Purple Men
Materials:
- 1 TV
- 1 large needle
- 1 knife
- 1 strong magnet
Instructions:
1. Turn on your television set to a program with real people on it. No cartoons! Talk shows are usually the best.
2. Take your needle and stroke it several times with the strong magnet. Remember to always stroke in the same direction. Touch your needle to the face of one of the TV hosts. What happens to the spot where the needle touches?
3. Next, get your knife and stroke it several times with the magnet. Again, stroke it in the same direction. Touch your knife to the face of one of the TV hosts. What happens to the host's face?
Have you ever noticed that after the TV has been on a long time and you try touching it there seems to be a charge on the screen that you feel with your fingertips? Try turning on your TV and leaving it on for a few hours. Next, turn off all the lights in the room. Turn off the TV and then touch the screen with yourfingers and drag your fingers along the screen. You will see that light appears and you
can make shapes with the light for a certain period.
The charge you feel on your fingers and the light you seem to create with your fingers are effects of the TV's light. Television sets flash lights around 50 times per second in order to show a picture properly. This flashing leaves a static charge to the screen. This is the charge you are picking up with your magnetized knife and needle. Remember how magnets and electricity are connected? The lights becomeattracted to the magnetized object and become concentrated on the spot, making the people on television appear to have purple skin.
*Note: Never touch the magnet to the television screen or you will cause permanent damage.
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