1. By Nicholas Ferrara Lenape Middle School

2. BACKGROUND INFORMATION Plants require many minerals to survive Micro- and macronutrients Iron is an important micronutrient Almost all materials are affected by magnetic forces Magnetic objects are ferromagnetic o Strong tendency – parallel to force Even nonmagnetic materials are slightly affected Can be paramagnetic o Slight tendency – parallel to force Can be diamagnetic o Slight tendency – perpendicular to force

3. QUESTION / HYPOTHESIS I wanted to see if there was a relationship between plants and magnets. QUESTION: Do magnetic forces affect how plants grow, and if so, how? HYPOTHESIS: I think plants will be affected by magnets by growing towards the magnetic force. This is because: Many minerals plants need to survive (especially iron) are highly magnetic. Even some nonmagnetic materials have been shown to be paramagnetic (they have a slight tendency to grow parallel to magnetic forces)

4. USES IN THE REAL WORLD Farmers o Would know how magnets affect their plants o Change location of plants Shoppers/Consumers o More or less food

5. PROCEDURE There are 3 groups Group A (Control group) – No magnets Group B – Magnets under the plants Group C – Magnets around the plants Each Group has 3 separate tests This prevents errors in 1 test from dramatically affecting all data

6. PROCEDURE (CONT.) Steps Taken: 1.Each container was filled with soil up to 1 inch below the rim 2. A hole 2” by 2” by 1.5” was made in every container 3.In Group B, 2 magnets were put in the hole 4.1 tbsp. of soil and 2 radish seeds were added to every pot 5.Each container was covered, and in Group C, 2 magnets were put off to the side The amounts of sunlight and water as well as temperature remained constant.

7. EXPERIMENT – PHOTOS

8. EXPERIMENT – PHOTOS (CONT.) Not every day is shown

9. DATA TABLE Green Numbers Show Plant Height Red Numbers Show Angle Measurements Degrees from flat (not from vertical) *There is no data for Day 42

10. GRAPHS Degrees From Vertical Plant Angle Measurements With the Effect of Magnets Plant Height With the Effect of Magnets Height (millimeters)

11. CONCLUSION Data: Height Group A was tallest overall; Group C was shortest Group B varied in height Data: Angle measurements Group B grew straightest; Group C was most off-center General Conclusion: Most data supported the hypothesis Plants ARE affected by magnetic forces o They grow towards magnets near them o They are paramagnetic o They grow shorter around magnets