What would happen if you put a frog in a magnetic field?

Before, people always said that meeting someone was a destiny destined by heaven. But when the magnetic field appeared, people began to give this fate the name of "science", believing that two people with similar magnetic fields would be attracted to each other in the dark.

Conceptual image of the “human magnetic field”

Of course, there is no scientific basis for this statement. However, the study of magnetic fields is indeed something that many scientists are very concerned about.

Previously, scientists used frogs to conduct experiments, placing them in a strong magnetic field and thus obtaining an anti-gravity frog. So, what would happen if we put humans in a strong magnetic field? Would we also float like frogs?

The "anti-gravity" frog

Frog in a strong magnetic field

As we all know, the Earth is very special compared to other planets. For example, we have liquid water, suitable temperature, etc. Of course, the most important thing is that the Earth has a "radiation-proof coat". The strong magnetic field can help us resist a lot of radiation from the universe.

However, the strength of the Earth's magnetic field is around 0.5 to 0.6 Gauss, which is not high and is relatively friendly to humans and Earth's creatures.

Schematic diagram of the Earth's magnetic field

After all, water is diamagnetic, and most organisms on Earth have a large number of water molecules in their bodies. In this case, if the magnetic field is strong enough, then we can indeed float. When scientist Andre Geim discovered the diamagnetic nature of water, he tried to use organisms to conduct experiments. He wanted to see how organisms would behave when the magnetic field was strong enough.

So he put a frog into the experimental device, and the ignorant frog was suspended after entering and kept spinning in the air. In this way, Andre Geim successfully used scientific experiments to obtain an "anti-gravity frog."

Experimental device for "anti-gravity" frog

This discovery made him very excited, because since frogs can float in a strong magnetic field, it means that people with antimagnetism can also float in a strong enough magnetic field. In this case, perhaps we can experience the feeling of "weightlessness" without leaving the earth, but it is also difficult to control our actions in this environment.

So, can we create a strong magnetic field that allows people to achieve "anti-gravity"? If a person is placed in it, will the person's health be affected by the strong magnetic field?

The "anti-gravity" frog floating in mid-air

What happens when you put a person in it?

First of all, the magnetic field strength that can make frogs and other creatures levitate must be greater than 5T, and the concept of strong magnetic field has been constantly updated over the years. For example, a strong magnetic field can refer to a steady-state magnetic field of up to 45T used in scientific experiments, or it can refer to an 8T magnetic field generated by a superconducting magnet with an aperture that can only accommodate one person for magnetic resonance imaging.

And the duration of strong magnetic field is different, and the type is also obviously different. If the magnetic field lasts for a long time and the value is constant, then it is called a steady-state strong magnetic field. On the contrary, if the duration is very short, it is a pulsed strong magnetic field.

Waveform of pulsed strong magnetic field

However, no matter which kind of magnetic field it is, the current strength of artificial magnetic fields is not enough for people to achieve "anti-gravity" in it. Although this kind of floating looks very interesting, it actually causes relatively great harm to experimental organisms.

So, what kind of harm will strong magnetic fields cause to the human body?

There is a magnetic field around a magnet.

According to a previous investigation report by the Soviet Scientific Research Institute, people who work in an environment with slightly higher magnetic field strength have obvious vasodilation and significantly higher finger temperature. Exposure to strong magnetic fields may cause central nervous system function decline and hormonal imbalance.

Of course, since the human body's anti-magnetism itself comes from "cells", many scientists will focus their primary exploration targets on cells and observe the performance of cells in strong magnetic fields.

Cells are the most basic building blocks of the human body

According to research, strong magnetic fields can affect various states of cells, including morphology, destination, proliferation and apoptosis, which can ultimately have an impact on the human body.

In terms of cell proliferation, multiple studies have shown that strong magnetic fields can affect the proliferation of cartilage cells, nerve cells, and embryonic cells, which is not good for humans. However, at the same time, it also has a significant inhibitory effect on the proliferation of various tumor cells, which makes scientists believe that it may be reasonably used in anti-cancer treatment in the future.

