In our daily lives we use many materials the buildings we live, work, and play in are made of different materials; so are our clothes, furniture and different kinds of transport.
You come into contact with magnets many times in the course of your daily life. They play an important role in a wide range of devices including simple toys, computers, credit cards, MRI machines and business equipment. Magnets range in size from barely-visible specks to industrial monsters weighing tons. Though some are plainly visible, others are often tucked inside the inner workings of appliances and other household, medical and commercial items, doing their job silently and unseen.
Computers and Electronics
Many computers use magnets to store data on hard drives. Magnets alter the direction of a magnetic material on a hard disk in segments that then represent computer data. Later, computers read the direction of each segment of magnetic material to "read" the data. The small speakers found in computers, televisions and radios also use magnets; inside the speaker, a wire coil and magnet converts electronic signals into sound vibrations.
Electric Power and Other Industries
Magnets offer many benefits to the industrial world. Magnets in electric generators turn mechanical energy into electricity, while some motors use magnets to convert electricity back into mechanical work. In recycling, electrically-powered magnets in cranes grab and move large pieces of metal, some weighing thousands of pounds. Mines use magnetic sorting machines to separate useful metallic ores from crushed rock. In food processing, magnets remove small metal bits from grains and other food. Farmers use magnets to catch pieces of metal that cows eat out in the field. The cow swallows the magnet with its food; as it moves through the animal’s digestive system it traps metal fragments.