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Japan's Electromagnetic Trains Cause Paperclips to Dance

gizmodo.com — These paperclips, when placed on the floor of a japanese commuter train, stand up on their ends and dance whenever the train accelerates or brakes thanks electromagnetism.

Who dugg this? Made popular Jul 16, 2009

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94 Comments

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  • avataros, on 07/15/2009, -5/+53In a related story, Chuck Norris suffered a strained groin muscle and a broken nose when his testicles slammed him to the train floor.
  • wingwangdoodle, on 07/15/2009, -1/+39That's gotta feel really weird on body piercings...
  • Zippo, on 07/16/2009, -1/+24SCIENCE! It does cool *****.
  • RocketGib, on 07/16/2009, -1/+24Maybe it's a good idea not to set your laptop bag on the ground on that train.
  • martage, on 07/16/2009, -0/+22You call that dancing?
  • poxonyou, on 07/16/2009, -0/+18America needs real trains. The antique joke Amtrak doesn't count. I've lived here for 2 years and have never needed a car and been to many parts of the country, from beaches to mountains in Nagano. The only stress is occasionally getting on an overcrowded train, but it is a million times better than getting stuck in unpredictable traffic or dealing with the general stress of driving itself.
  • miggyb, on 07/16/2009, -0/+16<Zybl0re> get up
    <Zybl0re> get on up
    <Zybl0re> get up
    <Zybl0re> get on up
    <phxl|paper> and DANCE
    * nmp3bot dances :D-<
    * nmp3bot dances :D|-<
    * nmp3bot dances :D/-<
    <[SA]HatfulOfHollow> i'm going to become rich and famous after i invent a device that allows you to stab people in the face over the internet

    http://www.bash.org/?4281
  • bradleyland, on 07/16/2009, -0/+16Ferrous metals do not react well to the saline environment of the human body, hence, they are not often used in piercing.
  • duewydo, on 07/16/2009, -0/+13Could it be bad that after reading that, I heard Duke Nukem say "BAALLS OF STEEL"?
  • Peach3s, on 07/16/2009, -0/+13MAGNETO IS BACK!
  • evil-doer, on 07/16/2009, -0/+13you are completely wrong. silver oxidizes, its NOT used for body piercings AT ALL. its mostly surgical steel, titanium, niobium or sometimes gold.

    its amazing how wrong someone can be and as of this writing 16 people have dugg you up and NONE down. i hate false information.
  • dotorg, on 07/16/2009, -1/+13Are you kidding? He'd be peeling the track off his testicles *while still standing*
  • k3rfuffl3, on 07/16/2009, -0/+10Apparently, the Japanese.
  • IllBeBack, on 07/15/2009, -0/+9It's Black Magic! Burn those paperclip witches at the stake!
  • TheEvolutionDo, on 07/16/2009, -0/+8hmm they have paper clips in Japan?
    I always imagine they would have some high tech magical paper or some other *****...
  • BotchaMcCoola, on 07/16/2009, -4/+12Why can't the USA have a good high speed rail system? Who won WW2 again?
  • ripple123, on 07/16/2009, -0/+8just like derbis in manga floats up into the air when orbital lasers strike.
  • Scrappy1850, on 07/16/2009, -0/+7pick it up off the floor of the train.
  • AlienMushroom, on 07/16/2009, -11/+18But body piercings are usually made out of silver.
  • themastersb, on 07/16/2009, -0/+6It might not be a good idea to have your camcorder on the ground while filming paperclips react to the electromagnetism on that train
  • WordsnCollision, on 07/15/2009, -7/+13So will your chromosomes.
  • Lust4Me, on 07/16/2009, -0/+6I thought, at least in North America, the magnetic field considered safe for public areas is 5G (~10x Earth's field). Above that and pacemaker companies get nervous. Any idea what the field in that train equals?
  • BotchaMcCoola, on 07/16/2009, -1/+7Seems you took a wrong turn there. I am criticising the way the US politicians have wasted our US wealth since WW2. Nothing to do with ethnocentrism that I can determine.
  • inactive, on 07/16/2009, -0/+6Get off my train!!!
  • JohnP, on 07/16/2009, -0/+6May damage electronic equipment? What, like the camera that has been placed on the floor of the train to film this?..
  • inactive, on 07/16/2009, -0/+6Nope, I agree - it looked an awful lot like you were implying that we won WW2.
  • inactive, on 07/16/2009, -0/+6plus, you get to grope cute girls on crowded trains! chika-chika-chikan!
  • tweedius, on 07/16/2009, -0/+5I wonder if it'd really f- up a hard drive over time.
  • UselessTrivia, on 07/16/2009, -0/+5I wonder what would happen if I put a container of Ferrofluids on that train instead of paperclips?
  • s0nicfreak, on 07/16/2009, -0/+5But what if I have my toes pierced
  • dustinbolton, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4Magnetism drops off exponentially as distance from the magnet increases. This works on the floor but a few inches up the magnetism is probably no longer noticeable. It definitely isn't going to be hitting your whole body.
  • jon0tan, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4Just for the record, whether a body speeds up or slows down (brakes)- it is still accelerating, so the statement "whenever the train accelerates or brakes" is a bit redundant.
  • plaguepony, on 07/16/2009, -1/+5The human body is almost completly dia-magnetic. People are safe.
  • serif69, on 07/16/2009, -1/+5NOBODY puts Clippy in the corner!
  • scubaninja, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4It probably has more to do with the relative sizes and population density of Japan and the United States.
  • dustinbolton, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4He is correct. This is basic physics. The acceleration is just in the opposite direction.
  • chevyorange, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4And that is kinda inconvenient for those dumb "power bracelets" they sell on cable channels.
  • piieerrrree, on 07/16/2009, -5/+9From WikiAnswers:
    "The Allies - Britain, France, the U.S, the Soviet Union, China, Canada, Australia and others were the winners of World War 2. "
    stop being ethnocentric.
  • dustinbolton, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4Magnetism drops off exponentially as distance from the magnet increases. This works on the floor but a few inches up the magnetism is probably no longer noticeable. It definitely isn't going to be hitting your whole body.
  • dustinbolton, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4They do. They only import paper clips for train magnetism dancing.
  • dizam, on 07/16/2009, -0/+4i want my tin foil hat, please
  • osok, on 07/16/2009, -0/+3Wonder what this does to your laptop sitting in its case on the floor as you ride.. Oh hey there's an idea for piracy prevention. just wipe all hard drives coming in/out of the country via the train ride from the airport .
  • bradleyland, on 07/16/2009, -1/+4You'd make a huge mess.
  • omae, on 07/16/2009, -0/+3female conductor voice makes my penis do that

    too much 4chan
  • inactive, on 07/16/2009, -0/+3damn you, you made me laugh :(
  • RoboDonut, on 07/16/2009, -0/+3I don't think it's a good idea to set your laptop bag on the ground in _any_ train.
  • hufman, on 07/16/2009, -1/+4Yards are overrated
  • AlienMushroom, on 07/16/2009, -0/+3Smooth Criminal.
  • inactive, on 07/16/2009, -0/+3well - go to japan.
  • ZenMojo, on 07/16/2009, -0/+2Actually, it floats up in the air before the laser strikes. When the laser strikes, it creates a spinning dome of superheated gas.
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