Remember how awesome it was to hold up a magnet to an old CRT display, and then watch it degauss in a colorful, rainbow seizure? Well you probably don’t have any CRTs on hand anymore, but German artist Carsten Nicolai has an installation that makes use of those same magnetic deformations, and it’s still fun to watch. More »
Sure, you’ve seen the master mutant powers of magnetic putty before and how its snake-like unhinging ability can completely engulf an object. It’s the work of magic! Or the closest thing we have to magical powers (magnets). PBS Digital Studios and Shanks FX teamed up to have a bit of fun with magnetic putty and shows it in all of its gory detail. Shot in macro and placed against a titillating soundtrack, seeing magnetic putty swallow things is, um, a lot of fun. [Joey Shanks] More »
Think Silly Putty is just fun and games? Not always! Just watch this magnetic putty completely devour a rare-earth magnet. It’s not as instantaneous as this time-lapse video makes it seem but it still ends up engulfing the entire magnet. More »
The delicate inner workings of a mechanical watch handle magnetic fields—especially those generated the industrial electromagnets used in hospitals and power stations— about as well as two liters of Diet Coke handles a tube of Mentos. That is, not well. More »
I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of Tetris. I used to play it on our old Nintendo console, but I’ve only recently rediscovered it when I saw it on the Google Play store.
Now, the classic game is jumping off of the screens of gaming consoles and tablets because now you can piece together Tetris pieces on your fridge with these officially-licensed Tetris magnets.
This isn’t the first time someone used the classic game to come up with an actual physical thing. Remember those Tetris cushions we showed you a couple of months ago?.. and the Tetris bookshelves?.. and the Tetris lamp?.. and the Tetris computer?.. and Analog Tetris?
Of course, none of the lines will clear off your fridge once you complete the entire row, but you could always just knock the magnets off by using a kitchen towel or oven mitt or something.
The Tetris magnets are available on Amazon for just $9.99(USD) for a pack of 49 – 7 each of 7 shapes. Black refrigerator recommended.
[via 7Gadgets]
The EX Hybrid Controller system isn’t the first compact wireless keyboard or gamepad designed to sidle up to the iPhone, but it might be the first that’s actually worth using. At just 2 millimeters thick they won’t fatten up your phone. And since the separate accessories attach via the magic of magnets, both can be attached in either landscape or portrait orientations. More »
Lasers are cool. Things that hover are cool. This is both. Developed by researchers at Aoyama Gakuin University, this little magnetic hover-disc is powered by magnets and driven with lasers. More »
As you might have heard, the Consumer Product Safety Commission is working hard to ban those sets of tiny magnets after a handful of reports of them being swallowed by children who then require surgery to have them removed. But it turns out that companies like Zen Magnets and Buckyballs might still be able to sell their products if the magnets are sold individually. More »
Friends, Americans, geeks, lend me your ears. The U.S. government is trying to ban Bucky Balls, Zen Magnets, and all sets of amazing and wonderful magnetic spheres, and we only have a few hours left to stop them! More »
In addition to light sensors, gyroscopes, and accelerometers, did you know most tablets and smartphones have a built in magnetometer? Its immediate benefit might not be obvious, but as this video demonstrates, it could let you use magnets to interact with your devices instead of boring old fingers or styluses. More »
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