnets/neodymium-magnets.html
cheers,
Kris
July 14th, 2006 at 5:29 am
Kind of puts a damper on using floppy disks, though, doesn’t it? “DARNIT! Another bad floppy!” Zovirl picks up another from his desk and using his fingertip inserts it into the drive. “WTF? Can’t they make decent floppies anymore?”
July 14th, 2006 at 5:30 am
Sounds like the magnet from a laptop pc speaker. They are a pain to pry open, but the tiny magnets are incredibly strong for their size once removed from their sheilding. Just about the right size for a fingertip.
July 14th, 2006 at 5:35 am
I tried this with some masking tape and a small neodymium magnet. Is there a specific place on the finger you’d recommend? I was only able to feel the motor running inside my CD player. Power cords didn’t do a thing.
July 14th, 2006 at 5:52 am
Pretty sweet. One question: where on your fingertip did you glue the magnet? My thought was that the fingernail might be a good place, since it would (a) have good sensitivity (tug on your fingernail if you don’t believe me), and (b) be a less obtrusive place to have a magnet.
July 14th, 2006 at 5:52 am
Maybe just position the magnets inside the fingertips of a latex glove…
…and then put that glove on your hand. FEEL the power!
July 14th, 2006 at 5:54 am
Interesting blog. How long did it take for the glue to wear off?
July 14th, 2006 at 6:00 am
It is probably a neodymium magnet. I believe they are available at RadioShack.
July 14th, 2006 at 10:56 am
I have to old fried hard drives on my desk and just yesterday i was thinking about taking a hammer (screwdriver is probally easier but whats the fun in that,) to take out the magnets. Now i actually have a reason.
July 14th, 2006 at 11:07 am
I have been wanting to try this with “finger cots”. Small latex condoms essentially that fit over a finger. But superglue is way smarter.
I also like the idea of glueing it to the top of a nail. You can more easily leave it there for a several days. The Wired article author claimed it took several days to start noticing the more subtle effects.
There are oddly powerful small rectangular magnets (2mm x 4 x 8 ) from the bottom of used ultrasonic Toothbrush brushes. If you have one lying around. They come off pretty easy and have a rubberized coating. They are strong but not quite strong enough to “pick up a hammer”.
Getting things off yourself that you have superglued on is done with acetone or Nail Polish remover. But without that you absolutely can tear you skin.
July 14th, 2006 at 11:20 am
After a few scrapes and cuts i got the magnets out of one of the drives. I used a twisty tie to attach it to my left index finger. Works great. My electric can openenor seems to do the most so far. I have a fealing that something bad will happen soon.
July 14th, 2006 at 12:40 pm
Acetone (finger nail polish remover) will disolve the super glue when you’re done playing with your magnets.
July 14th, 2006 at 2:59 pm
After reading this, I grabbed two rather strong button-cell shaped magnets I remembered putting on my fridge door. IIRC, the original purpose of these magnets was to attach a nametag or something similar to clothing without the use of a pin.
I just took the magnets, held them firmly between my thumb and forefinger, and moved them near an AC adaptor, and instantly felt the vibration. I could feel it anywhere within about 3 inches of the adaptor. No glue, no tape, no implant necessary.
This method was only sensitive enough to just barely allow me to feel current within the power cord, though.
July 14th, 2006 at 3:26 pm
I’ll have to try that when I get home. I could just barely feel power cords as well, so it sounds like you aren’t missing that much without the glue.
July 14th, 2006 at 6:10 pm
*** WARNING ***
DUDES AND DUDETTES!
The author said ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about using a neodium super magnet!
do you really want to super glue a magnet to your finger that is that strong?!
you aren’t X-men or somesuch…
PLEASE! If you do this experiment, use a wimpy magnet that you get from some cheap-o headphones or speakers… your sense of touch is sensitive as it is… it wont take much to get the sensation the author is talking about.
July 14th, 2006 at 9:37 pm
Where in the harddrive is this magnet located and one person said “he has HD magnets on his fridge that require screwdriver removal” and anotehr says “they are electromagnets so they only work when drive is engaged” WTf?\
July 15th, 2006 at 1:28 am
Hey man, the reason your super glue dries out is because water vapor in the air acts as a catalyst that accelaerates hardening. That’s essentially how super glue works. In fact if you want to accelerate hardening just put a drop of water on the wet glue. It hardens instantly. So if you buy the tiny little tubes of the stuff it will harden in a week or so. Here’s a little-known secret that I’m sure the manufacturer doesn’t want you to know. In fact they claim on their website that this does not work but I have in my freezer super glue that was opened 10 years ago and is still fresh! I kid you not. Seal the open tube in a zip-lock bag and store it in the freezer. The cold plus the low moisture combine to retard hardening almost indefinitely. Try it if you don’t believe this. This really works. Super glue would hold your magnet much better than wood glue too. You can always remove it painlessly with a little acetone or nailpolish remover, Ooop!, etc.
July 15th, 2006 at 1:33 am
I am trying the same thing with a tiny magnet, but can not feel anything, nothing, nada, what am I doing wrong, I am trying with a different glue, let’s see what happens
July 15th, 2006 at 1:44 am
the magnets in harddrives are permanent magnets not electromagnets
July 15th, 2006 at 1:56 am
You should glue a magnet to your head and see what happens? Because it’s closer to the brain it could enhance the senses.
Or it could just make you become retarded…
Either way could be cool.
July 15th, 2006 at 2:24 am
I just tried this using an N45 5×5x1mm magnet glued to the side of the tip of my index finger and I can ‘feel’ transformers from 3 inches away, but I can’t quite feel power cables.
Much better than cutting a hole in my finger at any rate…
July 15th, 2006 at 4:15 am
Could you post some pictures and a how to…
July 15th, 2006 at 9:40 am
foobaz, thanks for the tip on freezing superglue, I’ll try that next time I buy a tube.
bobm, not sure why you can’t feel it. Maybe the magnet isn’t strong enough? Maybe the effect is more subtle than you expect?
Timothy, not sure it warrants a full how to post with photos. It was pretty basic:
1) glue magnet to tip of finger
2) hold magnet close (but not touching) to wires, transformers, motors, etc.
July 15th, 2006 at 12:43 pm
This entire article is fascinating.
I wonder what would happen if you went near this :-D:
http://www.engadget.com/2006/07/03/million-dollar-bed-floats-on-magnets/
for a million bucks someone can try it out.
July 31st, 2006 at 12:57 pm
Okay. I happened to by a bunch of little Neodymium magnets a while ago. I mean, tiny. The smallest one is about 3 millimeters in diameter and not even a millimeter in width. I believe its power is negligable. Anyway, the next size up is about 5 millimeters in diameter and about 2 thick. Niether work. Any advice?
July 31st, 2006 at 7:14 pm
Mindule, I’m not sure. You might try holding them between your fingers, as Phoenix suggested. Don’t squeeze very tight, or the magnet won’t be able to vibrate.
August 22nd, 2006 at 5:21 am
[...] A blog entry from a guy who claims that he found a way to sense magnetic fields without the need to cut into his finger and risk infection.read more | digg story [...]
July 14th, 2007 at 12:57 pm
Thats cool, now that i’ve tried that i WANT the implant!
March 2nd, 2008 at 2:54 pm
You could also try a neodymium ring
There is a magic prop called ghost ring (trickmaster)
March 10th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
[...] Magnetic Sense » Zovirl Industries - If you like the idea of having magnetic sense in your fingertips, but don’t like the idea of a non-anesthetized implantation procedure, why not just glue a magnet on? [...]