Re: falling magnet demo

[Troy L Lilly <tlilly@tenet.edu>]

Guntbert - In regard to the original use of "cow magnets".  Cows are 
ruminants; they have a four chambered stomach as do sheep and goats.  
One of these stomachs, the reticulum, is known as the "hardware" 
stomach.  It collects all foreign objects such as nails, wire etc and 
stores them  such that the other chambers are protected from rupture.  
The reticulum is very tough and muscular.  This helps it to be resistant 
to puncture.  Periodically, a magnet is placed in the reticulum to 
capture the ball of hardware that has collected over time.  This is the 
main function of these magnets other than in physics class.
Troy

On Thu, 13 Mar 1997, Guntbert Reiter wrote:

> Hallo Roger!
> On Mon, 10 Mar 1997 08:12:12 -0600, you wrote  to
> "phys-l@atlantis.cc.uwf.edu" about "Re: falling magnet demo" :
>
> > nested copper pipes about 2.5 m long. Our magnets are "cattle" magnets about
> > 3" long purchased from a local farm supply store. They are small cylindrical
>
> What are those originally used for?
> tnx
> Bye, bye
> 	Guntbert
> -------------------------------------------------
> Guntbert Reiter, Graz, Austria
> e-mail     : guntbert@cut.big.ac.at