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you the magnetic field lines around of wire (or your electromagnet nail
the magnet. used previously), and you’ll
measure a pulse of electricity.
You detect an electric field when
you have a bad hair day! But
here’s another way:

Place an object

that is sensitive
to electrical
charges (like a
fluorescent
light) in an
electrical field
(you can do this
by vigorously
rubbing the outside of a long Electromagnetic Waves were first

fluorescent light with a plastic predicted by James Maxwell. He
bag), and you’ll find the fluorescent suggested when the magnetic
tube lights up without having it fields produce electrical fields,
being plugged in! those emerging electrical fields
generated magnetic fields, which
Maxwell’s Fourth Equation: A then created electrical fields… and
moving electric charge continue to create each other,

produces magnetism. leap-frogging their way through
space. He calculated the speed
When you wrap a wire around a those waves would travel at and
nail and run electric was surprised to find it was the
current through the speed of light! Maxwell concluded
wire, the nail-coil that light must be an

turns into a magnet electromagnetic wave traveling
(you can even pick at speed c (c = 186,000 miles per
up paper clips!). It’s second), which created a new field
called an electromagnet, as you of study called optical science, now
can turn the magnet on and off by a branch of electromagnetism.
switching the electricity on and off.
We’ll cover more on magnetism in
Changing magnetic fields produce Unit 11, and how to make circuits
electric fields. Wave a permanent in Units 10 and 14.
magnet back and forth along a coil

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