Data show that in 1996, Raylman et al. found that 7T strong magnetic field for 64 hours can slow down the proliferation of melanoma cells (HTB63), ovarian cancer cells (HTB77IP3) and lymphoma cell lines (CCL86).

Ovarian cancer cells under a microscope

However, overall, strong magnetic fields are still quite harmful to the human body, so even if a magnetic field that supports human suspension can be created, it is impossible to put a person in it for testing. After all, life safety is still the top priority, and even if experiments are to be conducted, special protective equipment must be worn.

It is worth mentioning that scientists have been studying strong magnetic fields not just to achieve boring things like suspending people in them, but because strong magnetic fields play an important role in discovering and understanding new phenomena, and they have certain utilization value in many fields.

A maglev train that operates on the principle of magnetic field

Scientific Application of Strong Magnetic Field

First, in the field of condensed matter physics, such as semiconductor physics and superconductor physics, strong magnetic fields can provide a good research environment. For example, in the 1980s, people used strong magnetic field technology to discover integer and fractional quantum Hall effects in semiconductor two-dimensional electron gas.

In the exploration of superconductivity, magnetic fields can effectively control superconducting states, helping people understand the characteristics of different superconducting states and further understand the superconducting mechanism. According to current research results, the auxiliary effect of strong magnetic fields is still very large.

Hall effect diagram

Secondly, in the field of magnetic materials, the study of strong magnetic fields has enriched the research on the phase diagram of magnetic materials, variable magnetism, frustrated magnetic materials, etc.

Finally, strong magnetic fields have positive significance in many fields such as chemistry, materials science, microgravity, life sciences, and earth sciences. For example, many people have done nuclear magnetic resonance imaging in hospitals, which is a contribution of strong magnetic field research.

Familiar NMR instruments

In short, from the current scientific application of strong magnetic field, its development potential is still very large. Many countries are conducting strong magnetic field research, and my country has also developed a steady-state strong magnetic field experimental device.

It is worth mentioning that in addition to the strong magnetic field used in the experiment, some lower-intensity magnetic fields can be used in magnetic therapy, which still has certain benefits to the human body.

Magnetic therapy equipment that uses artificial magnetic fields to treat diseases

Magical "magnetic therapy"

When we introduced the effects of strong magnetic fields on the human body in the previous article, we mentioned that magnetic fields can affect the reactions of cells in the human body in various aspects. However, on the other hand, magnetic fields can also produce positive biological effects. In this case, magnetic fields can be used to treat diseases, which is generally called magnetic therapy.

Although the magnetic field has not been discovered by humans for a long time, magnetic therapy in my country has a history of more than 2,000 years. It is recorded in "Records of the Grand Historian" and Shen Kuo's "Records of Forgetfulness" using specially made "magnets".

Wonderful natural product - natural magnet

The "Records of the Grand Historian" records that "the King of Qi's attending physician became ill and took the five kinds of stones he refined himself." As for the "Record of Forgetfulness", it describes a "medicine well" where a magnet was placed.

However, it should be noted that there are strict requirements for the intensity of magnetic therapy, and the effect of treatment varies from person to person. Therefore, at this stage, the use of magnetic therapy to treat diseases is still relatively rare. If future medicine can really use it, it will indeed bring good news to human health.

Conceptual diagram of magnetic field

In addition, humans should also prepare for a rainy day and consider the issue of "artificial magnetic field". Because whether it is future interstellar migration or the legendary magnetic pole reversal, the "artificial magnetic field" needs to mature as soon as possible.

After all, our bodies are too fragile compared to the harsh cosmic radiation. Once the protection of the magnetic field is lost, the body will be bombarded by radiation invisibly.

If we can develop a device that can maintain the required magnetic field in every location, even if it is not a strong magnetic field, this would be considered a transformation to adapt to the cosmic environment.

Earth's magnetic field protects us from solar radiation

Of course, before that, humans may need to solve the mystery of the Earth's magnetic field. Although the self-excited generator theory is generally recognized by the scientific community, it is difficult to say what new discoveries will be made when we actually reach the core of the Earth.

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