Thursday, September 1, 2011

Magnetic Induction and My Life Exerience on Majoring in Physics

When I first started college my first major was Architecture Engineering but JU didn't have it. I talked with advisers in the engineering department and they said JU has a 3/2 program where you take classes at JU for three years then transfer to another institution to finish. My only probably was I was getting money to play football at JU so I couldn't afford to transfer out so I choose physics. Now that I am a Physics major I enjoy some topics that still fit my Architect plans. I have a brief description I wrote in a presentation last semester on what interests me in Magnetic Induction and how we see or perform it in our every day lives.


Magnetic Induction in Technology

Magnetic Induction is defined as a production of voltage across a conductor moving through a magnetic field.It was formulated by Michael Faraday in 1831. Technology today uses magnetic induction to operate equipment. From computer hard drives, tape recorders, to credit cards magnetic induction takes place. I found out that the airport uses magnetic induction with the detectors the passengers go through to check for metal or illegal objects. The detector already has its own magnetic field so when it is interrupted by a metallic object there is a change in the magnetic field causing the detector to sound off. One unique way magnetic induction takes place is in traffic lights in small towns or suburbs. Traffic vehicle detectors created with loops of wires buried in the pavement to sense the presence of a vehicle which in this experiment we call the vehicle the conductor. The disturbance it creates in the magnetic field from the vehicle causes the light to turn (Riccioli, 2000)(Finkley, 2010).

Riccioli, J. (2000, april 1). How Stuff Works. Retrieved from How does a traffic light detect that a car has pulled up and is waiting for the light to change?": http://auto.howstuffworks.com/car-driving-safety/safety-regulatory-devices/question234.htm

Elliott Finkley Project Physics Seminar.


8 comments:

  1. KATIE KELLY:

    Wow thats very interesting. I have always wondered how they make the light change and new it had to be some type of sensor, but never knew it was a magnetic sensor. very cool. Thank you for sharing! I can honestly say that I am starting to enjoy physics, just got to find a way to get rid of this anxiety. LOL. Ive been freaking out about the first test ever since we got the syllabus!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jessica Lang:

    It's interesting what we have managed to accomplish. The MRI machines uses a magnetic field to take pictures of the body; hence, the name magnetic resonance imaging.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Shandale McKay:

    That was a very interesting post. I had no idea what magnetic induction was so its cool to see how it works in our every day lives.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Magnetism is such an interesting topic. Any time I read about magnetism I'm eager to learn more and more about it. Thanks for posting!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Kelsey Irvine:

    I heard that in some counties you can flash your lights or some cops will have a trigger that will change the lights. How would that work with the magnets?

    ReplyDelete
  6. When thinking of a magnet, I strictly think about refrigerator magnets. Its so crazy that magnetism goes so much in depth, beyond what I could ever think about!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Magnetic induction seems so complicated but this article simplified it and showed a practical use for it in our daily lives. Thanks for the article

    ReplyDelete
  8. Magnetic induction is awesome especially when you realize you see it everyday.Magnetism is an interesting topic, you should post more on it.

    ReplyDelete