Magnets Work! Did you know magnets are all around you? Magnets help you do amazing things! Keep reading! See if you think magnets have surprising uses. Magnets Pull. Look closely and you will see. Magnets can be found on a can opener. The magnet attracts, or pulls, the lid off of a soup can. A push or pull is called a force. There is also a magnet in a refrigerator. It pulls the metal in the door to make a tight seal. Do you know how? A magnet's force pulls objects made of metals called iron and steel. It will not pull other things. It will not pull a wooden pencil or a plastic toy. A magnet does not attract all items. Magnets Have Poles. You have proved, or shown, that magnets can pull some things to it. Why is this true? The two ends of a magnet are its poles. Every magnet has a north pole and a south pole. Have you ever played with trains that have magnets? Sometimes, you try to put two train cars together, but they repel. This means they push away from each other. Then you turn one of the cars around. The two cars snap together as quick as a wink. That's right! If you have played with these trains, you know it is true. When the train cars push away, two of the same poles are facing each other. However, if you put the north and south poles together, they will snap together like the train. Magnets Can Be Powerful. We know that magnets can move objects. But does the heaviness of an object matter? Can magnets move objects that have different weights? Yes, they can. Scientists are using magnets in new ways. People often wish they could travel at a faster speed than a train. There is a new train that uses powerful magnets to travel more quickly. Magnets lift the train above the track and push the train forward. The train appears to be moving as fast as lightning! Scientists have measured these train speeds. They are much faster than the trains we know. Can you imagine what magnets will help us do in the future? 10