Hi Terry, the question is whether any free energy is gained at each iteration, whether ball process or paper clip process. I found the following at http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=68526 , let me know if it makes any sense to you: -------- Magnets, gravity, electric fields, stretched springs or rubber bands... any two masses that are separated but affected by some force pulling them together has potential energy. Release the two objects so they come together and that potential energy converts to kinetic energy. When the two objects slam into one another (assuming they don't bounce off) the kinetic energy is converted to thermal energy in the form of noise and heat. Energy is always conserved.
Note also that the objects could also do an amount of work equal to the potential energy that exists when they are separated. But once they do that work, that's all the work they can do without being separated again, or 'reset'. -------- The key is that what is supposed to be conserved is total energy (_all_ potential energies plus kinetic energy). What would be a breakthrough would be to violate this, but it would require to take into account not only the potential energy wrt the gravitational force of the earth, but also the potential energy of the magnet's force, and I see no trace of the latter in your (JLN's) calculation. Michel ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, June 17, 2006 2:34 AM Subject: Re: [Vo]: Fw: Free energy in magnets? (was Re: Read it again) > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Michel Jullian > > Mmmm Terry I am not sure it is that different, doesn't it require work > to bring > the ball back to starting position, as it does for the paper clip? > > <><><><><> > > I think, if you do the math, it takes far more energy to remove the > clip from the mag than it does to lift the ball against gravity. > > Terry >
