MAGNETS

CLEAN UP A NAIL SPILL • Keep a strong magnet on your workbench. Next time you spill a jar of small items like nails, screws, tacks, or washers, save time and energy and let the magnet help pick them up for you.

PREVENT A FROZEN CAR LOCK • Here’s a great way to use fridge magnets during the cold of winter. Place them over the outside door locks of your car overnight and they will keep the locks from freezing.

KEEP DESK DRAWERS NEAT • Are your paper clips all over the place? Place a magnet in your office desk drawer to keep the paper clips together.

STORE A BROOM IN A HANDY PLACE • Why run to the hall cupboard every time you need to sweep the kitchen? Instead, just use a screw to attach a magnet about halfway down the broom handle. Then store the broom attached to the side of your refrigerator between the fridge and the wall, where it will remain hidden until you are ready to use it.

DID YOU KNOW?

Ancient Chinese and Greeks discovered that certain rare stones, called lodestones, seem to magically attract bits of iron and always pointed in the same direction when allowed to swing freely. Man-made magnets come in many shapes and sizes, but every magnet has a north pole and a south pole. If you break a magnet into pieces, each piece, no matter how small, will have a north and south pole. The magnetic field, which every magnet creates, has long been used to harness energy, although scientists still don’t know exactly what it is!