I'm going to do something. I NEED TO know if it's safe

tribdog

first off you need to know two things. 1. I just bought some super strong neodymium magnets. They are super small, shaped like rounded corner cubes about 3mm wide. The second thing you need to know is I do a lot of magic tricks.
If I swallow one of these magnets I think the possibilities for neat magic tricks are obvious. but I want to know if I'm going to die if I do. There are no sharp edges to worry about and I'm sure I can pass one through my system.
gimme some feedback

rocketboy

your crazy....they're gonna really hurt comin out

Hurkyl

Stay far, far away from thumbtacks, paperclips, pushpins, um... I suppose your computer too, but for different reasons!

tribdog

they are smaller than a peanut and don't have as sharp of edges

mrjeffy321

Hahaha!

The acids in your stomach will attack the protective coating on the magnets, they wont be pretty when/if they come out [for more than one reason].

moose

Why not just OD on iron pills and die? :)

I doubt that swallowing magnets is safe...

tribdog

yeah I was wondering about that. is neodymium toxic?

mrjeffy321

Even if you do swallow it, the magnet will not nearly be powerful enough to feel the effects outside your body.

tribdog

I think I can affect a compass from that distance. and I also think I could get it to hold up another magnet on my outside. but then I run the pinch risk.

tribdog

here goes nothing

franznietzsche

If you win a darwin award for this i swear to god i will kick your ***.

Bystander

Brittle, sintered, sharp fracture edges, possibly close enough to the abdominal surface to be strongly attracted to your belt buckle? Dunno if I'd recommend it --- the chances of performing the first, live, no-hands appendectomy aren't all that large, but still ....

If you can get a good mm or two of high density polyethylene coating to hold the things together, it might be safer. However, the m.p. of the polyethylene is gonna be higher than what the magnets take without losing their magnetism, so that's gonna be tough.

mattmns

http://webcenter.health.webmd.netsca.../95/103531.htm

Do not do it!

Gale

i think it sounds like a great idea. get video of all your neat tricks. see how far you can let it go down your throat and use the other magnet to suck it up.

mrjeffy321

I cant find many good MSDS sheets about neodymium, but NdCl3 doesnt look to good, and the Iron in the magnets reacting with the HCl in your stomach definatly isnt too good.
http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/englishhtml/F1678.htm (look under ingestion)

Gale

thats only for multiple magnets. don't listen to silly medical reports. you know... i hear magents make a man look sexy...

mattmns

You're right Gale, that is for more than one magnet. Alright then, go for it trib