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 sear...