Searching for an Iron Rod
My younger brother is tech director for his school's production of "Beauty and the Beast." As such, he received the responsibility of figuring out how to make the rose. Considering that the rose petals must reliably and regularly fall (untouched by human hands) over the course of the two-hour play, it is kind of a difficult task. After some research and brainstorming, my brother decided to use an electromagnet and rheostat. The rose petals would each have a different size of metal strip, so as the off-stage techies turn down the rheostat (thus decreasing the strength of the electromagnet) the rose petals will fall at different times over the course of the play. Genius.
For those of you who have made electromagnets before, you know that the core of the wire solonoid should be iron. Iron can be magnetized and demagnetized, unlike many other metals. But seeing as how the world has long since left the Iron Age, and very few things are made of iron anymore, we have been searching long and hard for an iron rod. (Which, incidentally, has opened the door for a large number of puns.)
We usually try to phrase our request as "a rod of iron" or "a rod made out of iron" in order to sound like we're not just looking for something for a Sunday school object lesson, and most of the people we've talked to have taken our request in stride. One clerk, however, laughed out loud and said, "Are you sure you don't want an iron rod?" Well, yes. But we laughed with him anyway and pretended we'd never heard that before.
Our quest brought us to a quaint little iron works shop. As we knocked on the door, we tried to decide who would be spokesman this time. After a moment of silence, I volunteered, and my sister-in-law stated that it would be good practice for my mission. Indeed. Although on the mission, I'll be offering people an iron rod instead of asking if I can buy one. And the success rate will probably be just as high.
Currently, we are still lost in the mists of darkness, unable to find the iron rod that will bring us to a successful rose. But hopefully we will soon find our way out of the wilderness and end our search for an iron rod.
For those of you who have made electromagnets before, you know that the core of the wire solonoid should be iron. Iron can be magnetized and demagnetized, unlike many other metals. But seeing as how the world has long since left the Iron Age, and very few things are made of iron anymore, we have been searching long and hard for an iron rod. (Which, incidentally, has opened the door for a large number of puns.)
We usually try to phrase our request as "a rod of iron" or "a rod made out of iron" in order to sound like we're not just looking for something for a Sunday school object lesson, and most of the people we've talked to have taken our request in stride. One clerk, however, laughed out loud and said, "Are you sure you don't want an iron rod?" Well, yes. But we laughed with him anyway and pretended we'd never heard that before.
Our quest brought us to a quaint little iron works shop. As we knocked on the door, we tried to decide who would be spokesman this time. After a moment of silence, I volunteered, and my sister-in-law stated that it would be good practice for my mission. Indeed. Although on the mission, I'll be offering people an iron rod instead of asking if I can buy one. And the success rate will probably be just as high.
Currently, we are still lost in the mists of darkness, unable to find the iron rod that will bring us to a successful rose. But hopefully we will soon find our way out of the wilderness and end our search for an iron rod.
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