Still from ‘Magination Thunderclap’ via Magination/Vimeo
Magnets. How do they work? And how can we make them do amazing things like in these GIFs?
Last week, this GIF entitled ‘Perfect magnets’ appeared online and became an instant sensation.
It’s a miracle that reduces us all to a member of Insane Clown Posse marvelling at the wonder of magnets. The Imgur post came from the user gardinbank, who also posted this Christmas jumper-inspired beauty.
The secret behind this sorcery has been revealed as Magination, a game made up of really strong magnets.
So far, all the Magination website offers is the two GIFs above and a video introducing the concept before the project launches on Kickstarter on 19 November.
Magination Thunderclap from Magination on Vimeo.
The game’s Norwegian founders clearly like toying around with magnets, which is what Magination is all about.
Magination consists of different magnetic pieces that can push, pull and shoot. Like a deck of cards, these magnets are the building blocks for any number of games with different structures and new tricks.
In the first GIF above, the black circle is magnetic, as are all of the discs. Going by gardinbank’s comments, the idea is for players to place magnets in the circle without setting them off – though in this case even the loser is rewarded with a cool magnetic domino effect.
The only limit is your imagination, it seems, and other fun items can be added to the magnetic mix, such as ping-pong balls.
Now, where can I get some magnets to mess with?
Gigglebit is Siliconrepublic.com’s daily dose of the funny and fantastic in science and tech, to help start your day on a lighter note.
