Magnetically Levitating frogs... making frogs levitate with magnets!
Hi Steemit Folks!
Today I thought I would share with you ONE of my most memorable physics experiments of all time! This experiment isn’t memorable because it’s of a great scientific value, instead it’s simply an entertaining, funny experiment :)
Some of you may know the physicist “Andre Geim” who was awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize for creating the first 1D graphene structure. Well, before being awarded the Nobel Prize, Sir Andre Geim was awarded the Ig Nobel prize in 2000 for this experiment. The Ig Nobel Prize is an award, awarded every year to celebrate unusual/funny experiments in science.
In 1997 Geim was researching the effects of magnetic fields on water. Since water is mostly diamagnetic, it repels magnetic fields and as such can be used to make very small objects levitate. Geim wanted to know if this method of levitation could be up-scaled to make larger objects float.
So, he made a large magnetic field and placed water inside of it. Following this, he wondered (I have no idea why) if he could place a frog in the water and make it levitate. The frog, upon entering the water started levitating as if it was in space!
You can watch a short clip of the levitating frog below :)
Don't worry! No frogs were harmed during this experiment. The frog was hopping about very happily when taken out of the magnetic field :)
Please Upvote, Comment and follow @dr-physics for more! :)
References
"No frogs were harmed during this experiment." Yes, but look at it! I'd feel a little embarrassed if my one leg were swinging about while I hit my head on the sides a little. Fun post, this reminds me of the little levitating ball I learned about in Phys. 2.
I suppose I would also be a little embarrassed if I was that frog haha. It wasn't exactly placed very elegantly into the field, it's leg was practically doing some form of ill-choreographed tap dance.
I just thought it was best to put that little disclaimer before everyone started asking the same question, "did the frog survive." I don't like the fact that the frog wasn't 100% happy, but with that aside, I still think its a funny experiment to observe.
Levitating experiments are so cool... have you seen the classroom experiment, with a levitating magnet and liquid nitrogen? It's a basic experiment yet so interesting :D
Woah! You're still on Steemit! :o I thought your job might've gotten you too busy for Steemit. :p Yeah, I've seen that experiment.
Hi again... Yes I'm still here haha, I am really busy these days but I do occasionally drop by Steemit to see whats going on :P
I don't know if ill have time to write any articles in the near future, sadly, as I have so much research to get thorough at the moment, but I will still contribute wherever and whenever I can :)
Hi again!!! (lol) What kind of physics research do you do? I just finished my physics internship a few days ago. I guess this means you can't tell me everything you know T-T I found another physics person so I started picking at their brain. I started learning quantum physics and it's so ridiculous that I'm afraid to talk about it for fear of sounding crazy. It's super confusing too.
All of the research that I do is in the field of Medical Physics. It’s an area of Physics that isn’t really that well known to the public, however it‘s an area of Physics that I thoroughly enjoy working in :) I’m currently working on an MRI imaging/spectroscopy methodology to assess bone health in patients suffering from spinal metastases.
What did you think of your internship?
I agree, Quantum Mechanics is a really fascinating area of physics and it is truly mind boggling at first. The uncertainty principle, quantum tunnelling, “spooky-action” at a distance etc, etc, all sounds COMPLETELY crazy at first. But the more you study it, the more you realise that as crazy as it sounds, this is the word that we live in. I do find that QM really does change your perception of reality, however, I wouldn’t worry too much about sounding crazy, you would probably leave more people fascinated than thinking you’re crazy if you talk to them about it, so talk-on :P
That sounds amazing! I'm grateful to have had an internship, but honestly, it was kind of boring because I kept running out of work. I would keep asking for more work and finally I was told to work slower because if I finish my work too fast, I won't get paid as much as the other interns (who spent roughly 8-10 hours on one assignment). There was one assignment I was given which I finished in 20 minutes. I had to figure out what to do for the next 4 hours and 40 minutes.
So... I just started learning quantum physics during that time. I felt kinda bad learning quantum during my internship time, but it was much more interesting than browsing YT or FB... >.<
incredible. I wonder if that works with ppl
You would need a VERY strong magnetic field to make this work with people, I don' think we are even close to making one that strong...
If you placed a person in a magnetic field that was strong enough to make them levitate, I don't know if they would survive. The magnetic field used in this experiment was between 10 and 16 Tesla. Placing a human in that field alone would cause involuntary muscles spasms etc.
It is a shame though, as it would be cool to make a human levitate!
damn! haha :)
Yeah, I wonder how the from felt after- probably jumping all over the place.
Yeah I'm guessing so! I think the poor thing would have been very dizzy afterwards haha.
exiting topic dr.
Hi my friend
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STOPThanks for sharing, I look forwards to more wacky wizardry in lab coats!
Oh my god! This is way too much! I wana get levitated!