Fridge Magnet Poles

I can't speak for your fridge magnets but all of mine have 2 poles. If you have a monopole magnet then this would be big news to the physics world.

In more seriousness, many of the flexible magnets I have come across often used on the fridge the poles switch back and forth. The poles look like lots of small bands, so if you slide the magnets up and down on each other you can feel the spots they skip over (repel) and jump to the next line up of attraction points.

Here is a link that shows you what the poles look like.

http://www.wondermagnet.com/images/ffridge.jpg

Who says they don't? Got several here that do. Just have to hold them the right way. Appear that these sheets are not just one big magnet but many. Ran in lines across the sheet. If you slide one across the other you can feel them repel. The lines look about 1/16" wide. If you dust them with an iron powder or filings you can see the lines.

What? Unless and until somebody finds the magnetic monopole, all the others are the pedestrian N / S variety.

There has been much constructive work in the treatment of....

Bi-polar disorders.

You asked for that.

Here is some wonderful knowledge about Halbach Array:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halbach_array

Yes! The Halbach Array article explains the apparent monopole very succinctly.

Thanks, Subramanyam

How would these magnets look? I got one that looks like a big Yogi Bear, that's holding up my gas bill!

FYI they do repel each other you just haven't discovered it yet, when you do it will be your personal "Eureka moment"

Have fun experimenting.....

None of the first six replies have pointed out that, in order for you to experience the repulsion, the two magnets must be oriented correctly. I'm assuming that you are referring to a pair of the thin, flat magnets commonly used for advertising. First, the magnetized (usually dark colored) sides must face each other. As you rotate one magnet over the other, there will be one position where the attraction is strongest; the two magnets will tend to snap into this position. If they are two identical magnets, they will normally be aligned parallel to each other. If they are from different sources, they may be perpendicular (as is the case with the pair I'm playing with right now).

Once in the 'snapped together' position, slide one across the other slowly crosswise and lengthwise. In one direction, the magnets will move smoothly and continue to attract. That direction is parallel to the poles. In the perpendicular direction, the magnets will 'buzz', as they jump from one attractive position to the next. As a previous reply indicated, the distance between attractive positions (N-S to N-S) is commonly around a sixteenth of an inch, so the distance between poles (N-S to S-N) is around a thirty-second of an inch.

Now, with the magnets oriented in the attractive position, tape one of the magnets to a table, magnetic surface up, with one edge parallel to the edge of the table, but an inch or so away from the edge. Tape the other magnet, magnetic surface down, to a thin ruler, also parallel to the table edge. The ruler makes it easy to move the upper magnet without rotating. Now move the ruler and its magnet sloooowly along the table, and you will be able to see and feel that in between the attractive positions are the repulsive positions. You may have to push down hard on the ruler in order to make it stay in one of the repulsive positions rather than snap to the next attractive position.

If you elect to use iron filings to see the pole locations, put the magnet in a plastic bag first, or you'll never get all the iron filings off...

thats true, the first six have not.. mainly I guess due to the level of the question, and for me, it deserves to have the urine gently extracted.