Build a working electric motor from a battery, wire, and a magnet
It spins. They built it. Reality, briefly bent by their own hands.
How to do it
Wrap a length of enameled copper wire 20 times around a marker into a tight coil — leave 1 inch of straight wire on each side. Sand the bottom half of the enamel off ONE side only (this is the trick — half the rotation gets current, half doesn't). Stand two paperclips up in a battery holder so the coil's wires rest in the bent loops. Put a strong neodymium magnet on top of the battery, directly under the coil. Give it a gentle nudge. It spins. Talk about why: current makes a magnetic field in the coil, which fights the magnet underneath — half a rotation, then no current, then momentum carries it through, then current again. They just built a Faraday machine.
What you'll need
Enameled copper magnet wire (26 AWG)
AmazonAA battery holder with paperclip wires
AmazonStrong neodymium magnets (set)
AmazonSandpaper
Any fine grit you have.
FreeAA battery
Free
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